ELECTROLYSIS - THE IMPORTANT ENERGY TRANSFORMER IN A WORLD OF SUSTAINABLE ENERGY

In a world of sustainable energy supply, the latter will be predominan tly generated, distributed and consumed in the form of electric power and hydrogen. In order to balance supply and demand, for storage purpo ses and to meet the specific requirements of the different end users, we need powerful energy transformers in both directions-fuel cells and electrolyzers. Though based upon a simple electrochemical effect, tou gh demands on a water splitter, with respect to efficiency, operabilit y, safety and costs make it a modern electrolyzer and a piece of engin eering excellence. Furthermore, the general aspects of electrolyzer de sign and performance will be discussed. (C) 1998 International Associa tion for Hydrogen Energy.