ELECTRICITY AND HEAT VIA NATURAL GAS REFORMING/PEMFC FOR RESIDENTIAL POWER SUPPLY

摘要

Fuel cells qualify for combined heat and power systems. Particularly the demand of residential energy can be satisfied not only ecologically but also economically if an efficient low-cost system can be provided. The state-of-the-art domestic household heat supply is fairly advanced. Therefore, further development towards lower emissions and less consumption of fossil fuels requires much effort. The fuel cell technology is a promising alternative to existing applications. First, both heat and electricity can be provided with less emissions. Second, its utilisation would be a great step towards a hydrogen economy. Natural gas is an ideal energy carrier for stationary applications due to the existing infrastructure and the large hydrogen to carbon ratio. The University of Duisburg in co-operation with partners from industry develops a fully-integrated, compact residential power system. It consists of a natural gas fuel processor and a PEM fuel cell, while the focus of the work is set on gas processing and system integration.