Sulzer Hexis SOFC Running on Home Heating Oil

摘要

Sulzer HEXIS has been running several field test units with natural gas since 1998. These 1-kWe units have a thermally integrated steam reformer for the natural gas. Preliminary tests in 1998 showed that a similar HEXIS SOFC unit could also operate with steam reformed heating oil. In 1999 a field test unit was modified to operate with this alternative fuel. The steam reformer was redesigned to allow operation with liquid fuels. In several screening tests different catalysts were tested for their suitability for oil steam reforming. The best choice was a Rh-catalyst. Unfortunately, the sulphur content in the heating oil of 10-50 mg/kg caused a significant drop in catalyst activity, which then lead to soot formation. Therefore, for the electrochemical systems test, a sulphur-free (< 0.1 mg/kg) heating oil was selected. The test showed promising results, demonstrating that for over 100 hours of service an electrical power output of 500 W (DC) at an electrical efficiency of 25% could be achieved. For further development of a heating oil system HEXIS will focus on Partial Oxidation (POX) and Catalytic Partial Oxidation (CPO) as fuel processing technologies. Both technologies have the possibility to run without water offering the opportunity eliminating a systems component, namely the water supply system, reducing the number of components in the system and thereby cost.