As the core component of the fuel cell stack, the cost of the proton exchange membrane accounts for more than 70% of the cost of the stack, and the proton exchange membrane on the market is currently 300 yuan piece. The proton exchange membrane is mainly composed of a proton exchange membrane, a catalyst and a gas diffusion layer, and the cost of the catalyst accounts for more than 50% of the cost of the proton exchange membrane.
As the key core material of membrane electrode, catalyst directly affects the performance of fuel cells to a large extent. In recent years, with the efforts of domestic manufacturers, the concept that domestic catalysts are not as good as imported ones has been greatly improved, and the localization of catalysts is steadily advancing. At present, domestic catalysts have made great progress in durability and batch stability, which can meet the real commercial needs.
Fuel cell catalysts are different from general catalysts, which have high requirements for various performance indicators such as activity, durability, and batch stability, and most of the catalysts currently used are platinum and platinum-based materials. Under the operation of the fuel cell, the platinum will gradually dissolve and be deposited in the high temperature environment of acid and alkali, so the catalyst has a process of performance degradation, and durability is very critical.
At present, there are many domestic enterprises that can produce fuel cell catalysts, including Shenzhen Aviation Institute, Zhongke Science and Technology, Hydrogen Power Zhongke, Jiping New Energy and other enterprises that have achieved batch supply, as well as listed companies such as Lopal Technology, Kaili New Materials, and Kaida Catalysis. In addition, fuel cell companies such as National Hydrogen Technology and Gaocheng Green Energy are also using self-developed catalysts.
Due to the late start of domestic catalysts, most of the current market share of fuel cell catalysts is occupied by foreign companies such as Johnson Matthey, Umicore and so on. Most domestic fuel cell companies have used imported catalysts from the initial stage, and the adaptation of production processes and imported products has been completed. If you want to switch to domestic catalysts, this requires enterprises to re-adapt the process, which requires a lot of time and cost for enterprises, which is also the biggest difficulty encountered by domestic catalysts to open up the market.
Of course, domestic catalysts also have their own unique advantages, and the cost reduction of batches is a strong agent for domestic catalysts to open the domestic market. Compared with similar imported products, under the same quality, the first domestic catalyst is cheaper. At present, 50% of the platinum-carbon catalyst** has been reduced to about 170-200 yuang. In addition, domestic catalyst companies are more willing to provide customized catalyst products to procurement companies according to the needs of downstream customers, so as to accelerate the adaptation and verification process of fuel cell companies to domestic catalysts.
Judging from the current market reaction, domestic catalysts have indeed gained a part of the market share. At present, many emerging fuel cell companies prefer to buy domestic catalysts. In addition, some leading fuel companies are pursuing 100% localization of fuel cell materials, and will also purchase some domestic catalysts for application in their newly developed products.
China has been importing a large number of catalysts for a long time, and the cost is high. Moreover, the high-performance catalysts used by hydrogen energy leaders such as Toyota, Honda, and Hyundai are customized materials and will not be exported to our country. As the core material of membrane electrode, catalyst is related to the development prospect of hydrogen energy industry. Domestic catalyst enterprises must carry the banner and strive to realize the localization and substitution of catalyst products, so as to help China's hydrogen energy industry develop faster and better.