To ensure energy supply while also achieving global climate goals, fossil fuel energy sources must be replaced with renewable energy. One technology for achieving increased electrification of our vehicles is hydrogen and fuel cell technology.
In a hydrogen-powered fuel cell, a chemical reaction takes place between hydrogen and oxygen, which produces electricity to power an electric car – while the residual product is no more hazardous than water vapour. For the process to work, so-called bipolar plates are needed in the fuel cell.
Advantages of composite
The Swedish start-up SSAC has developed a concept for a new type of bipolar plate made of composite, a material that is unusually strong in relation to its weight. The company is also further developing its concept in order to offer bipolar plates in bio-based composite – which makes the plates strong and lightweight, and therefore an environmentally friendly and cost-effective alternative to other materials.
“At SSAC, we work with composites, but a few years ago I was with a company that worked on fuel cells, so I was interested in combining these two business areas to see whether composite materials could be used in fuel cells,” says Martin Skrikerud, CEO of SSAC.
Reduced cost is an important factor
The work has shown that the concept gives the plates good properties for a fuel cell, and will allow for mass production in a way that is scalable and cheaper than the materials used today, such as metal or graphite. Cost is an important factor, since one obstacle to the wider use of fuel cell-powered vehicles is that they are relatively expensive at present. And the bipolar plates account for a fairly large part of the costs in a fuel cell.
“It’s a bit like other technologies such as solar cells or batteries, which have been around for a long time but were previously far too expensive to have a large area of use,” explains Skrikerud.
“Similarly, fuel cells have been used for a long time, but the unique thing about our solution is that you can mass produce at a reasonable cost. Potentially, we can almost halve the current costs –
we aren’t making a better product than what exists today, but we make it faster and cheaper.”
Fokus on CO2 emissions in the manufacturing process
In addition to being a cost-effective alternative, SSAC addresses another problem: CO2 emissions in the manufacturing process. For a long time, the focus has very much been on eliminating emissions in the user phase, through batteries or fuel cells, and less on emissions from materials and manufacturing.
“The next step is to find materials and processes for manufacturing that are also CO2 neutral,” says David Mattsson, Research and Business Developer at RISE. “This is what we are trying to achieve in the next step, with materials that are bio-based and can also be recycled.”
Together with RISE, SSAC first performed an evaluation test, which showed good results – initially on a small scale and eventually at larger scales. RISE’s testbed for sustainable composite manufacturing was one of the systems used to test the plates. And according to Skrikerud, there are several strengths in the collaboration:
“RISE has good knowledge of the processes and materials we want to use. And besides, we don’t have the staff or machines to do everything we want to do, so we must enlist the help of others. RISE has the expertise we need.”
Mattson also highlights these strengths:
“Here at RISE, we can easily connect the skills and resources needed for each customer – we have everything under one roof. No matter the development needs we encounter, in most cases we have the solutions within RISE. Seeking out this expertise yourself is not always easy.”
Testbed with many opportunities
At the testbed in Piteå, researchers and companies are able to test, develop, and demonstrate new sustainable materials and manufacturing processes.
“Here, you can work with existing material mixtures or develop your own materials that can be adapted to a certain process,” says Mattsson. “We can also help establish collaborations throughout the value chain, with material suppliers, the automotive industry and end users.
We can also put together research projects and look at things with a lower technology maturity and over a longer term. Plus, we can also offer customers opportunities to work in bilateral projects together with us when product development approaches the final phase. With SSAC, we work with a combination of these working methods, and it’s good to have such a combination throughout, since it allows you to constantly produce new technology from the ground up.”
