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Applied Sciences
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Hydrogen and Fuel Cells: Emerging Technologies and Future Prospects
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Hydrogen and Fuel Cells: Emerging Technologies and Future Prospects

A special issue of Applied Sciences (ISSN 2076-3417). This special issue belongs to the section "Energy Science and Technology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 November 2026 | Viewed by 1254

Editors

Dr. José Joaquín Linares León

E-Mail Website1 Website2 Website3
Guest Editor
Institute of Chemistry, University of Brasilia, Brasilia, Brazil
Interests: electrocatalysis; fuel cells; electrolyzers; hydrogen; electrochemical advanced oxidation processes
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Prof. Dr. Flávio Colmati

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Laboratório de Bio-Eletrocatálise e Células Combustíveis (LABEL-FC), Instituto de Química, Universidade Federal de Goiás (UFG), Goiânia-Goiás 74690-900, Brazil
Interests: electrochemistry and electrocatalysis; fuel cells; catalysts for the oxidation of alcohols; oxygen reduction reaction; environmental electrochemistry; nanomaterials
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

In a future scenario where renewable energies (REs) play a preponderant role, hydrogen and fuel cells will have a significant role due to their intrinsic properties. Hydrogen is an energy vector that can assist in coupling energy supply and demand, sometimes mismatched by the irregular energy production of REs. Additionally, it is a crucial raw material in various industrial processes, including oil refining, petrochemical production, fertilizers, food processing, and metallurgy. Nevertheless, its current production is based on fossil fuel, especially steam natural gas reforming and coal gasification. Alternative green routes are mainly based on water electrolysis, whose development is hampered by the high final cost of H2. New technologies are then required to face the challenge of reducing the high price of green H2 to make it competitive. In this sense, this Special Issue welcomes manuscripts that address technological advances in this topic, such as more active and resistant materials, separators, and other related developments, as well as techno-economic analyses.

Coupled to hydrogen production, fuel cells emerge as power sources. To consolidate this technology as a viable alternative for both stationary and portable applications, new developments in the fields of electrodes and electrolyzers are required. Thus, this Special Issue also welcomes manuscripts devoted to the development of all the elements that compound a fuel cell, as well as techno-economic studies.

Dr. José Joaquín Linares León
Prof. Dr. Flávio Colmati
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-anonymized peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Applied Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • hydrogen
  • fuel cells
  • electrodes
  • electrocatalysis
  • electrolytes
  • electrolysis
  • emerging technologies
  • perspectives

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

16 pages, 3307 KB  
Article
Restoring the Performance of Polymer Electrolyte Membrane Water Electrolysis Cells by Immersion in Strong and Weak Acids Without Cell Disassembly
by Taiga Goto, Pyae Pyae Shwe Sin and Kensuke Nishioka
Appl. Sci. 2026, 16(15), 7836; https://doi.org/10.3390/app16157836 - 6 Aug 2026
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Abstract
Hydrogen production via polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) water electrolysis has attracted considerable attention as a promising technology to store renewable electricity and combat global warming. Although PEM water electrolyzers can produce high-purity hydrogen at high current densities, the use of low-purity water leads [...] Read more.
Hydrogen production via polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) water electrolysis has attracted considerable attention as a promising technology to store renewable electricity and combat global warming. Although PEM water electrolyzers can produce high-purity hydrogen at high current densities, the use of low-purity water leads to device degradation because metal ions from the water are deposited on the membrane, thereby increasing its resistance and operating voltage. In this study, an in-situ recovery method was developed, in which degraded PEM water electrolysis cells were chemically treated without disassembly. Cells after degradation were subjected to a 24-h chemical treatment with either a strong acid (1.0 mol/L nitric acid) or a weak acid (12.9 and 1.0 mol/L phosphoric acid), followed by the supply of ultrapure water for 72 h. Recovery was evaluated using cell voltage measurements, while scanning electron microscopy (SEM)-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) and inductively coupled plasma (ICP) analyses were performed to investigate membrane morphology, elemental distributions, and metal ion removal. Among the tested acids, 12.9 mol/L phosphoric acid showed the highest voltage recovery performance, achieving a 90% recovery ratio immediately after treatment (0 h). Moreover, a comparison of the voltage recovery ratios at 1 h post-immersion suggests that higher hydrogen ion concentrations are more effective for the recovery of degraded PEMs. These findings demonstrate that in-situ acid treatment can restore the performance of contaminated PEM water electrolyzers without disassembly and may provide a practical approach for extending cell lifetime and reducing maintenance requirements. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Hydrogen and Fuel Cells: Emerging Technologies and Future Prospects)
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29 pages, 10289 KB  
Article
Performance Analysis of an Open-Cathode PEM Fuel Cell System Under Dynamic Power Profiles Using an Energy-Based Approach
by Teresa Donateo, Andrea Graziano Bonatesta, Antonio Masciullo and Antonio Ficarella
Appl. Sci. 2026, 16(12), 5949; https://doi.org/10.3390/app16125949 - 12 Jun 2026
Viewed by 484
Abstract
Open-cathode Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells (PEMFCs) are a promising technology for increasing the endurance of small Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), ground robots, e-bikes, and light electric vehicles. However, their performance under realistic operating conditions is strongly influenced by rapid variations in load, [...] Read more.
Open-cathode Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells (PEMFCs) are a promising technology for increasing the endurance of small Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), ground robots, e-bikes, and light electric vehicles. However, their performance under realistic operating conditions is strongly influenced by rapid variations in load, temperature, and ambient pressure, which are often neglected in design-oriented or quasi-steady-state analyses. This study experimentally investigates a 1 kW open-cathode PEMFC system, including its balance of plant and a passive supercapacitor buffer, under a representative UAV flight power profile. Steady-state and dynamic tests were conducted to assess polarization characteristics, thermal behavior, parasitic power consumption, and hydrogen utilization. Results revealed significant thermal inertia and hysteresis effects during load transients, causing voltage deviations from steady-state performance and stabilization times exceeding 90 s. The supercapacitor effectively reduced stack current ramp rates, although some high-frequency oscillations remained. Under flight-representative conditions, the system achieved stable operation with average voltaic efficiency ranging from 55.3% to 60.7% and net efficiency ranging from 50.2% to 54.2%. Auxiliary components had a measurable impact on overall performance: cooling fans accounted for 2–6% of stack power during steady operation and approximately 2.5% of total mission energy, while hydrogen purge losses can significantly reduce vehicle endurance. The findings demonstrate the importance of energy-based performance assessment, including auxiliary loads and purge losses, to obtain realistic estimates of efficiency and endurance in dynamic PEMFC-powered applications. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Hydrogen and Fuel Cells: Emerging Technologies and Future Prospects)
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