Fuel cell systems for DC backup power applications and UPS systems

摘要

Business is depending today very much on the permanent availability of the electric grid. Power outages can cause a fundamental loss of money since enterprises need to stop their operation, computers and servers needs to shut down. The loss of computer data and the interruption of sensitive industrial processes can be very costly. Uninterrupted Power Supplies (UPS) are systems that provide protection in case of power outage. Usually large battery banks are used in order to provide the first 15 minutes of backup time. After that usually messy and noisy diesel generators are started up. The installation of that systems requires a lot of space inside the building for the battery banks and a often difficult installations of the diesel generator outside the building. Also the lifetime of batteries is usually very limited to 5-6 years only. Other problems are the difficult determination of the actual charge stage of batteries in order to determine the actual available runtime during power outages.