MIT engineers have identified new materials that could be more efficient conductors of protons – the nucleus of a hydrogen atom – which could pave the way for a number of climate-protecting technologies. Today’s proton-conducting materials require very high temperatures, but lower-temperature alternatives could boost new technologies such as fuel cells that produce clean electricity from hydrogen, and even new types of computing devices. The team identified six promising materials that could perform better than existing ones by examining a variety of factors at the atomic level. The materials still need to be tested in an experimental setting, and the findings were published in the Energy and Environmental Sciences journal.
The engineers discovered the materials by studying how proton conduction works in a group of inorganic proton conductors known as solid acids. They found that the movement of protons was directly linked to two characteristics of the atomic configurations of those materials. After conducting computer simulations, they understood that the reorganization of atoms plays a key role in helping protons move from one oxygen atom to another. They also realised that atom lattice flexibility aids proton conduction in these solid acids that are typically good conductors above 200 degrees Celsius.
The team used this knowledge to search for more effective proton-conducting materials in databases, which resulted in them identifying six solid acid compounds that work as great proton conductors. They used simulations to determine how these materials could perform at certain temperatures and confirmed they would make good fuel cell proton conductors.
The project has been hailed as promising, despite the simulations coming with their own uncertainties. Turning these findings into practical applications may take a few years. Production of fuels such as hydrogen and ammonia are the most likely first applications, with support provided by the U.S Department of Energy, the Wallenberg Foundation, and the U.S National Science Foundation.
