Hydrogen production with electrolysers is emerging

A joint study published today by the European Patent Office (EPO) and the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) uses patent statistics to reveal the trends and dynamism in the exciting field of hydrogen that can be produced using renewable electricity via electrolysis. Among the report's key findings was that patent filings for hydrogen production technologies have grown on average by 18% each year since 2005. 

Renewables-based hydrogen can be used as feedstock for the chemical sector and as fuel in fuel cells where the only by-product is water. It can also replace fossil sources in synthetic fuels, for example, when combined with captured carbon. Additionally, hydrogen is abundant and can be obtained through the electrolysis of water, using renewable electricity, in the presence of electrocatalysts. These factors make hydrogen very attractive as a green energy source - but only provided that its production, through electrolysers, is green too.  

Download the full report