Hydrogen is a fuel that when burnt, produces only water, but can power virtually anything that is fossil fuel powered. The only requirement is air and a source of pure hydrogen - the most abundant element in the universe. Through the electrolysis of water, we can split water into hydrogen and oxygen, and this process can be entirely powered by renewable energy.

In the summer of 2023, the Rijnstate hospital (Elst, The Netherlands) opened its doors. What makes this particular case interesting is how it generates its energy. Heat pumps, PV panels, and an electrolyser all work in concert to maintain a constant supply of power. The building collects energy from over 1,300 solar panels located on both the roof and the ground floor. Whenever there’s an abundance of energy, that energy goes toward electrolysis, the splitting action that produces hydrogen. This then allows for hydrogen fuel cells to kick in as a form of reserve power when the sunnier supplies are low.

The Australian company Hysata has created a design that is really promising, with an efficiency rating jumping from about 75% to a whopping 95%. As the company says on its website, this translates into 25% less electricity lost as heat compared to the average electrolyzer.

Hysata targeted poor electrolysis efficiency because it’s the largest contributor to green hydrogen’s levelized cost of energy (LCOE). The ultimate goal: make green hydrogen cost-competitive.11 The company claims to not only have done just that, but to also drop the amount of electricity wasted through heat by 10 times and the quantity of liquid needed to pump through the system by 20 times. This all translates into significantly lower costs — and remember that money has so far been green hydrogen’s biggest barrier.