The recently launched research project "PROKOREI H2" at the Baden-Württemberg Cooperative State University (DHBW) Mannheim is bringing the energy transition within reach for households and businesses. A novel electrochemical compressor purifies and compresses hydrogen — all without noisy motors and wear-prone mechanical components.

The Challenge With Hydrogen

"Hydrogen is the energy carrier of the future" — but the environmentally friendly gas that Prof. Dr. Sven Schmitz of DHBW Mannheim is talking about has properties that pose major challenges for researchers and developers. It is extremely volatile and requires an enormous amount of space. To transport hydrogen efficiently or store it in tanks — whether in a car, at a business, or in a home — it must be compressed significantly. Traditional compressors use mechanical pistons or pumps. However, these are often loud, maintenance-intensive, take up a lot of space, and carry the risk of contaminating the gas with lubricating oils.

A New Approach: Electricity Instead of Pistons

Prof. Dr. Sven Schmitz, Prof. Dr. Volker Schulz and Dr. Wilhelm Wiebe from the ELCH (Electrochemistry) research cluster at DHBW Mannheim are taking a new approach with the PROKOREI H2 project (Prototype Manufacturing of an Electrochemical Compressor for the Compression and Purification of Hydrogen): they are developing an electrochemical hydrogen compressor (EHC) that compresses the gas completely silently and with high efficiency — and purifies it in the same step.

The key innovation of the Mannheim development is that the compressor has no moving parts. Instead, the hydrogen migrates through a special, ultra-thin membrane. The system operates without wear and effortlessly achieves pressures of 200 bar — with up to 800 bar optionally possible. A further practical advantage: only pure hydrogen can pass through the membrane, so impurities are automatically filtered out. This is particularly important, as even the smallest impurities can damage sensitive fuel cells.

A Building Block for the Energy-Independent Home

Thanks to its compact and modular design, the EHC can be flexibly adapted. It is not intended solely for large industry: "With our scalable electrochemical compressor, we are making it possible for hydrogen to be used by everyone in the future," emphasises project leader Prof. Dr. Sven Schmitz. In future, for example, private households or smaller businesses could use surplus electricity from their own photovoltaic systems to produce "green hydrogen" via an electrolyser. The Mannheim compressor would then ensure that this hydrogen is stored safely, cleanly and in a space-saving manner in the home tank. When needed, the gas is converted back into electricity or heat — the perfect formula for personal energy self-sufficiency.

From Laboratory to Series Production

The PROKOREI H2 project bridges the gap between pure laboratory research and real-world application. The goal is to accompany the manufacturing of this innovative compressor from development through to market readiness and subsequent distribution. The project is also supported by valuable practical input and transfer mentors from industry.

"The combination of compression and purification in a single electrochemical process has the potential to significantly simplify industrial applications and make them more efficient than existing methods. As a transfer mentor, I would like to help identify and connect the right companies for successful scaling and series production," said Dr. Thilo Schenk, who is accompanying the project alongside Horst Schultz (founder of the Museum AutoVision Foundation in Altlußheim, which has hosted a major hydrogen exhibition for more than 20 years).

With this forward-looking technology, DHBW Mannheim once again demonstrates its role as a strong partner for application-oriented research, showing how tomorrow's energy transition is already taking shape in the region's laboratories today.

The project will be funded for two years under the "Prototype Funding for Innovative Technologies" programme by the Baden-Württemberg Ministry of Science, Research and the Arts, as well as the Baden-Württemberg Ministry of Economic Affairs, Labour and Tourism.

About DHBW Mannheim

The Baden-Württemberg Cooperative State University (DHBW) Mannheim, with its innovative centres of excellence such as the ELCH research cluster, is one of the leading academic drivers of the energy transition in the Rhine-Neckar metropolitan region. Through the close integration of theory and practice, the latest scientific findings flow directly into the regional economy.

Source:   FCW Team