Palladium Recycling Reduces Hydrogen Energy Sector's Dependence on Platinum

Palladium metal recycling is very important for the hydrogen energy sector to reduce its reliance on platinum group metals. The main reason is that the world's reserves of platinum group metals are only about 70,000 tons! And 90% of platinum resources are in South Africa. Relying too much on this single market is bad for global hydrogen energy development. After palladium metal recycling, the palladium is usually used in the hydrogen energy and new energy fields, such as: electrolytic hydrogen production, hydrogen purification, solar power, and fuel cells.

Palladium Recycling in the Hydrogen Energy Field

After palladium recycle, precious metal recycling companies purify the palladium and sell it to different industries. Catalysts made from recycled palladium can be used in the cathodes of PEM electrolyzers for water electrolysis to produce hydrogen. This lowers the catalyst cost for hydrogen energy, bringing the cost of green hydrogen closer to $0.278/Nm³. This effectively promotes the development of hydrogen energy. Even after recycled palladium catalysts lose their effectiveness, they can still be recycled again.

Palladium Recycling Replaces Platinum Electrode Material in Fuel Cells

After palladium recycle, the palladium can be used in the cathode catalysts of hydrogen-air fuel cells. Nanostructured palladium-platinum alloys improve the oxygen reduction reaction activity, with palladium making up 30-50% of the metal used. The coatings on the gas diffusion layers of membrane electrode assemblies (MEAs) also contain a small amount of recycled palladium, which enhances their conductivity and corrosion resistance.

What are the Uses of Recycled Palladium in the New Energy Field?

1, Solar Cells: Recycled palladium is used in efficient conductive coatings, mainly for the electrode coatings of silicon-based/perovskite solar cells.

2, Microelectronics & Chips: It's used in highly reliable conductive layers, such as chip bonding wires and MLCC capacitor electrodes.

3, Biofuels & Green Chemistry: Recycled palladium is used in catalysts for biofuels and corrosion-resistant electrodes, improving green chemical processes.

Like platinum, palladium also has limited global reserves. Annual palladium production is only about 200 tons. And it's not just the hydrogen and new energy sectors that have high demand for palladium. Therefore, increasing the amount of palladium recycle is necessary.