Life cycle assessment and cost analysis of anion exchange membrane electrolyzers: baseline characterization and a MEA comparison with PEM technology

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Original abstract

Hydrogen production technologies with reduced environmental impacts are considered important for the decarbonization of the energy sector. Water electrolysis is one of the most promising technologies for hydrogen production. However, the environmental impact of different electrolyzer types remains underexplored, particularly for emerging anion exchange membrane (AEM) systems. This study provides a baseline environmental and economic characterization of a laboratory-scale AEM electrolyzer stack by applying Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) and Life Cycle Costing (LCC), together with a component-level comparison with Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM) technology for selected key components. A cradle-to-end-of-life assessment of the electrolyzer stack was adopted using SimaPro 9.3 and the ReCiPe 2016 method, considering 22 environmental impact categories. The endpoint assessment indicated the electrodes as the main contributors to Human Health, Ecosystem Quality, and Resources impacts, accounting for approximately 61, 60, and 56%, respectively. These impacts were mainly associated with nickel-based electrodes and catalyst-related materials. The AEM membrane also showed a relevant contribution, especially in the Resources category, where it accounted for approximately 30% of the total impact. AEM membranes showed greater environmental impacts than PEM membranes in 18 out of the 22 categories considered, mainly due to their solvent-intensive manufacturing process. In contrast, nickel-based AEM catalysts showed substantially lower costs than platinum-group-metal catalysts used in PEM electrolyzers. From an economic perspective, the AEM membrane was the main contributor to raw material costs, while current collectors dominated energy-related manufacturing costs, accounting for approximately 36.3%. End-of-life recycling provided a limited environmental credit, reducing the Resources endpoint impact by approximately 6%. Overall, the study highlights the key environmental and economic hotspots of AEM technology, providing useful insights for the development of electrolyzer materials and manufacturing processes with lower environmental burdens.

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