Gang Wu Team Develops Fuel-Cell Catalyst Retaining 85% Performance After 150,000 Cycles
Updated
Updated · ScienceDaily · Aug 9
Gang Wu Team Develops Fuel-Cell Catalyst Retaining 85% Performance After 150,000 Cycles
3 articles · Updated · ScienceDaily · Aug 9
Summary
85% of performance was retained after 150,000 severe voltage cycles in a new platinum-cobalt fuel-cell catalyst designed by Gang Wu’s team, a durability level researchers say could equal about 25,000 operating hours.
A radial nanochannel carbon support let the catalyst be heated to 1,000°C to form a highly ordered intermetallic structure while keeping platinum-cobalt particles under 5 nanometers and evenly dispersed.
That design aims to cut precious-metal use without sacrificing activity, addressing a longstanding tradeoff that has limited low-temperature fuel cells’ efficiency and lifespan.
Data centers could consume as much as 9% of U.S. electricity generation by 2030, up from 4% of demand in 2023, making hydrogen fuel cells a potential way to ease grid strain if the technology scales.
Will this nano-engineered catalyst finally break the durability barrier and make expensive platinum fuel cells cheap enough for everyday heavy-duty vehicles?
Could a microscopic carbon sphere hold the key to powering the booming AI data center industry without crashing the grid?