Professor Marc Pera-Titus appointed as RAEng Research Chair in Electrolysis Technologies for Green Hydrogen Production

Our warmest congratulations to Professor Marc Pera-Titus on his appointment as RAEng Research Chair in Electrolysis Technologies. Professor Pera-Titus will focus, in partnership with Hydrostar Europe, on pioneering advanced electrolysis technologies aimed at producing green hydrogen.

The RAEng Research Chairs and Senior Research Fellowships program fosters collaboration between academia and industry, enabling academics in UK universities to address immediate industrial challenges. Prof Pera-Titus will receive £800,000 (£225,000 from the RAEng) over five years, as well as benefit from mentorship by RAEng Fellows and shared networking opportunities. This support allows researchers to focus on industry-relevant projects with long-term impact, as well as to engage with a community of fellow experts in progressing innovation.

This research chair, entitled the “Hydrostar Europe/Royal Academy of Engineering Research Chair in Electrolysis Technologies for H₂ Production Catalysed by Plastrons and Foams,” focuses on developing a new approach to hydrogen generation that is both cost-effective and environmentally sustainable.

Green hydrogen, created through water electrolysis powered by renewable energy, offers a significant reduction in CO₂ emissions compared to conventional grey hydrogen, which is reliant on the production and supply of fossil fuels. Green hydrogen production is crucial for decarbonising energy-intensive industries—such as steel and cement production— and for providing clean fuel options for transportation, clean water solutions, as well as long-term energy storage needed to meet net zero goals.

Current commercial electrolysers face efficiency challenges, primarily due to gas nanobubbles that cling to the electrodes. These bubbles obstruct mass transfer and increase energy loss, which reduces durability and makes the H₂ cost not economically viable compared to current H₂ production processes.

Professor Pera-Titus and his team will address these issues by designing surface-active, water-dispersible particles that can selectively detach nanobubbles from electrodes to enhance electron transfer. The proposed particles, fully recyclable, will be based on oleophobic organosilicas and carbons with catalytic metal nanoparticles that adhere to the gas-liquid interface, generating liquid foams and thin gas films known as plastrons. Specifically, this project will study how these particles impact oxygen and hydrogen evolution reactions occurring on the anode and cathode, respectively, to decrease energy requirements.

Working closely with Hydrostar, Professor Pera-Titus and his team will implement these particles in 1 kW membrane-less electrolyser prototypes from Hydrostar using fresh and contaminated waters, targeting higher efficiency and reduced costs. A key objective of the project is to achieve over 95% energy conversion efficiency while cutting full manufacture costs by at least 25%, aiming for hydrogen production below $3 per kilogram.

The RAEng Research Chair will enable Professor Pera-Titus to bring the production of green hydrogen closer to wider industrial reality, creating cutting-edge academic research with valuable commercial and environmental applications.

Hydrostar Europe was established in 2009, an independently owned and managed British company based in Exeter, with the primary goal of producing low-cost, industrial-scale green hydrogen.

Professor Marc Pera-Titus is Professor & Chair of Sustainable Catalytic Chemistry at Cardiff University, a Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry, and the author of 150 papers and inventor of 19 patents in the fields of membranes, adsorption, catalysis, and process eco-design.

To discover more, visit raeng.org.uk/rcsrf.