Selected aspects of the design and operation of the first Polish residential micro–CHP unit based on solid oxide fuel cells
Abstract
The first Polish micro-combined heat and power unit (micro-CHP) with solid oxide fuel cells (SOFC) was designed and constructedin the facilities of the Institute of Power Engineering in Warsaw. The system was launched in September 2015 andis under investigation. At the current stage the unit is customized to operate on a pre-treated biogas. Adaptation of the fuelprocessing system, which is based on a steam reformer, makes it possible to utilize other gaseous and liquid fuels, includingnatural gas. The electric and thermal output of the system, up to 2 kW and about 2 kW, respectively, corresponds to the typicalrequirements of a detached dwelling or a small commercial site. Functionality of the system was increased by engaging twoseparate start-up modules, which are used for preheating the system from a cold state to the nominal working conditions.The first module is based on a set of electric heaters, while the second module relies on an additional start-up burner. Thestartup of the system from ambient conditions up to a thermally self-sufficient stage takes about 7 hours using the electricpreheaters mode. Output residual heat was used to heat water to a temperature of about 50C. The temperature of the fluegases at the inlet to the hot water tank was measured at approximately 300C. Steam reforming of the biogas was performedby delivering deionized water to the steam reformer in order to maintain the S/C ratio at a range of 2 .. 3.5. Selected aspectsof the design and construction as well the first operational experiences are presented and discussed. The numerical modelingmethodology is presented as a complimentary tool for system design and optimization.References
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unit with ceramic fuel cells (sofc), [in] (Kicinski J., Cenian A., Lampart
P., eds.) [in Polish]Radom 2015.
of efficient power generation unit., Archives of Thermodynamics 32 (3)
(2011) 33–43.
[2] Stationary fuel cells are on the road to commercialization in europe
– major market potential, significant environmental benefits, Roland
Berger (2015).
[3] L. Blum, R. Deja, R. Peters, D. Stolten, Comparison of efficiencies
of low, mean and high temperature fuel cell systems., International
Journal of Hydrogen Energy 36 (2011) 11056–11067.
[4] I. Staffel, A. Ingram, K. Kendall, Energy and carbon payback times
for solid oxide fuel cell based domestic chp., International Journal of
Hydrogen Energy 37 (3) (2012) 2509–2523.
[5] I. Staffell, R. Green, The cost of domestic fuel cell micro-chp systems.,
International Journal of Hydrogen Energy 38 (2012) 1088–1102.
[6] H. Xi, J. Sun, V. Tsourapas, A control oriented low order dynamic
model for planar sofc using minimum gibbs free energy method., Journal
of Power Sources 165 (1) (2007) 253–266.
[7] J. Kupecki, Off-design analysis of a micro-chp unit with solid oxide fuel
cells fed by dme., International Journal of Hydrogen Energy 40 (35)
(2015) 12009–12022.
[8] J. Kupecki, J. Jewulski, K. Badyda, Selection of a fuel processing
method for sofc-based micro-chp system, Rynek Energii 97 (6) (2011)
157–162.
[9] L. Kandepu, R.and Imsland, B. Foss, C. Stiller, B. Thorud, O. Bolland,
Modeling and control of a sofc-gt-based autonomous power system.,
Energy 32 (2007) 406–417.
[10] M. Ferrari, Advanced control approach for hybrid systems based on
solid oxide fuel cells., Applied Energy 145 (2015) 364–373.
[11] J. Kupecki, M. Skrzypkiewicz, M. Wierzbicki, M. Stepien, Analysis of a
micro-chp unit with in-series sofc stacks fed by biogas., Energy Procedia
75 (2015) 2021–2026.
[12] M. Stepien, M. Rychlik, M. Wierzbicki, M. Stefanski, Selected aspects
of the modeling, desing and performance tests of micro-cogeneration
unit with ceramic fuel cells (sofc), [in] (Kicinski J., Cenian A., Lampart
P., eds.) [in Polish]Radom 2015.
Published
2016-12-04
How to Cite
KUPECKI, Jakub et al.
Selected aspects of the design and operation of the first Polish residential micro–CHP unit based on solid oxide fuel cells.
Journal of Power Technologies, [S.l.], v. 96, n. 4, p. 270--275, dec. 2016.
ISSN 2083-4195.
Available at: <https://papers.itc.pw.edu.pl/index.php/JPT/article/view/904>. Date accessed: 28 apr. 2025.
Issue
Section
Fuel Cells and Hydrogen
Keywords
micro-CHP, SOFC, fuel cells, modelling, operation
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