Desiree
Development of enhanced SOEL components for improved reliability and endurance

Global hydrogen demand exceeds 95 million tonnes per year, yet only around 1% is produced through low-emission pathways. Most hydrogen today is generated from fossil fuels, resulting in significant greenhouse gas emissions.

At the same time, renewable electricity production is expanding rapidly across Europe. Converting this electricity into storable and transportable energy carriers is essential for deep decarbonisation.

High-temperature electrolysers, and specifically Solid Oxide Electrolyser (SOEL), stands out in terms of system efficiency, but still faces critical challenges that hinder widespread deployment: long-term stability, high costs, and limited dynamic response in fluctuating energy environments. Without overcoming these barriers, SOEL technology will not be able to reach competitive Levelised Cost of Hydrogen (LCOH) values and will remain limited to pilot projects and first-of-its-kind demonstrative prototypes.

DESIREE addresses this challenge by advancing SOEL technology at all levels (cell, stack, system, control and grid integration), while addressing the main challenges of this technology: materials degradation, high energy consumption and challenges related to dynamic system control, especially when coupling with renewable energy-based systems.

Potential impact of DESIREE

DESIREE
contributes to

Lower electricity consumption per kilogram of hydrogen (target: 36.5 kWh/kg H₂).

System efficiencies above 85%.

Improved durability and extended system lifetime, with reduced degradation rates (average degradation rate < 0.5%/1,000 h).

Lower levelised cost of hydrogen.

Enhanced integration with renewable electricity grids.

Circularity strategies for critical raw materials.

By improving solid oxide electrolysis technology, DESIREE supports industrial decarbonisation in sectors such as steel, chemicals and renewable fuels.