Cottbus, April 24^th 2023

Greetings! I am Dr. Prerana Sharma, Ph.D. On April 24^th, 2023, I joined the Chair of Thermal Energy Technology as an academic employee, working on the EIZ-ESEW project. My primary focus is on improving anion-exchange membrane (AEM) water electrolysis, with a particular emphasis on enhancing the properties of the membrane, including the membrane-electrode assembly (MEA). Additionally, my work involves analyzing the physical and chemical properties of the system, including optimal design parameters for long-term stability and controlling operational parameters at high current densities and low OH^- concentrations. My research also aims to develop AEM-based water electrolysis technology for industrial-scale applications, which requires the transformation of laboratory techniques into large-scale manufacturing processes. To achieve this goal, we are setting up a pressurized experimental test bench for cell and stack tests in the Hydrogen Research Centre at BTU, where all outcomes and statistics will be validated using experimental data.

Cottbus, April 1^st 2023

Hello, my name is Betty Tietzmann. Since April 1st, 2023, I have a new position as a lab engineer in the field of thermal energy technology and work for the EIZ-ESEW project. Here, a novel anion exchange membrane (AEM) water electrolyzer will be built for efficient hydrogen production, to test membrane-electrode assemblies (MEA) with 100 cm² active area under high pressure (30 bar) on a laboratory scale. My task will be to prepare the AEM electrolyzer test stand for experimental investigations of different MEA combinations, carry out these experiments and evaluate the results. In the medium term, the catalyst area will be scaled up to 360 cm² and the durability of the components will be investigated in degradation tests (up to 1000 h). The goal is to find the best components for AEM water electrolysis and to further develop this technology.