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AB surface of domestically produced proton exchange membrane1（
Whether domestically produced proton exchange membranes can be mass-produced and replace imported ones largely depends on the choices of downstream membrane electrode and stack manufacturers. At present, it is still difficult to quickly and massively switch imported proton exchange membranes to domestic products.
Our company started importing domestic proton exchange membrane validation and testing last year, and currently has no plans for mass application, "a senior executive of a domestic membrane electrode enterprise told Gaogong Hydrogen Electric. From the actual testing situation, the technical indicators of domestic proton exchange membrane single batch products are not much different from foreign brands, but after multiple batches, stability and consistency are difficult to guarantee.
In fact, in the past year, some domestic membrane electrode and stack companies have started testing and validation of domestically produced proton exchange membranes, and some companies have even started vehicle validation. Domestic proton exchange membranes are getting closer and closer to mass use to replace imports, and it seems like they are just one step away.
What are the difficulties in the production process and batch application of proton exchange membranes? What are the impacts of using domestically produced proton exchange membranes on downstream membrane electrode and stack manufacturers? Is the current "reward for subsidy" policy and demonstration city cluster planning an opportunity for domestic proton exchange membrane enterprises to quickly replace imports?
Pain points of replacing imports
Proton exchange membrane (PEM), also known as proton membrane or hydrogen ion exchange membrane, is known as the chip of fuel cells, and its performance directly determines the performance and service life of fuel cells.
For current domestic enterprises, the main difficulties of proton exchange membranes are long process cycles, complex processes, and high membrane formation costs. To solve these problems, in addition to the efforts of domestic proton exchange membrane enterprises, downstream membrane electrode and stack enterprises also need to cooperate.
Due to the previous use of imported products, the biggest difficulty in replacing domestic proton exchange membranes lies in the adaptation of the material system. "The technical director of a leading membrane electrode enterprise in China told Gaogong Hydrogen Electric that the mass introduction of domestic proton exchange membranes means that the original catalyst and gas diffusion layer materials need to be readjusted. This is a systematic project that requires the cooperation of multiple companies in the industry chain for testing and verification, and more importantly, downstream customers are willing to provide orders and operational testing scenarios.
On the other hand, the biggest bottleneck of domestically produced proton exchange membranes currently lies in the lack of sufficient matching and verification data. In pursuit of safety and reliability, downstream stack manufacturers are more inclined to purchase imported products.
Whether the defects and deficiencies of domestically produced proton exchange membranes can be reflected at the stack level needs to be verified and verified for a long time, and it will not be apparent for a while. We are currently testing and will focus on durability, mechanical strength, and other indicators. A senior executive of a domestic stack enterprise stated that material localization is imperative, but it will take time, and large-scale stack installation cannot be achieved in the short term.