RANCHI: In a major breakthrough aligned with India’s clean energy ambitions, researchers at Indian Institute of Technology, Indian School of Mines (IIT-ISM) - Dhanbad have developed a low-cost and efficient electrode material that could significantly reduce the cost of green hydrogen production by 400 to 500 times.
The innovation comes at a crucial time when India is pushing forward with its National Green Hydrogen Mission, which aims to produce five million tonnes of green hydrogen annually by 2030. Green hydrogen, produced through water splitting using renewable energy, is considered a key solution to reducing carbon emissions from industries such as steel, fertilisers, petroleum refining and chemicals.
The research was led by Dr SK Riyajuddin, INSPIRE Faculty in the Department of Physics, IIT-ISM, along with his research scholars Priyadarshani Tamang and Rumana Sultana Parvin. Explaining the significance of the work, Dr Riyajuddin said, “One of the biggest challenges in green hydrogen production is the high cost of catalysts. Currently, noble metals like platinum and ruthenium are widely used, but they are expensive and scarce. Our goal was to design a cost-effective alternative using earth-abundant materials.”
According to Riyajuddin, the team has developed a novel catalyst by combining molybdenum disulfide and vanadium sulphide with reduced graphene oxide, creating a highly conductive and efficient system. The material uses low-cost elements such as molybdenum, vanadium, sulphur and carbon, making it economically viable for large-scale applications and is expected to reduce the production cost up to 400 -500 times, he said.
“Our material shows a strong synergistic effect, which reduces the energy required for electrochemical water splitting,” said Dr Riyajuddin. This means hydrogen can be produced more efficiently without relying on costly precious metals, he added.
In a significant demonstration, the researchers also successfully produced green hydrogen using a commercially available silicon solar cell. “We have shown a complete solar-to-hydrogen approach, where sunlight and water alone can generate clean fuel. This is an important step towards sustainable and scalable hydrogen technology,” said Riajuddin.
According to Riajuddin, “What we claim to be the green hydrogen is actually not green hydrogen as energy from fossil fuel is used to produce it. We integrated solar cells with water electrolyser system and demonstrated that the electricity produced by the solar cells is giving green hydrogen, which we called artificial photosynthesis.”
Currently, the cost of green hydrogen production in India ranges between Rs 250 and Rs 350 per kilogram. Experts believe that reducing catalyst costs could play a vital role in making hydrogen commercially competitive.
Dr Riajuddin informed that the findings have been published in the international journal Small (Wiley, 2026). The development is expected to support India’s efforts to transition towards a low-carbon economy and strengthen its position in the global clean energy landscape, he said.
Notably, green hydrogen is considered one of the cleanest energy carriers because it produces only water as a by-product when used. It has high energy density and can be applied in several key sectors, including fertiliser production, petroleum refining, chemical manufacturing, and steel industries.
In the future, it is also expected to power fuel-cell vehicles, generate clean electricity and provide high-temperature industrial heat, thereby reducing carbon emissions significantly.