China Achieves Major Breakthrough in Core Components of PEM Water Electrolysis for Hydrogen Production, Zhongke Green Hydrogen Project Wins Industry's Highest Technology Award

In 2025, China achieved key technological advancements in the field of proton exchange membrane (PEM) water electrolysis for hydrogen production. At the "2025 Membrane Industry Development Conference and the 30th Anniversary Achievement Exhibition of the China Membrane Industry Association" held in Beijing, the project "PEM Water Electrolysis Hydrogen Production Membrane Electrode, Electrolyzer, and Applications," jointly developed by Beijing Zhongke Green Hydrogen Technology Co., Ltd. and the Institute of Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, won the first prize of the "China Membrane Industry Association Science and Technology Award," marking a major upgrade in the core component technology of PEM hydrogen production in China.

Core Value and Background of the Technological Breakthrough

PEM water electrolysis for hydrogen production is regarded as a core technological pathway for producing "green hydrogen" due to its outstanding advantages, including high hydrogen purity (exceeding 99.99%), fast dynamic response, and compatibility with fluctuating renewable energy sources such as wind and solar power. It is also a strategically prioritized direction in China's "Medium and Long-Term Plan for the Development of the Hydrogen Energy Industry (2021-2035)." However, for a long time, this field in China has been constrained by a late start, facing bottlenecks such as reliance on imported key materials, insufficient technological maturity, and high costs—the cost of the core iridium catalyst accounts for 20%-30% of the total system cost, the price of imported proton exchange membranes is as high as $800-$1,200 per m², and the lifespan of membrane electrode assemblies under frequent start-stop conditions is only 2,000-5,000 hours, severely restricting large-scale application.

The award-winning project precisely addressed these industry challenges, achieving technological breakthroughs through deep industry-academia-research collaboration. Evaluated by authoritative experts from institutions such as Tsinghua University and Tianjin University, its scientific and technological achievements have reached an internationally advanced level and have already obtained authorization for 6 national invention patents, establishing a complete independent intellectual property system. Hydrogen production equipment applying this technology shows significantly improved electrolysis performance and service life, effectively replacing imported products and mitigating the risk of "bottleneck" constraints.

Award Authority and Industrial Impact

The "China Membrane Industry Association Science and Technology Award" is the highest scientific and technological award in the national membrane separation industry, approved by the Ministry of Science and Technology and registered with the National Office for Science and Technology Awards. It is evaluated every two years, with the first prize requiring projects to demonstrate outstanding innovation and technological advancement, reaching internationally or domestically leading levels. This award not only confirms the authority of the technology but also accelerates the industrialization process of the achievements.

From an industrial perspective, this breakthrough provides key support for reducing the cost of PEM hydrogen production. Currently, domestic PEM electrolyzers have achieved a 20%-30% cost reduction through the localization of core materials, and this upgrade of core components will further enhance the cost-effectiveness of the equipment. Combined with optimized power consumption and declining levelized cost of electricity, China's PEM hydrogen production cost is expected to drop to 20-23 yuan/kg by 2025, approaching the upper limit of traditional natural gas-based hydrogen production, thereby laying the foundation for large-scale applications in scenarios such as hydrogen-based steelmaking, hydrogen-powered heavy-duty trucks, and green ammonia synthesis. Meanwhile, technological breakthroughs will also help increase the proportion of PEM electrolyzer installations in China. It is projected that by 2026, their share in the total installations for hydrogen production via water electrolysis will reach 18%, accelerating the implementation of the "green electricity–green hydrogen" industry chain.