Merit Bodner: Sustainable Hydrogen Systems with a Future

Merit Bodner researches fuel cells. Source: Lunghammer - TU Graz By Birgit Baustädter - At the TU Graz Science for Future Science Day, fuel cell researcher Merit Bodner will give one of the two keynote lectures. The main topic here is the replacement of substances of concern in hydrogen systems. Fuel cells and electrolysers are two of the most important technologies when it comes to renewable energy systems. Electrolysers are used to produce hydrogen from water using electricity (ideally from renewable sources), which can then be converted back into electricity using fuel cells if required. In this way, H₂ serves as a sustainable energy store. Merit Bodner explains that the main obstacles to the widespread use of these technologies are the ageing of the systems and the difficulty in estimating their lifespan, the limited availability of sustainably produced electricity, and the difficulty in finding substitutes for the substances that have to be used in hydrogen systems, some of which are questionable.