26th May 2021 09:59
(Alliance News) - Johnson Matthey PLC on Wednesday said it plans to partner Plug Power Inc to accelerate development of electrolyser technology that harnesses hydrogen as a renewable fuel source.
The London-based speciality chemicals company and Plug Power plan to collaborate on a "roadmap" to improve the longevity, performance and efficiency of electrolyser technologies, which use electricity to separate the hydrogen and oxygen atoms in water.
The partnership combines Plug Power's hydrogen fuel cell technology, used to power vehicles and other machines, with Johnson Matthey's platinum-based catalysts, used in electrolyser systems. Catalysts accelerate chemical reactions by lowering the amount of energy required to begin a reaction, whilst catalytic products can be used to trap and treat effluent gasses from vehicles.
Johnson Matthey plans to create a "closed loop recycling systems within the supply chain" to reduce waste and energy loss by recapturing any platinum lost from its catalysts, said Managing Director Eugene McKenna.
According to Johnson Matthey, Latham, New York-based PlugPower is the largest global user of liquid hydrogen with plans to provide 500 tons of capacity each day in the US by 2025 and 1,000 daily tons globally by 2028. One US ton equals 2,000 pounds, or 907 kilograms.
Johnson Matthey said that PlugPower are well positioned to "lead" in the emerging "green hydrogen" market which is predicted to reach USD10 trillion globally by 2050, according to a Goldman Sachs equity research report from September last year.
Both companies are committed to reaching net-zero emissions, though provided no date for this.
Eugene McKenna, managing director for Green Hydrogen at Johnson Matthey, said: "We're excited to take our relationship with Plug Power, a leader in electrolyser systems, to the next level, working together to drive the development of world leading technologies with significantly improved performance and an integrated plan for recycling key materials."
Rick Mason, vice president of operations at Plug Power, said: "We are excited to collaborate with Johnson Matthey on driving the integration of leading electrolyser component technology that will bring another vital element to reach a fully sustainable green hydrogen economy."
Johnson Matthey shares were trading up 0.6% at 3,199.00 pence each in London on Wednesday morning.
By Scarlett Butler; [email protected]
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