How Schaeffler is rethinking surfaces

From surfboards to electrolysers: how Schaeffler is rethinking surfaces Last year, a team from automotive and industrial supplier Schaeffler received the Leipzig Electroplating Award for a particularly high-performance electroplated coating of bipolar plates used in electrolysers and fuel cells. What is the current state of development and what role do electroplating and other coating technologies play for the Group? Galvanotechnik magazine got to the bottom of these and other questions.

The race for a climate-neutral infrastructure is in full swing and is likely to enter a new round under the new German government if Germany wants to stick to its goal of becoming climate-neutral by the middle of the century. Automotive and industrial supplier Schaeffler AG is an important player in this process.

The group from Herzogenaurach near Nuremberg merged with e-drive manufacturer Vitesco in the fall of 2024 and now has around 120,000 employees worldwide. In one of its eight fields of activity - called "Energize Motion" - Schaeffler also develops fuel cells and electrolysers, which, in addition to electromobility, are the key technologies for replacing fossil fuels with the production and use of hydrogen, for example in heavy-duty transport and industrial processes. Other Schaeffler product families include "Guide Motion" for efficient bearings, "Control Motion" for intelligent electronic control units and sensors, and "Power Motion" for electrical energy conversion and control, an important component of e-mobility.

Schaeffler made the headlines in the electroplating industry with an important innovation for the development of efficient electrolyzers. This involved the Enertect CT+ electroplating for bipolar plates of electrolysers and fuel cells, with which a Schaeffler team won the Leipzig Electroplating Prize at the Leipzig Technical Seminar in March 2024 (read the interview in Galvanotechnik 4/2024, p. 476 ff. ). The coating should be free of precious metals and also be characterized by good performance, good scalability and cost-effectiveness.

At the technology center with its "Motion Hub", 340 researchers are conducting research in 15 laboratories. Around 50 surface engineers are among them - Photo: Schaeffler (Daniel Karmann)

Schaeffler invites you to Herzogenaurach

At the beginning of March 2025, Schaeffler hosted a press conference in the so-called Motion Hub in the new technology center in Herzogenaurach, which houses 15 laboratories with 340 employees, including around 50 in surface technology. In a kind of atrium with ascending seating steps, the top management with CEO Klaus Rosenfeld welcomed members of the press. Behind him on a green background was the claim "The Motion Technology Company". Rosenfeld and other board members spoke about the company's diverse business activities, including a relatively new area of business at Schaeffler: humanoid robots, which are discussed in this issue's "Music of the Future" column. In view of the tense global situation, the company's management expressed a cautiously optimistic forecast.

The eight Schaeffler product families are displayed in a large exhibition room in the Motion Hub. Discreetly illuminated, guests are given an overview of the product range with which the company earns its money, e.g. actuators, rolling bearings, control units, but also so-called "stacks", i.e. fuel cells and electrolyzers consisting of several electrochemical cells. "Schaeffler has a very high level of vertical integration in these energy generation technologies," emphasized R&D Director Uwe Wagner at the presentation. The outputs range from 50 kW to several megawatts when the stacks are arranged in so-called arrays.

Extensive research capacities

Representatives of the press were also given a glimpse into the laboratories: Stability tests of bipolar plates and electrodes, the central components of fuel cell and electrolyser stacks, take place in one of the brand new, fully digitized research facilities. The tests are also focusing on the durability of these components, as future electrolysers should not only produce hydrogen efficiently, but their operation should also be guaranteed for almost ten years or 80,000 hours. Schaeffler is concentrating on the development of proton exchange membrane (PEM) electrolysers, in which water splitting takes place in an extremely acidic environment with a pH value of 3. Coatings are of particular importance here. In the laboratory, for example, it is observed whether the surface resistance of the coated components changes in the acidic medium. In addition, corrosion tests are carried out and the ions in the electrolytes are measured. The temperature in fuel cells (80 °C) and in electrolyzers (70 °C) must also be taken into account. In addition to the quality control of coated components, the aim of the laboratory work is to improve the durability, performance, costs and sustainability of coatings.

The heart of the electrolyzer UweWagner, Chief Research & Development Officer, presented the product range, including fuel cell and electrolyzer stacks (Photo: Robert Piterek)

In the nano lab, Dr. Jonas Hofmann presented the heart of an electrolyser: the membrane, which forms a stack in a kind of stacking process alternating with bipolar plates. The stack also contains galvanized nonwovens or wire meshes, which evenly distribute the water that enters the cell for splitting and ensure that the hydrogen is evenly transported away on the other side of the membrane. The splitting of the water into hydrogen and oxygen takes place on the membrane, which Dr. Hofmann coats with a special ink in a roll-to-roll process - the catalyst for the reaction. The catalyst is iridium oxide on one side and platinum on the other. When iridium oxide is exposed to electricity, it splits water - if the electricity comes from renewable sources, such as wind power, it is green and so is the hydrogen produced. "These catalyst layers are extremely important for the efficient operation of electrolysers," says Dr. Hofmann. His tasks include adding catalyst powder to the catalyst inks to ensure conductivity and testing their even distribution in the ink layer application before the membranes are inserted into the stacks. The development engineer for coatings is convinced: "There are no products at Schaeffler without chemistry." In any case, the Schaeffler surface engineers are very self-confident - and for good reason. After all, big wave surfer Sebastian Steudtner recently broke the world record in Nazaré, Portugal, on a board with a Schaeffler coating. The coating, which is also used on rolling bearings, reduces friction and therefore increases speed. With the help of this board, the extreme athlete conquered a 28.57 meter high wave the size of a 10-storey house.

Technology already very advanced

Dr. Nazlim Bagcivan, Vice President Surface Technology at Schaeffler, has the most detailed insight into the activities in surface technology. He confirms that the tests and examinations of the stacks for the electrolyzers will start soon. "We are already very far advanced in terms of the maturity of the technology," he says. However, their long-term testing has not yet been completed. While conductivity and corrosion protection are guaranteed, the coating of the bipolar plates should also act as a barrier, "so that no elements from the base material or the coating can diffuse into the membrane and cause problems there". An important customer in the fuel cell sector, where bipolar plates are also used, is the Innoplate joint venture between Schaeffler and Symbio. According to press reports, the joint venture began manufacturing bipolar plates in Hagenau, France, last year. Here, however, the coating is applied by physical vapor deposition (PVD). Initial annual capacity: 4 million units, with production volumes set to increase to around 50 million by 2030. For customers in electrolyser production, Dr. Bagcivan refers to the Electrolysers business unit.

Low-friction roller bearings. Their coating can also make surfboards faster

Coating kit for customized surfaces

An electrolyser stack (Photo: Robert Piterek)"Surface technologies are very important at Schaeffler," says Dr. Bagcivan. His department is involved in every product family with coatings that are functionalized in one form or another. While coatings used to play a major role in the field of combustion engines, today applications in the field of hydrogen, but also in the electric drive train, both for automotive and industry, are very important. He also sees electrification as a very positive development for electroplating technology. "In addition to the typical electrical contacts, completely new products are opening up, such as electromagnetic shielding. But there is also a lot of open space with other, better and more cost-effective solutions," the manager is convinced.

When new product developments are on the agenda, the Herzogenaurach-based company works with its customers to decide whether to use a "validated solution" or develop a new solution that includes the coating material, the process technology and the system technology using a coating toolbox. The coating kit at Schaeffler includes chemically and electrochemically produced coatings, thin films, atmospheric processes, but also painting processes and thermal spraying, as the mechanical engineering company proudly lists. Dr. Bagcivan studied in Aachen, initially concentrating on aerospace engineering and then completed his doctorate at the Institute of Surface Technology (IOT) under Professor Erich Lugscheider and later Professor Kirsten Bobzin, where he wrote his dissertation on the subject of high-temperature corrosion. Before going into industry, he was a senior engineer at the IOT for many years.

The 90 million euro investmentDr. Nazlim Bagcivan at the Technology Center. The Vice President Surface Technology at Schaeffler provided information about Schaeffler's surface technology and the progress made in the development of bipolar plate coating

The new technology center is a great advantage for Schaeffler. This is because other important areas such as chemical analysis and material analysis are now within easy reach. These are the best conditions for taking a coating solution from the idea to series production, i.e. scaling it up from the beaker. The necessary equipment is available, 90 million euros have been invested in the new research and development center. The core competencies in the fields of materials science and materials engineering are gathered here, making cutting-edge technology in the future fields of e-mobility, battery technology and hydrogen possible. In collaboration with colleagues in the USA, work is even being carried out on the solid-state battery, which is being used to tackle current problems in the areas of range, safety and fast-charging capability. The company maintains exchanges and partnerships with Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU) in particular, but also with RWTH Aachen University, the Fraunhofer Gesellschaft and the Helmholtz Association.

Award-winning team

Big wave world record holder Sebastian Steudtner. His board reaches speeds of up to 100 km/h thanks to the low-friction Schaeffler coating (Photo: Porsche)A short walk across the extensive company grounds leads past a conference building with Schaeffler flagpoles. The destination is the electroplating pilot plant, where the researchers from the technology center come and go and where customer samples are sometimes tested, as Dr. Bagcivan explains. The production electroplating shop is a little further away, but there is no inspection permit for this. Mohammed Kamhia welcomes us to the electroplating pilot plant, where he demonstrates the various cleaning, rinsing and degreasing stations and later the actual electroplating baths in a short tour. On one wall, a large diagram shows the company's various plating products. Corrotect, for example, is a family of corrosion protection applications with zinc and zinc-nickel coatings, while Durotect improves the tribological behavior of rolling bearings, i.e. reduces wear and friction. Enertect is also listed with its conductivity and corrosion resistance for applications in the energy sector. Next to the diagram is the certificate of the Leipzig Electroplating Award, which was presented to the scientists Dr. Mehmet Öte and Dr. Sebastian Etschel in Leipzig last year. Mohammed Kamhia and Dr. Bagcivan are proud of the prizes they have won in the last few years, particularly in the field of energy. As they leave, they give the guest a tip to watch the Hermes Award ceremony at the Hanover Trade Fair. Schaeffler has been nominated with its newly developed XZU roller bearing - which also involves a coating!

With a board developed by Porsche and Schaeffler, Steudtner conquered a 28.57 meter high wave in Nazaré, Portugal