Lim Tae-hoon, KIST Hydrogen Fuel Cell Pioneer, Dies at 69
Collaborated with Hyundai, reduced platinum use in fuel cells by 70%
Lim Tae-hoon, 69, a former KIST vice president who dedicated over 20 years to hydrogen fuel cell technology development in South Korea from the late 1980s, passed away at 3 p.m. on the 1st at Asan Medical Center in Seoul, KIST announced on the 2nd.
Lim, a leading domestic expert, collaborated with Hyundai Motor Company from the start of its fuel cell vehicle research in 1998 until his passing, continuously advancing hydrogen fuel cell studies.
As the need for next-generation fuel cell development to address carbon neutrality emerged around 1996–1997, Hyundai began joint research with KIST on hydrogen fuel cell technology.
Hydrogen fuel cell vehicles, which use hydrogen (H₂) as fuel and emit only water—unlike carbon dioxide, fine dust, or nitrogen oxides—are recognized as a key eco-friendly transportation solution. Thanks to the joint research with KIST, Hyundai mass-produced the world’s first hydrogen electric vehicle in 2013 and started exporting to Europe, including Norway, Denmark, and Germany, in 2014.
Lim was the driving force behind KIST’s long-term hydrogen fuel cell development. After graduating from Seoul Central High School and the College of Engineering at Seoul National University, he earned master’s and doctoral degrees at the State University of New York. He joined KIST as a principal researcher in 1988, later serving as a researcher at the Fuel Cell Research Center (1995), head of the Fuel Cell Research Center (2003), head of the Fuel Cell Research Division (2007), head of the Energy Division (2009), head of the National Infrastructure Technology Research Division (2011), and KIST vice president (2014–2017).
His notable achievements include leading the 2013 development of a technology that reduced platinum usage in hydrogen fuel cells to one-third. High costs due to platinum had been a major barrier to commercialization; this innovation cut usage to around 30%. He also contributed to developing a fuel supply process to enhance methanol efficiency in 50W-class portable direct-methanol fuel cells (DMFC), a robot-driven fuel cell power system, and polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells (PEMFC).
The funeral is at Asan Medical Center’s mortuary, with the departure scheduled for 7 a.m. on the 4th. (02)3010-2000
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Lim Tae-hoon, KIST Hydrogen Fuel Cell Pioneer, Dies at 69, source
