Heraeus Precious Metals and VSParticle have signed a memorandum of understanding to develop next-generation low-iridium porous transport electrodes (PTEs), aiming to cut costs and improve scalability in proton exchange membrane (PEM) water electrolysis.
The collaboration targets one of the biggest bottlenecks in green hydrogen production: the heavy reliance on iridium, a rare and expensive metal essential for PEM electrolyzers. With iridium prices rising and global supply remaining constrained, reducing its usage has become a strategic priority for the sector.
At the core of the partnership is VSParticle’s spark ablation technology, which enables ultra-fine nanoparticle deposition. The companies aim to produce highly efficient electrode structures with iridium loading reduced to below 0.2 mg/cm². The process uses ultra-pure nanoparticles sized between 2 and 20 nanometers to form a thin, high-performance catalytic layer on porous transport layers.
Heraeus plans to commercialize the resulting PTE products as a scalable solution to lower the overall cost of green hydrogen production while improving stack efficiency and durability.
“Scaling the hydrogen economy requires continuous innovation across the entire value chain,” said Philipp Walter, Executive Vice President, Business Line Hydrogen Systems at Heraeus Precious Metals.
“Reducing iridium use is one of the most pressing challenges in PEM electrolysis. By combining our deep expertise in precious metals and precious metal catalysts with VSParticle’s breakthrough technology, we can offer PTE products that help stack manufacturers scale faster and at lower cost.”
Aaike van Vugt, CEO of VSParticle, added: “Our mission is to unlock new possibilities in materials manufacturing that directly support the growth of clean technologies. By partnering with Heraeus Precious Metals, we ensure that our technology can be deployed at industrial scale, enabling PTE products that reduce costs, simplify production, and boost electrolyzer performance. This collaboration helps bring green hydrogen closer to global competitiveness.”
Together, the companies say the collaboration marks a step toward a new generation of high-performance, low-iridium electrodes designed for mass manufacturing—supporting the broader push to scale global green hydrogen production.
