Hydrogen technologies present a new world of possibilities for the energy sector, but they also come with some considerable materials challenges. The Hydrogen Innovators podcast, a product of The Stanford Hydrogen Initiative, recently invited QuesTek Vice President of Market Solutions Jason Sebastian on to talk with host Karen Baert about those challenges and the potential solutions presented by QuesTek’s Materials by Design® and ICMD® technologies. Below are some highlights.
Listen to the full episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever else you listen to podcasts.
On hydrogen’s unique challenges:
[Hydrogen] presents challenges inside of a material that no other element does. It moves very quickly within materials, it can diffuse into materials at a much more rapid rate than other elements, it has a tendency to segregate to the various interfaces within a material and it affects the cohesion of those interfaces. That’s where it has the strongest effects, the things where the material scientists get most concerned. It goes to interfaces inside of a material, it weakens the cohesion, and then, depending on what you’re concerned about, it can degrade properties.
On materials needs for hydrogen engines:
We’ve got a lot of excitement about hydrogen engines, but the industry approach these days is just sort of pumping hydrogen into existing engine materials. And there’s going to be issues there. … We can’t just use standard cast irons. We can’t just use standard cast aluminums. We’re gonna have to modify these materials a little bit if the hydrogen combustion engine economy is really going to take off. But the good news is these folks are thinking about that actively, and they know that. And you know, we can’t have engines that only last a couple years in the field. We need them to last the decades that current gasoline and diesel engines last.
On who will drive materials innovation in the hydrogen economy:
We have seen a lot of the government-, Department of Energy-style programs that are sponsoring this type of research, improved materials for the hydrogen economy. But ultimately it’s going to have to come from industry. And then on the industry side, you’ve kind of got two groups. You got the hydrogen suppliers, the makers of hydrogen, and then you got the users, like the folks that design engines. The folks that use things really know what the challenges are, and they will drive the innovation. But I think it’s going to be sort of a three-way thing with the users, the suppliers, and then maybe even the government chipping in.
Listen to the entire conversation here: