Ecodesign as a key concept for improving the life cycle environmental performance of proton-exchange membrane fuel cells

Fuel cell and hydrogen (FCH) technologies are an important part of the energy transition in the EU, therefore the environmental impact assessment of FCH technologies is crucial for further policy decisions. Future FCH production will need to implement ecodesign actions to minimise the environmental impact. The EU-funded project eGHOST defines ecodesign actions for FCH technologies to support the FCH industry. In the case of a proton-exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC), four future product concepts are defined together with the associated inventories. For each product concept, a life cycle assessment was carried out and the resultant environmental profiles benchmarked against a reference PEMFC case representing the current state. The study covers the manufacturing and end-of-life phases, with certain materials, such as platinum, being recycled in a closed loop. The results show that environmental impacts can be significantly reduced by implementing ecodesign measures, in the case of climate change by up to 85%. Ecodesign actions related to the reduction of platinum content (lower platinum loading) were identified as top priority, but not the only ones to pay attention to.