Transformacja w kierunku gospodarki wodorowej i niskoemisyjnego wodoru a surowce krytyczne
The nexus between transition towards hydrogen economy with large-scale production of low-CO2 hydrogen and the critical raw materials

Author(s): Anna Niemczyk, Jakub Kupecki
Subject(s): Business Economy / Management, Energy and Environmental Studies
Published by: Wydawnictwa Uniwersytetu Warszawskiego
Keywords: hydrogen economy; critical raw materials; fuel cells; electrolyzers; hydrogen production
Summary/Abstract: The forecasted gradual increase of the importance of hydrogen in numerous branches of the industry is associated with significant increase in the number of installations for its low-emission production. Among these technologies, systems based on electrolysers will play a significant role. The direction of the development of this type of system, more precisely the type of used electrolyser (alkaline electrolysers, electrolysers with a polymer membrane, or solid oxide electrolysers), will determine the capital expenditures for the installation, as well as its efficiency, which will directly affect the levelized cost of hydrogen. However, in the long-term perspective, the availability of raw materials for those technologies may become crucial, in particular the availability of critical raw materials, influencing their price. In this study, various electrolyser technologies were characterized in terms of the construction materials, taking into account the critical raw materials, in particular, the issues related to the availability of precious metals, rare earth metals, cobalt, and fluorspar were described. Additionally, the conditions for the commercialization of electrolysers in Poland were compared in the context of the availability of domestic resources and the prices of individual raw materials.

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