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<p>Proton exchange membrane water electrolysis attracts worldwide attention as a promising technology for green H<sub>2</sub> production and renewable energy storage, yet the safety considerations in the industrial-scale operations are largely overlooked. Herein, localized deflagration in 100 kW and 2 kW proton exchange membrane water electrolysis stacks are reported. Water-starvation induced by flow channel obstruction is identified as the cause of the incident. The incident is reproduced in single electrolyzers, with the membrane electrode assembly deflagration process captured in-situ and studied. Physicochemical analysis and simulations reveal that water-starvation reduces membrane conductivity by 100-fold, generating large Joule heating to elevate membrane electrode assembly temperature above 150 °C, which softens membrane and leads to perforation under thermomechanical stress, subsequent H<sub>2</sub> - O<sub>2</sub> mixing and deflagration. Safety precautions are established, including materials and component designs, and monitoring strategies, with methods enabling early warning of deflagration in a 5 kW differential pressure stack. This work proposes both the fundamental understanding of deflagration mechanisms and practical guidelines for safe industrial scale-up of proton exchange membrane water electrolysis technology.</p>

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Catastrophic localized deflagration formation mechanisms and safety precautions in proton exchange membrane water electrolyzer

  • 期刊论文

  • 出版模式：

    开放获取

  • 发表日期：

    2025年10月14日

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  • Aidong Tan,
  • Jiayi Song,
  • Xutao Qiu,
  • Zhang Liu,
  • Lifan Xia,
  • Chen Ju,
  • Feng Zhao,
  • Gang Li,
  • Xiaoyun Shi,
  • Tingting Li,
  • Ping Liu,
  • Jianguo Liu

摘要

Proton exchange membrane water electrolysis attracts worldwide attention as a promising technology for green H2 production and renewable energy storage, yet the safety considerations in the industrial-scale operations are largely overlooked. Herein, localized deflagration in 100 kW and 2 kW proton exchange membrane water electrolysis stacks are reported. Water-starvation induced by flow channel obstruction is identified as the cause of the incident. The incident is reproduced in single electrolyzers, with the membrane electrode assembly deflagration process captured in-situ and studied. Physicochemical analysis and simulations reveal that water-starvation reduces membrane conductivity by 100-fold, generating large Joule heating to elevate membrane electrode assembly temperature above 150 °C, which softens membrane and leads to perforation under thermomechanical stress, subsequent H2 - O2 mixing and deflagration. Safety precautions are established, including materials and component designs, and monitoring strategies, with methods enabling early warning of deflagration in a 5 kW differential pressure stack. This work proposes both the fundamental understanding of deflagration mechanisms and practical guidelines for safe industrial scale-up of proton exchange membrane water electrolysis technology.