Proton exchange membrane (PEM) water electrolyzers are a promising technology for high-purity, efficient green hydrogen production, with expanding installations. This has increased demand for materials like platinum (Pt) used in PEM manufacturing. Conversely, Pt, which currently serves primarily as catalysts for internal combustion engine vehicles (ICEVs), would become available as ICEVs are phased out. Here, we simulate the Pt requirements for rapid scale-up PEM electrolyzers and quantitatively compare these requirements with the availability of Pt from scraped autocatalysts under the IEA-NZE scenario. Our results show that demand for Pt in PEM electrolyzers is expected to increase by an order of magnitude by 2050, while ICEVs are expected to cumulatively scrap ∼2500 tons of Pt. The Pt surplus from ICEVs would meet the increasing Pt demand for PEM eletrolyzers from 2030 onwards. These findings offer fresh insights into using the potential of urban mines to meet the energy transition challenges.

中文翻译：

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释放报废 ICEV 的资源：在 IEA-NZE 情景下为绿色氢生产贡献铂金

质子交换膜 (PEM) 水电解槽是一种很有前景的高纯度、高效绿色氢气生产技术，其安装规模不断扩大。这增加了对 PEM 制造中使用的铂 (Pt) 等材料的需求。相反，目前主要用作内燃机车辆 (ICEV) 催化剂的 Pt 将随着 ICEV 的逐步淘汰而变得可用。在这里，我们模拟了快速放大 PEM 电解槽的 Pt 需求，并将这些需求与 IEA-NZE 场景下报废的汽车催化剂中 Pt 的可用性进行定量比较。我们的研究结果表明，到 2050 年，PEM 电解槽对铂的需求预计将增加一个数量级，而 ICEV 预计将累计废弃约 2500 吨铂。ICEV 的铂盈余将满足 2030 年起 PEM 电解槽不断增长的铂需求。这些发现为利用城市矿山的潜力应对能源转型挑战提供了新的见解。