Achieving Europe’s ambitious climate goals requires a significant shift from fossil fuels to renewable energy sources. With the EU aiming to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 40% by 2030—and up to 95% by 2050—there is an urgent need for scalable, sustainable energy solutions. Green hydrogen offers a versatile and clean alternative to decarbonise energy-intensive sectors. However, its widespread adoption depends on overcoming cost, durability, efficiency and resource challenges.
HYScale is addressing this challenge by upscaling innovative high-performance materials that reduce dependency on scarce resources, without compromising on performance or efficiency. By replacing CRMs and PFAS, traditionally used in Anion Exchange Membrane-water electrolyser (AEMEL), the project is advancing the first single stack 100 kW AEM electrolyser prototype, more cost-effective and environmentally friendly for hydrogen production.
Building on a series of tests, the HYScale team has successfully demonstrated that its newly developed materials can be scaled up without compromising performance. Large-scale applications are now delivering results that align with those achieved in small-scale single-cell laboratory tests, a crucial milestone on the path to real-world implementation. With this progress, HYScale is now one step closer to integrating the stack into a fully functional electrolyser system, targeting a CAPEX of 400 €/kW and advancing towards validation in an industrially relevant environment, reaching Technology Readiness Level 5.
A direct comparison with a commercial polymer, Piperion™, has demonstrated the performance advantage of CENmat PFAS-free AionFLX™ membrane and ionomer. Moreover, durability tests have shown the stability of the HYScale components, meeting the objectives of the project.
As shown, HYScale continues to make advancements in cost-effective and scalable hydrogen production. By optimising materials and refining cell design, the project is laying the groundwork for more efficient electrolyser systems. While testing moves forward in the short-stack phase, HYScale remains focused on demonstrating the viability of its innovations in real-world applications, bringing Europe closer to its clean energy goals.
A detailed report on HYScale’s latest developments, including technical findings and next steps, is available for download on the project website.
HYScale is a multinational, industry-focused, interdisciplinary EU-funded project with a primary goal of enhancing its electrolyser technology to produce the green hydrogen.
The project will focus on refining materials synthesis and components production, particularly membranes, ionomers, electrodes, and porous transport layers, looking for optimisation and upscaling.
The project’s final goal is to integrate the stack into a functional electrolyser system and to get to its validation in an industrial relevant environment (TRL5).
Led by Cutting-Edge Nanomaterials (CENmat), the consortium includes eight additional partners from seven EU countries. Among these are four renowned EU research centres specialising in hydrogen technology: the German Aerospace Center (DLR), the Italian National Research Council (CNR), the French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (CEA), and the University of Ljubljana. Additionally, there are five industrial partners: CENmat itself, the Public Power Corporation of Greece (PPC), which is the greatest energy producer in the south-east Europe, HyGear, Meta Group, and Bekaert. The diverse expertise of these project partners ensures an efficient and targeted pursuit of the project’s objectives.
Project coordinator
Dr. Schwan Hosseiny, Cutting-Edge Nanomaterials UG (CENmat)
Press officer
Lucía Cortés, META Group
Bluesky
