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A Compact, Self-Sustaining Fuel Cell Auxiliary Power Unit Operated on Diesel Fuel

Author

Listed:
  • Remzi Can Samsun

    (Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH, Institute of Electrochemical Process Engineering (IEK-14), 52425 Jülich, Germany)

  • Matthias Prawitz

    (Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH, Institute of Electrochemical Process Engineering (IEK-14), 52425 Jülich, Germany)

  • Andreas Tschauder

    (Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH, Institute of Electrochemical Process Engineering (IEK-14), 52425 Jülich, Germany)

  • Stefan Weiske

    (Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH, Institute of Electrochemical Process Engineering (IEK-14), 52425 Jülich, Germany)

  • Joachim Pasel

    (Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH, Institute of Electrochemical Process Engineering (IEK-14), 52425 Jülich, Germany)

  • Ralf Peters

    (Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH, Institute of Electrochemical Process Engineering (IEK-14), 52425 Jülich, Germany)

Abstract

A complete fuel cell-based auxiliary power unit in the 7.5 kW e power class utilizing diesel fuel was developed in accordance with the power density and start-up targets defined by the U.S. Department of Energy. The system includes a highly-integrated fuel processor with multifunctional reactors to facilitate autothermal reforming, the water-gas shift reaction, and catalytic combustion. It was designed with the help of process analyses, on the basis of which two commercial, high-temperature PEFC stacks and balance of plant components were selected. The complete system was packaged, which resulted in a volume of 187.5 l. After achieving a stable and reproducible stack performance based on a modified break-in procedure, a maximum power of 3.3 kW e was demonstrated in a single stack. Despite the strong deviation from design points resulting from a malfunctioning stack, all system functions could be validated. By scaling-up the performance of the functioning stack to the level of two stacks, a power density of 35 W e l −1 could be estimated, which is close to the 40 W e l −1 target. Furthermore, the start-up time could be reduced to less than 22 min, which exceeds the 30 min target. These results may bring diesel-based fuel cell auxiliary power units a step closer to use in real applications, which is supported by the demonstrated indicators.

Suggested Citation

  • Remzi Can Samsun & Matthias Prawitz & Andreas Tschauder & Stefan Weiske & Joachim Pasel & Ralf Peters, 2021. "A Compact, Self-Sustaining Fuel Cell Auxiliary Power Unit Operated on Diesel Fuel," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(18), pages 1-28, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jeners:v:14:y:2021:i:18:p:5909-:d:637810
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Samsun, Remzi Can & Prawitz, Matthias & Tschauder, Andreas & Meißner, Jan & Pasel, Joachim & Peters, Ralf, 2020. "Reforming of diesel and jet fuel for fuel cells on a systems level: Steady-state and transient operation," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 279(C).
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