PILOT & DECENTRALIZED
PILOT & DECENTRALIZEDOur NiCo Electrode for Pilot Hydrogen Plants
Pilot, R&D, and decentralized hydrogen plants need flexible electrode supply. Our bifunctional NiCo electrode is produced on Ni foam from 100 to 1000 cm2. Bench coupons match the 5 cm2 size of our published AEM test cell so customers can reproduce numbers directly.
Polarization (RT vs 60 °C)
TESTBEDBench-to-pilot continuity
5 cm2 coupons for bench qualification, 100 to 1000 cm2 substrates for pilot cells. Same electroless deposition process applied across the size range.
Published reference numbers
Cell-level data published with bifunctional NiCo electrode on both sides and commercial Zirfon separator (500 um): 0.5 A/cm2 at 1.62 V at 60 deg C (91.4% efficiency).
Bifunctional
Same coated electrode for HER and OER. 80 mV HER and 260 mV OER overpotential at 100 mA/cm2 (no IR correction).
Stability validated
1000-hour run at 0.5 A/cm2 / 40 deg C with bifunctional NiCo and commercial Zirfon: 21 uV/hr voltage drift.
Why pilot plants differ from GW-scale
Pilot and decentralized hydrogen plants typically operate at 10 kW to 1 MW scale, use non-standard cell formats, and have tighter procurement lead times than GW-scale projects. Standard product catalogs do not always serve the pilot segment well.
Our bifunctional NiCo electrode on Ni foam (100 to 1000 cm2), electroless-deposited, is available in flexible sizes to match pilot cell formats. The same coated electrode acts as both HER cathode and OER anode at 80 mV and 260 mV overpotential at 100 mA/cm2 in 30 wt% KOH (no IR correction).
Bench size (published)
Pilot size range
0.5 A/cm2 @ 60 deg C
Reference cell-level numbers
In a 5 cm2 AEM test cell with our bifunctional NiCo electrode on both sides and a commercial Zirfon separator (500 um), the cell reaches 0.5 A/cm2 at 1.81 V at room temperature (82% efficiency) and 1.62 V at 60 deg C (91.4%). At 1.0 A/cm2: 2.05 V at RT and 1.79 V at 60 deg C.
Pilot teams running their own bench-scale rig at 5 cm2 with the same commercial Zirfon separator can reproduce these numbers directly. The substrate is then scaled to the pilot cell format.
Stability for unattended pilot operation
Many pilot plants run with reduced staffing. 1000-hour chronopotentiometry on bifunctional NiCo electrode and commercial Zirfon separator at 0.5 A/cm2 and 40 deg C in 30 wt% KOH showed 21 uV/hr voltage drift. Pilot teams can plan service intervals around that drift figure.
Dynamic-load envelope
Pilot plants are often used to test renewable-coupled architectures. Our bifunctional NiCo electrode was tested under PV-derived schedules for 9 days and wind-derived schedules for 100 hours, both with commercial Zirfon as the separator reference.
PV-derived current profile
9 DAYSWind-derived current profile
100 HRProcurement and lead time
Pilot teams typically request samples in small batches. Bench-scale coupons can be supplied alongside pilot-scale electrodes for the same project. Our IONZERA membrane is a sibling product available for teams also evaluating separator options.
Frequently asked questions
Why use a bifunctional NiCo electrode for pilot and decentralized h2 plants?
Our bifunctional NiCo electrode operates as both HER cathode and OER anode at 80 mV and 260 mV overpotential at 100 mA/cm² in 30 wt% KOH (no IR correction). For pilot and decentralized h2 plants, using a single electrode SKU on both sides simplifies stack BOM and qualification.
What cell-level performance is published?
In a 5 cm² AEM cell with bifunctional NiCo electrode on both sides and a commercial Zirfon separator (500 µm) at zero-gap, the cell logs 0.5 A/cm² at 1.81 V at room temperature (82% efficiency) and 1.62 V at 60 °C (91.4%). At 1.0 A/cm²: 2.05 V at RT and 1.79 V at 60 °C.
What is the stability baseline?
Continuous 1000-hour chronopotentiometry at 0.5 A/cm² and 40 °C in 30 wt% KOH (bifunctional NiCo electrode on both sides, commercial Zirfon separator) showed voltage drift of 21 µV/hr. Before/after linear-sweep polarization curves differ by 30 mV at the operating point.
Is the electrode validated for renewable-coupled operation?
Yes. PV-irradiance-derived current schedules applied for 9 continuous days (peaks ~570 mA/cm²) and wind-variation-derived schedules for 100 hours (0 to 0.78 A/cm²) on the same cell. ΔV at 0.5 A/cm² before and after the 100-hour wind run: 20 mV.
What substrate sizes ship?
The bifunctional NiCo electrode is produced on Ni foam in the 100 to 1000 cm² size range. Bench-scale 5 cm² coupons matching the published test cell are also available so customers can reproduce numbers on their own rig before scaling up.
Ready to Evaluate IONZERA?
Request a sample to test IONZERA in your application. Our engineering team will support you through qualification and integration.
Request Electrode Sample