Recent Trends in Science and Technology of Hydrogen and Polymer Electrolyte Membrane Fuel Cells

The global energy system has to undergo a large transformation to achieve the climate targets as mentioned in the Paris Agreement. The share of electricity in all of the energy consumed by end users worldwide increases tremendously which would be about 40% in 2050 to achieve the decarbonised energy. Hydrogen could therefore be the possible link in the energy transition. Hydrogen from renewables could replace fossil fuel-based feedstocks in high-emission applications. Fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEVs) provide a low-carbon mobility option when the hydrogen is produced from renewable energy sources and offer driving performance comparable to conventional vehicles. FCEVs are complementary to battery electric vehicles and can also overcome some of the current limitations of batteries in terms of weight, driving range and refuelling time in the medium to high duty cycle segments. As the key hydrogen technologies are maturing and it has been understood that scale-up can yield the necessary technology cost reductions. Proton exchange membrane electrolysers and fuel cells are approaching technical maturity and economies of scale. Commercial deployment has started in several regions of the world. Initial efforts could focus on large-scale applications, with minimal infrastructure requirements, and on sectors where hydrogen from renewables stands out as the best-performing option to meet climate targets. Such applications include large-scale industry such as petrochemicals, steel and medium-to heavy-duty transport, medium to large passenger vehicles and commercial vehicles, large fleets of buses, trucks, trains, maritime, and aviation. However, hydrogen from renewable electricity is most likely to achieve cost competitiveness through high electrolyser utilisation rates combined with renewable electricity. The present document analyses the fuel cell technology, sustainability elements, the potential of using hydrogen as an alternative energy source and for identifying the possibilities of increasing the share of hydrogen energy in various applications. The Strengths–Weakness-Opportunities and Threats analysis was provided, giving in depth details about the technical challenges and hurdles for commercialisation. The recent developments in terms of International initiatives, targets, visions and also from the Indian perspectives, are discussed and a special reference is highlighted about International Advanced Research centre’s work in this direction.