Cracking the Code of Clean Hydrogen

How a common metal like Nickel could replace Platinum in electrolysers and accelerate the EU’s green transition

 

Imagine trying to replace the world’s best performer with a budget alternative—and not just match it, but get close enough to change the game. That’s the challenge facing scientists working to reduce the use of platinum in hydrogen production. And it’s the bold mission of the Horizon Europe project NICKEFFECT.

 

Why Hydrogen, and why now?

 

Hydrogen is a key pillar of the European Union’s plan to decarbonise its economy and reach climate neutrality by 2050. Produced through water electrolysis, hydrogen offers a clean energy carrier—especially when powered by renewables. The EU has set an ambitious target: installing 40 GW of electrolyser capacity by 2030, which would produce millions of tonnes of green hydrogen annually.

 

But there’s a catch. The most efficient technology for hydrogen production—Proton Exchange Membrane Water Electrolysers (PEMWE)—relies on rare and expensive platinum group metals (PGMs). These metals, especially platinum (Pt) and iridium (Ir), are critical for the electrochemical reactions that split water into hydrogen and oxygen. And they don’t come cheap—or easy.

 

Europe’s critical raw material problem

 

Let’s break down the numbers.

 

To reach the 40 GW goal, assuming conservative catalyst loadings, Europe would require an estimated 11.7 tonnes of platinum for the cathodes alone. That’s a significant challenge, considering platinum is mostly mined in South Africa, North America, and Russia. It raises questions about price volatility, security of supply, and the environmental toll of mining such rare elements.

 

The NICKEFFECT vision

 

This is where NICKEFFECT steps in. The EU-funded research initiative brings together a multidisciplinary consortium of 12 partners from 7 countries to explore nickel-based alternatives to platinum in hydrogen production – and beyond.

 

Nickel is not new in the world of catalysis. But making it perform as well as platinum in the harsh, acidic environments of PEM electrolysers is a frontier challenge. NICKEFFECT’s approach blends cutting-edge materials science, computational modelling, AI, and safe-and-sustainable-by-design (SSbD) principles to engineer smarter, cheaper, and greener solutions.

 

Reimagining catalysts with nickel alloys

 

One of the project’s key innovations involves nickel-tungsten (Ni-W) alloys. Using electrodeposition, researchers at Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona and CIDETEC Surface Engineering (together with NICKEFFECT project partners Matgenix, VUB and Elsyca) can fine-tune the composition of Ni-W coatings, tailoring their performance at the atomic level.

 

In laboratory tests, increasing the tungsten content in NiW cathodes raised the cell efficiency from up to 61.6% (HHV) at 1 A/cm². While platinum still leads at ~74% HHV, these are impressive figures for a non-precious metal alloy—and they’re just the beginning.

 

The team is now exploring how phosphorus doping and other alloying elements like molybdenum can further enhance the catalytic properties. By modifying the hydrogen adsorption energy—a critical performance descriptor—Ni-W-based electrodes may come close to or even match platinum’s activity.

 

The science behind the Volcano Plot

 

Why is platinum so hard to beat?

 

It all comes down to the volcano plot—a graphical representation of catalytic activity versus hydrogen binding energy. Platinum sits at the very top, striking the perfect balance: it binds hydrogen neither too strongly nor too weakly. To replace it, any alternative must land close to this peak on the plot.

 

Theoretical models and machine learning tools within NICKEFFECT help guide researchers toward optimal compositions before they ever reach the lab. It’s science at digital speed, dramatically cutting development time.

 

From lab to industry: what comes next?

 

NICKEFFECT’s impact reaches beyond academic journals. Its results are already sparking industrial interest, and the team is working closely with stakeholders to refine the most promising innovations for commercialisation.

 

The project also contributes to European standardisation efforts, collaborating with the European Committee for Standardization (CEN) to harmonise electrochemical testing protocols—vital for future uptake.

 

And perhaps most importantly, NICKEFFECT proves that tackling Europe’s raw material dependency can go hand-in-hand with creating competitive, green, and resilient industries.