scholarly journals Start-Up of a Solid Oxide Fuel Cell System with a View to Materials Science-Related Aspects, Control and Thermo-Mechanical Stresses

Crystals ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (7) ◽  
pp. 732
Author(s):  
Konrad W. Eichhorn Colombo ◽  
Vladislav V. Kharton
Keyword(s):  
Fuel Cell ◽  
Solid Oxide Fuel Cell ◽  
Materials Science ◽  
Cell System ◽  
Mechanical Stresses ◽  
Solid Oxide ◽  
System Level ◽  
Oxide Fuel ◽  
Start Up ◽  
Physics Modeling

The start-up of a solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) is investigated by means of numerical simulation with a view to material and operational constraints on a component and system level, as well as thermo-mechanical stresses. The applied multi-physics modeling approach couples thermal-, electrochemical, chemical-, and thermo-mechanical phenomena. In addition to constraints, emphasis is given to degrees of freedom with respect to manipulated and controlled variables of the system. Proper ramping during the start-up procedure keeps critical parameter values within a safe regime. Of particular interest are gradient in terms of temperature and chemical concentrations. Nevertheless, simulations show that thermo-mechanical stresses are relatively high during the initial start-up phase, the system is, thus, more susceptible to failure. The combination of multi-physics modeling in conjunction with practical control aspects for start-up of an SOFC, which is presented in this paper, is important for applications.

Reliability analysis for a multi-stack solid oxide fuel cell system subject to operation condition-dependent degradation

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Konrad W. Eichhorn Colombo ◽  
Peter Schütz ◽  
Vladislav V. Kharton
Keyword(s):  
Experimental Data ◽  
Fuel Cell ◽  
Solid Oxide Fuel Cell ◽  
Reliability Analysis ◽  
Dynamic Program ◽  
Solid Oxide ◽  
System Level ◽  
Oxide Fuel ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Start Up

PurposeA reliability analysis of a solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) system is presented for applications with strict constant power supply requirements, such as data centers. The purpose is to demonstrate the effect when moving from a module-level to a system-level in terms of reliability, also considering effects during start-up and degradation.Design/methodology/approachIn-house experimental data on a system-level are used to capture the behavior during start-up and normal operation, including drifts of the operation point due to degradation. The system is assumed to allow replacement of stacks during operation, but a minimum number of stacks in operation is needed to avoid complete shutdown. Experimental data are used in conjunction with a physics-based performance model to construct the failure probability function. A dynamic program then solves the optimization problem in terms of time and replacement requirements to minimize the total negative deviation from a given target reliability.FindingsResults show that multi-stack SOFC systems face challenges which are only revealed on a system- and not on a module-level. The main finding is that the reliability of multi-stack SOFC systems is not sufficient to serve as sole power source for critical applications such as data center.Practical implicationsThe principal methodology may be applicable to other modular systems which include multiple critical components (of the same kind). These systems comprise other electrochemical systems such as further fuel cell types.Originality/valueThe novelty of this work is the combination of mathematical modeling to solve a real-world problem, rather than assuming idealized input which lead to more benign system conditions. Furthermore, the necessity to use a mathematical model, which captures sufficient physics of the SOFC system as well as stochasticity elements of its environment, is of critical importance. Some simplifications are, however, necessary because the use of a detailed model directly in the dynamic program would have led to a combinatorial explosion of the numerical solution space.

Design and Emulation of a Turbocharged Bio-Fuelled SOFC Plant

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mario L. Ferrari ◽  
Marco De Campo ◽  
Loredana Magistri
Keyword(s):  
Fuel Cell ◽  
Solid Oxide Fuel Cell ◽  
Pressure Vessel ◽  
Cell System ◽  
Solid Oxide ◽  
System Level ◽  
Oxide Fuel ◽  
Fuel Cell System ◽  
Operational Conditions ◽  
Inlet Conditions

This paper presents a steady-state model of an innovative turbocharged solid oxide fuel cell system fed by biofuel. The aim of this plant layout is the development of a reduced-cost solution, which involves the pressurization carried out with a mass production machine such as a turbocharger (instead of a microturbine). The turbocharger pressurizes the solid oxide fuel cell to increase the performance. Following the experimental results to choose the suitable machine and for validating the turbocharger model, this tool was implemented to model the whole plant. It was used to calculate the operational conditions and to define the coupling aspects between the turbocharger, the recuperator and the solid oxide fuel cell system (comprising a fuel cell stack, an air preheater, a reformer, an off-gas burner and an anodic ejector). The model permitted the component characterization and supported the design of an emulator test rig based on the coupling of a turbocharger and a pressure vessel. This facility was designed to conduct the experimental tests at system level on the matching between the machine and the fuel cell, especially for the dynamic and the control system aspects. To emulate the fuel cell, the rig was based on a specially designed pressure vessel equipped with a burner and inert ceramic materials. Moreover, the facility was designed to produce the turbine inlet conditions in terms of mass flow, temperature, pressure and gas composition (similitude conditions can be evaluated).

Experimental investigation into performance of integrated hotbox in 1-kW solid oxide fuel cell system

2015 ◽  
Vol 13 (7) ◽  
pp. 730-735
Author(s):  
Wen-Tang Hong ◽  
Ya-Ling Wu ◽  
Tzu-Hsiang Yen ◽  
Cheng-Nan Huang ◽  
Hsueh-I Tan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Experimental Investigation ◽  
Fuel Cell ◽  
Solid Oxide Fuel Cell ◽  
Cell System ◽  
Solid Oxide ◽  
Oxide Fuel ◽  
Fuel Cell System

Thermodynamic modeling of an integrated biomass gasification and solid oxide fuel cell system

2015 ◽  
Vol 81 ◽  
pp. 400-410 ◽  
Author(s):  
Junxi Jia ◽  
Abuliti Abudula ◽  
Liming Wei ◽  
Baozhi Sun ◽  
Yue Shi
Keyword(s):  
Fuel Cell ◽  
Solid Oxide Fuel Cell ◽  
Thermodynamic Modeling ◽  
Biomass Gasification ◽  
Cell System ◽  
Solid Oxide ◽  
Oxide Fuel ◽  
Fuel Cell System

Surge Prevention Techniques for a Turbocharged Solid Oxide Fuel Cell Hybrid System

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. Mantelli ◽  
M. L. Ferrari ◽  
A. Traverso
Keyword(s):  
Fuel Cell ◽  
Solid Oxide Fuel Cell ◽  
Rotational Speed ◽  
Pressure Ratio ◽  
High Energy ◽  
Cell System ◽  
Solid Oxide ◽  
Pollutant Emissions ◽  
Inlet Temperature ◽  
Oxide Fuel

Abstract Pressurized solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) systems are one of the most promising technologies to achieve high energy conversion efficiencies and reduce pollutant emissions. The most common solution for pressurization is the integration with a micro gas turbine, a device capable of exploiting the residual energy of the exhaust gas to compress the fuel cell air intake and, at the same time, generating additional electrical power. The focus of this study is on an alternative layout, based on an automotive turbocharger, which has been more recently considered by the research community to improve cost effectiveness at small size (< 100 kW), despite reducing slightly the top achievable performance. Such turbocharged SOFC system poses two main challenges. On one side, the absence of an electrical generator does not allow the direct control of the rotational speed, which is determined by the power balance between turbine and compressor. On the other side, the presence of a large volume between compressor and turbine, due to the fuel cell stack, alters the dynamic behavior of the turbocharger during transients, increasing the risk of compressor surge. The pressure oscillations associated with such event are particularly detrimental for the system, because they could easily damage the materials of the fuel cells. The aim of this paper is to investigate different techniques to drive the operative point of the compressor far from the surge condition when needed, reducing the risks related to transients and increasing its reliability. By means of a system dynamic model, developed using the TRANSEO simulation tool by TPG, the effect of different anti-surge solutions is simulated: (i) intake air conditioning, (ii) water spray at compressor inlet, (iii) air bleed and recirculation, and (iv) installation of an ejector at the compressor intake. The pressurized fuel cell system is simulated with two different control strategies, i.e. constant fuel mass flow and constant turbine inlet temperature. Different solutions are evaluated based on surge margin behavior, both in the short and long terms, but also monitoring other relevant physical quantities of the system, such as compressor pressure ratio and turbocharger rotational speed.

Intelligent simultaneous fault diagnosis for solid oxide fuel cell system based on deep learning

2019 ◽  
Vol 233-234 ◽  
pp. 930-942 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zehan Zhang ◽  
Shuanghong Li ◽  
Yawen Xiao ◽  
Yupu Yang
Keyword(s):  
Deep Learning ◽  
Fuel Cell ◽  
Fault Diagnosis ◽  
Solid Oxide Fuel Cell ◽  
Cell System ◽  
Solid Oxide ◽  
Oxide Fuel ◽  
Fuel Cell System

scholarly journals Design, Construction, and Testing of a Gasifier-Specific Solid Oxide Fuel Cell System

Energies ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 11 (8) ◽  
pp. 1985 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alvaro Fernandes ◽  
Joerg Brabandt ◽  
Oliver Posdziech ◽  
Ali Saadabadi ◽  
Mayra Recalde ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Fuel Cell ◽  
Solid Oxide Fuel Cell ◽  
Exergy Analysis ◽  
Thermodynamic Simulation ◽  
Cell System ◽  
Solid Oxide ◽  
Oxide Fuel ◽  
Fuel Cell System ◽  
Simulation Results ◽  
Design Construction

This paper describes the steps involved in the design, construction, and testing of a gasifier-specific solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) system. The design choices are based on reported thermodynamic simulation results for the entire gasifier- gas cleanup-SOFC system. The constructed SOFC system is tested and the measured parameters are compared with those given by a system simulation. Furthermore, a detailed exergy analysis is performed to determine the components responsible for poor efficiency. It is concluded that the SOFC system demonstrates reasonable agreement with the simulated results. Furthermore, based on the exergy results, the components causing major irreversible performance losses are identified.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document