EU Team Solves Green Hydrogen's Chemical Problem

Green hydrogen has long promised a cleaner energy future, but two major problems have held it back: sky-high costs and a dirty secret involving toxic chemicals.

Now, a team of European researchers is solving both issues at once. The SUPREME project, led by the University of Southern Denmark with partners across Europe, is reinventing how we produce hydrogen without pollution.

The current method works well with solar and wind power, but it relies on PFAS, the notorious forever chemicals that never break down in nature. The European Union is already planning to ban these substances because they harm both human health and the environment. At the same time, making green hydrogen costs far more than producing it from fossil fuels, which defeats the purpose.

The SUPREME team spent three years developing a completely new system. Their PFAS-free electrolysis process eliminates the toxic chemicals entirely while dramatically reducing costs.

One of their biggest wins involves iridium, a rare and expensive metal currently essential for hydrogen production. The researchers figured out how to cut iridium use by 75 percent. Even better, they developed recycling methods that recover 90 percent of the small amount still needed.

Merit Bodner from Graz University of Technology explained why this matters beyond just cleaner energy. Hydrogen is already crucial for producing ammonia, methanol, and steel, and demand keeps growing. Making green hydrogen as affordable as fossil-based hydrogen could transform heavy industry while also providing a way to store excess renewable energy.

The Ripple Effect

This breakthrough arrives at exactly the right moment. Industries worldwide are searching for ways to reduce carbon emissions without breaking the bank. Green hydrogen could power steel plants, chemical factories, and energy storage systems, but only if the price drops and the environmental concerns disappear.

The Turkish Science and Technology Council is developing new microporous membranes designed specifically for these cleaner systems. Meanwhile, Fraunhofer ISE in Germany is manufacturing the electrode units, and Norwegian company Element One Energy is designing an innovative rotating electrolyser to boost performance.

The real beauty of this project is that it solves multiple problems with one solution. By eliminating toxic chemicals, cutting rare metal dependence, and reducing costs simultaneously, the team is removing the three biggest barriers to widespread hydrogen adoption.

If their pilot systems perform as expected in real-world conditions, green hydrogen could finally compete directly with fossil fuels on price while being genuinely clean from production to use.

The clean energy transition just got a whole lot more practical.