scholarly journals The impact of a future H<sub>2</sub>-based road transportation sector on the composition and chemistry of the atmosphere – Part 2: Stratospheric ozone

2012 ◽  
Vol 12 (8) ◽  
pp. 19423-19454
Author(s):  
D. Wang ◽  
W. Jia ◽  
S. C. Olsen ◽  
D. J. Wuebbles ◽  
M. K. Dubey ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Fuel Cell ◽  
Internal Combustion Engine ◽  
Combustion Engine ◽  
Stratospheric Ozone ◽  
Internal Combustion ◽  
Montreal Protocol ◽  
The Other ◽  
Road Transportation ◽  
Transportation Sector ◽  
The Impact

Abstract. The prospective future adoption of hydrogen to power the road transportation sector could greatly improve tropospheric air quality but also raises the question whether the adoption would have adverse effects on stratospheric ozone. The possibility of these undesirable impacts must be fully evaluated to guide future policy decisions. Here we evaluate the possible impact of a future (2050) H2-based road transportation sector on stratospheric composition and chemistry, especially on stratospheric ozone, with the MOZART chemical transport model. Since future growth is highly uncertain we evaluate the impact for two world evolution scenarios, one based on a high emitting scenario (IPCC A1FI) and the other on a low emitting scenario (IPCC B1), as well as two technological options: H2 fuel cells and H2 internal combustion engines. We assume a H2 leakage rate of 2.5% and a complete market penetration of H2 vehicles in 2050. The model simulations show that a H2-based road transportation sector would reduce stratospheric ozone concentrations as a result of perturbed catalytic ozone destruction cycles. The magnitude of the impact depends on which growth scenario the world evolves and which H2 technology option is applied. For the same world evolution scenario, stratospheric ozone decreases more in the H2 fuel cell scenarios than in the H2 internal combustion engine scenarios because of the NOx emissions in the latter case. If the same technological option is applied, the impact is larger in the A1FI emission scenario. The largest impact, a 0.54% decrease in annual average global mean stratospheric column ozone, is found with a H2 fuel cell type road transportation sector in the A1FI scenario; whereas the smallest impact, a 0.04% increase in stratospheric ozone, is found with applications of H2 internal combustion engine vehicles in the B1 scenario. The impacts of the other two scenarios fall between the above two bounding scenarios. However, the magnitude of these changes is much smaller than the increases in 2050 stratospheric ozone expected as stratospheric ozone recovers due to the limits in ozone depleting substance emissions imposed in the Montreal Protocol.

scholarly journals Impact of a future H<sub>2</sub>-based road transportation sector on the composition and chemistry of the atmosphere – Part 2: Stratospheric ozone

2013 ◽  
Vol 13 (13) ◽  
pp. 6139-6150 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. Wang ◽  
W. Jia ◽  
S. C. Olsen ◽  
D. J. Wuebbles ◽  
M. K. Dubey ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Fuel Cell ◽  
Internal Combustion Engine ◽  
Combustion Engine ◽  
Stratospheric Ozone ◽  
Internal Combustion ◽  
The Other ◽  
Road Transportation ◽  
Transportation Sector ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Growth Scenario

Abstract. The prospective future adoption of molecular hydrogen (H2) to power the road transportation sector could greatly improve tropospheric air quality but also raises the question of whether the adoption would have adverse effects on the stratospheric ozone. The possibility of undesirable impacts must be fully evaluated to guide future policy decisions. Here we evaluate the possible impact of a future (2050) H2-based road transportation sector on stratospheric composition and chemistry, especially on the stratospheric ozone, with the MOZART (Model for OZone And Related chemical Tracers) model. Since future growth is highly uncertain, we evaluate the impact of two world evolution scenarios, one based on an IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) high-emitting scenario (A1FI) and the other on an IPCC low-emitting scenario (B1), as well as two technological options: H2 fuel cells and H2 internal combustion engines. We assume a H2 leakage rate of 2.5% and a complete market penetration of H2 vehicles in 2050. The model simulations show that a H2-based road transportation sector would reduce stratospheric ozone concentrations as a result of perturbed catalytic ozone destruction cycles. The magnitude of the impact depends on which growth scenario evolves and which H2 technology option is applied. For the evolution growth scenario, stratospheric ozone decreases more in the H2 fuel cell scenarios than in the H2 internal combustion engine scenarios because of the NOx emissions in the latter case. If the same technological option is applied, the impact is larger in the A1FI emission scenario. The largest impact, a 0.54% decrease in annual average global mean stratospheric column ozone, is found with a H2 fuel cell type road transportation sector in the A1FI scenario; whereas the smallest impact, a 0.04% increase in stratospheric ozone, is found with applications of H2 internal combustion engine vehicles in the B1 scenario. The impacts of the other two scenarios fall between the above two boundary scenarios. However, the magnitude of these changes is much smaller than the increases in 2050 stratospheric ozone projected, as stratospheric ozone is expected to recover due to the limits in ozone depleting substance emissions imposed in the Montreal Protocol.

Comparative analysis between a PEM fuel cell and an internal combustion engine driving an electricity generator: Technical, economical and ecological aspects

2014 ◽  
Vol 63 (1) ◽  
pp. 354-361 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lúcia Bollini Braga ◽  
Jose Luz Silveira ◽  
Marcio Evaristo da Silva ◽  
Einara Blanco Machin ◽  
Daniel Travieso Pedroso ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Comparative Analysis ◽  
Fuel Cell ◽  
Internal Combustion Engine ◽  
Combustion Engine ◽  
Pem Fuel Cell ◽  
Internal Combustion ◽  
Ecological Aspects

Integrated Anaerobic Digester and Fuel Cell Power Generation System for Community Use

2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ryan Falkenstein-Smith ◽  
Kang Wang ◽  
Ryan Milcarek ◽  
Jeongmin Ahn
Keyword(s):  
Fuel Cell ◽  
Waste Management ◽  
Power System ◽  
Internal Combustion Engine ◽  
Power Plants ◽  
Combustion Engine ◽  
Energy Content ◽  
New York State ◽  
Internal Combustion ◽  
Optimal Performance

New York State is expected to experience future population growth that is increasingly concentrated in urban areas, where there is already a heavy burden on the existing energy, water and waste management infrastructure. To meet aggressive environmental standards (such as that established by the State’s “80x50” goal), future electrical power capacity must produce substantially fewer greenhouse gas emissions than currently generated by coal- or natural gas-fired power plants. Currently, biogas is combusted to produce heat and electricity via an internal combustion engine generator set. A conventional internal combustion engine generator set is 22–45 % efficient in converting methane to electricity, thus wasting 65–78 % of the biogas energy content unless the lower temperature heat can be recovered. Fuel cells, on the other hand, are 40–60 % efficient in converting methane to electrical energy, and 80–90 % efficient for cogeneration if heat (> 400 °C) is recovered and utilized for heating and cooling in the community power system. This current research studies the feasibility of a community biomass-to-electricity power system which offers significant environmental, economic and resilience improvements over centrally-generated energy, with the additional benefit of reducing or eliminating disposal costs associated with landfills and publicly-owned treatment works (POTWs). Flame Fuel Cell (FFC) performance was investigated while modifying biogas content and fuel flow rate. A maximum power density peak at 748 mWcm-2 and an OCV of 0.856 V was achieved. It should be noted that the performance obtained with the model biofuel is comparable to the performances of direct methane fueled DC-SOFC and SC-SOFC. The common trends also concluded an acceptable range for optimal performance. Although the methane to CO2 ratios of 3:7 and 2:8 produced power, they are not the strongest ratios to have optimal performance, meaning that operation should stay between the 6:4/4:6 ratio range. Lastly, the amount of air added to the biogas mixture is crucial to achieving the optimal performance of the cell. The data obtained confirmed the feasibility of a biofuel driven fuel cell CHP device capable of achieving higher efficiency than existing technologies. The significant power output produced from the sustainable biogas composition is competitive with current hydrocarbon fuel sources. This idea can be expanded for a community waste management infrastructure.

Mixed combustion–electrochemical energy conversion for high-efficiency, transportation-scale engines

2016 ◽  
Vol 18 (7) ◽  
pp. 701-716 ◽  
Author(s):  
John R Fyffe ◽  
Mark A Donohue ◽  
Maria C Regalbuto ◽  
Chris F Edwards
Keyword(s):  
Fuel Cell ◽  
Internal Combustion Engine ◽  
Energy Conversion ◽  
Internal Combustion Engines ◽  
Combustion Engine ◽  
Internal Combustion ◽  
Detailed Model ◽  
Starting Point ◽  
Electrochemical Energy Conversion ◽  
Electrochemical Energy

This article discusses an approach to exceeding current peak exergy efficiencies of approximately 50% for transportation-scale engines. A detailed model was developed for an internal combustion engine and a fuel cell, where the internal combustion engine is operated under fuel-rich conditions to produce a hydrogen-rich exhaust gas as a fuel for the fuel cell. The strategy of using combustion and electrochemical energy conversion processes has been shown to reduce reaction-related exergy losses while providing the balance of plant necessary to achieve efficient thermal management. Prior approaches which used internal combustion engines downstream of the fuel cell have shown exergy efficiencies near 70%. The system architecture developed for this article, in addition to achieving exergy efficiencies near 70%, provides further advantages. The internal combustion engine, producing work in addition to generating synthesis gas, enables a quick-start approach to this mixed strategy and the ability to use a range of fuels. Therefore, the proposed architecture supplies a very efficient starting point for the development of a quick-start, hybridized system for transportation-scale applications.

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