Assessment of the Demand of Critical Materials for Fuel Cell Micro CHP for Households in Germany

Abstract

<p>Due to the pressing necessity of switching to alternative sources of energy, fuel cells (FC) for household applications have emerged as an alternative for decentralized energy supply. Despite the advancement on technological developments, concerns on the availability of critical raw materials required for the fabrication of these technologies may limit their implementation. This document analyses the demand of platinum for mass implementation of stationary fuel cells for household energy supply in Germany, through an analysis of the potential market, lifecycle of the product, material demands, and material flows. Different scenarios show that improving recycling rates and extending operation lifetime can help to mitigate the material needs even in the most demanding scenarios and reach material reuse targets. Methods and results can also be applied for other regions where FC have this potential applicability. Quality of data and its effects on the results need also to be further analyzed.</p>