IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/appene/v110y2013icp295-303.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

A conceptual model of a high-efficiency, stand-alone power unit based on a fuel cell stack with an integrated auto-thermal ethanol reformer

Author

Listed:
  • Jaggi, Vikas
  • Jayanti, S.

Abstract

An integrated configuration of a fuel cell and an auto-thermal ethanol reformer has been studied conceptually for high temperature (HT) and low temperature (LT) polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) for a 5kW, stand-alone power unit. It is found that the integrated reformer–HT fuel cell system can operate in an auto-thermal mode using a Co–Fe/Zn catalyst to reform aqueous ethanol at 500°C to produce hydrogen with about 3% of CO which is tolerable for an HT-PEMFC operating at 200°C. A simulation model developed for the integrated reformer–HT-PEMFC system shows that significant amount of excess heat is available at 700°C. Using this excess heat, an integrated reformer–HT–LT-PEMFC power unit is designed which produces 15kW of electrical power at an overall efficiency of 41% and a thermal efficiency of 80%. Since it has an integrated aqueous ethanol reformer, the fuel for the power unit can be stored in liquid form which makes it ideal for stand-alone power unit applications.

Suggested Citation

  • Jaggi, Vikas & Jayanti, S., 2013. "A conceptual model of a high-efficiency, stand-alone power unit based on a fuel cell stack with an integrated auto-thermal ethanol reformer," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 110(C), pages 295-303.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:appene:v:110:y:2013:i:c:p:295-303
    DOI: 10.1016/j.apenergy.2013.04.001
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0306261913002833
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.apenergy.2013.04.001?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Kongstein, O.E. & Berning, T. & Børresen, B. & Seland, F. & Tunold, R., 2007. "Polymer electrolyte fuel cells based on phosphoric acid doped polybenzimidazole (PBI) membranes," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 32(4), pages 418-422.
    2. Zuliani, Nicola & Taccani, Rodolfo, 2012. "Microcogeneration system based on HTPEM fuel cell fueled with natural gas: Performance analysis," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 97(C), pages 802-808.
    3. Chein, Rei-Yu & Chen, Yen-Cho & Chang, Che-Ming & Chung, J.N., 2013. "Experimental study on the performance of hydrogen production from miniature methanol–steam reformer integrated with Swiss-roll type combustor for PEMFC," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 105(C), pages 86-98.
    4. Wang, Yun & Chen, Ken S. & Mishler, Jeffrey & Cho, Sung Chan & Adroher, Xavier Cordobes, 2011. "A review of polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells: Technology, applications, and needs on fundamental research," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 88(4), pages 981-1007, April.
    5. Prabu, V. & Jayanti, S., 2012. "Underground coal-air gasification based solid oxide fuel cell system," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 94(C), pages 406-414.
    6. He, Jie & Zhang, Wennan, 2011. "Techno-economic evaluation of thermo-chemical biomass-to-ethanol," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 88(4), pages 1224-1232, April.
    7. Yetano Roche, María & Mourato, Susana & Fischedick, Manfred & Pietzner, Katja & Viebahn, Peter, 2010. "Public attitudes towards and demand for hydrogen and fuel cell vehicles: A review of the evidence and methodological implications," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 38(10), pages 5301-5310, October.
    8. Arsalis, Alexandros & Nielsen, Mads P. & Kær, Søren K., 2011. "Modeling and off-design performance of a 1kWe HT-PEMFC (high temperature-proton exchange membrane fuel cell)-based residential micro-CHP (combined-heat-and-power) system for Danish single-family house," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 36(2), pages 993-1002.
    9. Hong, Wen-Tang & Yen, Tzu-Hsiang & Chung, Tsang-Dong & Huang, Cheng-Nan & Chen, Bao-Dong, 2011. "Efficiency analyses of ethanol-fueled solid oxide fuel cell power system," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 88(11), pages 3990-3998.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Besseris, George J., 2014. "Using qualimetric engineering and extremal analysis to optimize a proton exchange membrane fuel cell stack," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 128(C), pages 15-26.
    2. Chen, Shiyi & Lior, Noam & Xiang, Wenguo, 2015. "Coal gasification integration with solid oxide fuel cell and chemical looping combustion for high-efficiency power generation with inherent CO2 capture," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 146(C), pages 298-312.
    3. Gomes, R.S. & De Bortoli, A.L., 2016. "A three-dimensional mathematical model for the anode of a direct ethanol fuel cell," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 183(C), pages 1292-1301.
    4. Ipsakis, Dimitris & Ouzounidou, Martha & Papadopoulou, Simira & Seferlis, Panos & Voutetakis, Spyros, 2017. "Dynamic modeling and control analysis of a methanol autothermal reforming and PEM fuel cell power system," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 208(C), pages 703-718.
    5. Laura Tribioli & Raffaello Cozzolino & Daniele Chiappini, 2017. "Technical Assessment of Different Operating Conditions of an On-Board Autothermal Reformer for Fuel Cell Vehicles," Energies, MDPI, vol. 10(7), pages 1-17, June.
    6. Purnima, P. & Jayanti, S., 2017. "Water neutrality and waste heat management in ethanol reformer - HTPEMFC integrated system for on-board hydrogen generation," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 199(C), pages 169-179.
    7. Pei, Pucheng & Chen, Huicui, 2014. "Main factors affecting the lifetime of Proton Exchange Membrane fuel cells in vehicle applications: A review," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 125(C), pages 60-75.
    8. Ribeirinha, P. & Abdollahzadeh, M. & Sousa, J.M. & Boaventura, M. & Mendes, A., 2017. "Modelling of a high-temperature polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell integrated with a methanol steam reformer cell," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 202(C), pages 6-19.
    9. Thomas, Sobi & Vang, Jakob Rabjerg & Araya, Samuel Simon & Kær, Søren Knudsen, 2017. "Experimental study to distinguish the effects of methanol slip and water vapour on a high temperature PEM fuel cell at different operating conditions," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 192(C), pages 422-436.
    10. Víctor Sanz i López & Ramon Costa-Castelló & Carles Batlle, 2022. "Literature Review of Energy Management in Combined Heat and Power Systems Based on High-Temperature Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells for Residential Comfort Applications," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(17), pages 1-22, September.
    11. Wu, Wei & Chuang, Bo-Neng & Hwang, Jenn-Jiang & Lin, Chien-Kung & Yang, Shu-Bo, 2019. "Techno-economic evaluation of a hybrid fuel cell vehicle with on-board MeOH-to-H2 processor," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 238(C), pages 401-412.
    12. Ribeirinha, P. & Abdollahzadeh, M. & Pereira, A. & Relvas, F. & Boaventura, M. & Mendes, A., 2018. "High temperature PEM fuel cell integrated with a cellular membrane methanol steam reformer: Experimental and modelling," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 215(C), pages 659-669.
    13. Ribeirinha, P. & Abdollahzadeh, M. & Boaventura, M. & Mendes, A., 2017. "H2 production with low carbon content via MSR in packed bed membrane reactors for high-temperature polymeric electrolyte membrane fuel cell," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 188(C), pages 409-419.
    14. Tribioli, Laura & Cozzolino, Raffaello & Chiappini, Daniele & Iora, Paolo, 2016. "Energy management of a plug-in fuel cell/battery hybrid vehicle with on-board fuel processing," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 184(C), pages 140-154.
    15. Hyunyong Lee & Inchul Jung & Gilltae Roh & Youngseung Na & Hokeun Kang, 2020. "Comparative Analysis of On-Board Methane and Methanol Reforming Systems Combined with HT-PEM Fuel Cell and CO 2 Capture/Liquefaction System for Hydrogen Fueled Ship Application," Energies, MDPI, vol. 13(1), pages 1-25, January.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Gabriele Loreti & Andrea Luigi Facci & Stefano Ubertini, 2021. "High-Efficiency Combined Heat and Power through a High-Temperature Polymer Electrolyte Membrane Fuel Cell and Gas Turbine Hybrid System," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(22), pages 1-24, November.
    2. Maghanki, Maryam Mohammadi & Ghobadian, Barat & Najafi, Gholamhassan & Galogah, Reza Janzadeh, 2013. "Micro combined heat and power (MCHP) technologies and applications," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 28(C), pages 510-524.
    3. Authayanun, Suthida & Mamlouk, Mohamed & Scott, Keith & Arpornwichanop, Amornchai, 2013. "Comparison of high-temperature and low-temperature polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell systems with glycerol reforming process for stationary applications," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 109(C), pages 192-201.
    4. Zuliani, Nicola & Taccani, Rodolfo, 2012. "Microcogeneration system based on HTPEM fuel cell fueled with natural gas: Performance analysis," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 97(C), pages 802-808.
    5. Obara, Shin'ya & Kikuchi, Yoshinobu & Ishikawa, Kyosuke & Kawai, Masahito & Kashiwaya, Yoshiaki, 2014. "Operational analysis of a small-capacity cogeneration system with a gas hydrate battery," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 74(C), pages 810-828.
    6. Xing, Lei & Shi, Weidong & Su, Huaneng & Xu, Qian & Das, Prodip K. & Mao, Baodong & Scott, Keith, 2019. "Membrane electrode assemblies for PEM fuel cells: A review of functional graded design and optimization," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 177(C), pages 445-464.
    7. Wang, Qing-Hui & Yang, Song & Zhou, Wei & Li, Jing-Rong & Xu, Zhi-Jia & Ke, Yu-Zhi & Yu, Wei & Hu, Guang-Hua, 2018. "Optimizing the porosity configuration of porous copper fiber sintered felt for methanol steam reforming micro-reactor based on flow distribution," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 216(C), pages 243-261.
    8. Jeon, Seung Won & Cha, Dowon & Kim, Hyung Soon & Kim, Yongchan, 2016. "Analysis of the system efficiency of an intermediate temperature proton exchange membrane fuel cell at elevated temperature and relative humidity conditions," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 166(C), pages 165-173.
    9. Arsalis, Alexandros, 2019. "A comprehensive review of fuel cell-based micro-combined-heat-and-power systems," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 105(C), pages 391-414.
    10. Yang, Puqing & Zhang, Houcheng, 2015. "Parametric analysis of an irreversible proton exchange membrane fuel cell/absorption refrigerator hybrid system," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 85(C), pages 458-467.
    11. Wang, Yujie & Sun, Zhendong & Li, Xiyun & Yang, Xiaoyu & Chen, Zonghai, 2019. "A comparative study of power allocation strategies used in fuel cell and ultracapacitor hybrid systems," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 189(C).
    12. Kang, Min Jung & Park, Heejun, 2011. "Impact of experience on government policy toward acceptance of hydrogen fuel cell vehicles in Korea," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 39(6), pages 3465-3475, June.
    13. Olateju, Babatunde & Kumar, Amit, 2013. "Techno-economic assessment of hydrogen production from underground coal gasification (UCG) in Western Canada with carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) for upgrading bitumen from oil sands," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 111(C), pages 428-440.
    14. Xu, Shisen & Ren, Yongqiang & Wang, Baomin & Xu, Yue & Chen, Liang & Wang, Xiaolong & Xiao, Tiancun, 2014. "Development of a novel 2-stage entrained flow coal dry powder gasifier," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 113(C), pages 318-323.
    15. Chen, Shiyi & Lior, Noam & Xiang, Wenguo, 2015. "Coal gasification integration with solid oxide fuel cell and chemical looping combustion for high-efficiency power generation with inherent CO2 capture," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 146(C), pages 298-312.
    16. Peng, Fei & Zhao, Yuanzhe & Li, Xiaopeng & Liu, Zhixiang & Chen, Weirong & Liu, Yang & Zhou, Donghua, 2017. "Development of master-slave energy management strategy based on fuzzy logic hysteresis state machine and differential power processing compensation for a PEMFC-LIB-SC hybrid tramway," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 206(C), pages 346-363.
    17. Zhang, Xiaoqing & Yang, Jiapei & Ma, Xiao & Zhuge, Weilin & Shuai, Shijin, 2022. "Modelling and analysis on effects of penetration of microporous layer into gas diffusion layer in PEM fuel cells: Focusing on mass transport," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 254(PA).
    18. Liao, Shuxin & Qiu, Diankai & Yi, Peiyun & Peng, Linfa & Lai, Xinmin, 2022. "Modeling of a novel cathode flow field design with optimized sub-channels to improve drainage for proton exchange membrane fuel cells," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 261(PB).
    19. Zheng Huang & Laisuo Su & Yunjie Yang & Linsong Gao & Xinyu Liu & Heng Huang & Yubai Li & Yongchen Song, 2023. "Three-Dimensional Simulation on the Effects of Different Parameters and Pt Loading on the Long-Term Performance of Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(4), pages 1-22, February.
    20. Vasallo, Manuel Jesús & Bravo, José Manuel & Andújar, José Manuel, 2013. "Optimal sizing for UPS systems based on batteries and/or fuel cell," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 105(C), pages 170-181.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:appene:v:110:y:2013:i:c:p:295-303. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/journaldescription.cws_home/405891/description#description .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.