Accelerated Degradation Protocols for Iridium-Based Oxygen Evolving Catalysts in Water Splitting Devices

Abstract

Hydrogen production by proton exchange membrane (PEM) water electrolysis is among the promising energy storage solutions to buffer an increasingly volatile power grid employing significant amounts of renewable energies. In PEM electrolysis research, 24 h galvanostatic measurements are the most common initial stability screenings and up to 5,000 h are used to assess extended stability, while commercial stack runtimes are within the 20,000–50,000 h range. In order to obtain stability data representative of commercial lifetimes with significantly reduced test duration an accelerated degradation test (ADT) was suggested by our group earlier. Here, we present a study on the broad applicability of the suggested ADT in RDE and CCM measurements and showcase the advantage of transient over static operation for enhanced catalyst degradation studies. The suggested ADT-1.6 V protocol allows unprecedented, reproducible and quick assessment of anode catalyst long-term stability, which will strongly enhance degradation research and reliability. Furthermore, this protocol allows to bridge the gap between more fundamental RDE and commercially relevant CCM studies.