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This press release is an English version of the previously published Swedish version, which has interpretive precedence.
Smoltek Nanotech Holding AB (publ) ("Smoltek" or "the Company") has been granted a patent for a method to precisely deposit iridium - a critical and expensive precious metal used for hydrogen production with PEM electrolyzers - using only standardized laboratory equipment. The patented method represents a significant step forward in the development of the Company's porous transport electrode (PTE) technology.
Smoltek has been granted a new patent in the field of solutions for hydrogen applications. The patented method makes it possible to precisely control the amount of iridium deposited during coating with simple standard equipment in a laboratory environment - something that has so far only been possible with expensive and industrial ALD (Atomic Layer Deposition) technology.
"This represents a breakthrough in enabling the scale-up of electrolyzers for green hydrogen - a porous electrode that requires a minimal amount of iridium as a catalyst for the anode," says Fabian Wenger, Head of R&D at Smoltek Hydrogen.
The Innovation
The patented method, developed by Xin Wen, Ph.D., senior researcher in nanotechnology, protects an electrolyzer anode that combines nanostructures, such as carbon nanofibers, with a comprehensive corrosion protection in the form of platinum. The platinum coating is designed to follow the contours of the nanostructures, thereby maximizing the surface area. Parts of the surface are also covered with iridium oxide particles that form a coherent catalytic layer, which contributes to both catalytic activity and increased corrosion protection.
Xin Wen and her co-inventors Qi Li, Ph. D., and Bastien Penninckx, are part of Smoltek's R&D team - an international team that includes specialist expertise from China, India, Bangladesh, Switzerland and France. Xin Wen and her colleagues' work spans the entire development chain - including nanofabrication of thin film stacks on porous substrates, whole-cell tests at high proton currents in laboratory cells, and material characterization after long-term tests. The manufacturing of cells is done in collaboration with suppliers of industrial coating processes, while the iridium coating method described in the patent is performed and refined in Smoltek's own development laboratory, H2LAB.
"Unlike other material developers, we ourselves must understand how the entire cell works, because with our technology the electrode is coated directly with catalytic material instead of on the proton exchange membrane, which requires a thicker catalyst layer. This enables more efficient utilization of iridium in PEM electrolysis", says Ellinor Ehrnberg, President of Smoltek Hydrogen.
The patent is the seventh in Smoltek's innovations for hydrogen solutions and strengthens the company's position as a technology leader in next-generation hydrogen technology - where efficient use of iridium and increased catalytic activity are crucial for sustainable and scalable hydrogen production. The patent brings Smoltek's IP portfolio to 96 globally granted patents.