Skip to main content
Go to the home page of the European Commission (opens in new window)
English English
CORDIS - EU research results
CORDIS

Solid oxide fuel cell combined heat and power: Future-ready Energy

Project description

A fuel-flexible combined heat and power system

To reduce energy consumption and achieve near-zero emissions, there is growing need for a versatile system. This is the aim of the EU-funded SO-FREE project. It will develop a future-ready solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC)-based system for combined heat and power (CHP) production that can run on any mixture of natural gas, biogas and hydrogen. It will test the creation of a standardised stack system interface, allowing full interchangeability of SOFC stack types within a given SOFC-CHP system. The project will double the required demonstration period, running two systems. The first will be used to assess compliance with all applicable certification requirements of a technology readiness level 6 prototype. The second will provide CHP with natural gas with injections of hydrogen in an operational environment.

Objective

The overall objective of SO-FREE is the development of a fully future-ready solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC)-based system for combined heat and power (CHP) generation. This means a versatile system concept for efficient, near-zero-emission, fuel-flexible and truly modular power and heat supply to end users in the residential, commercial, municipal and agricultural sectors.
Beyond the primary objective required by the call topic – i.e. the delivery of a pre-certified SOFC-CHP system allowing an operation window from zero to 100% H2 in natural gas and with additions of purified biogas – the SO-FREE project will endeavour the realization of a standardized stack-system interface, allowing full interchangeability of SOFC stack types within a given SOFC-CHP system. This interface design will be taken to the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) as a new work item proposal (NWIP) for international standardization. In such a way all commercial barriers to full and free competition between SOFC stack suppliers and system integrators aim to be levelled.
Furthermore, this interoperability will be proved by doubling the required demonstration period: two systems will be run for 9 months each, each operating, alternately, two different stacks, which will be exchanged between the two systems. One system will be operated to assess compliance with all applicable certification requirements of a TRL 6 prototype, defining the outstanding pathway to full product certification; the other system will run at TRL7 (demonstration in operational environment) providing combined heat and power with natural gas with injections of hydrogen.
As a final proof of robustness and flexibility, the two stacks integrated in each of the two systems (one designed by AVL, the other by ICI Caldaie) will be characteristic of the extreme ends of the spectrum of SOFC operating temperatures: 650°C (Elcogen) and 850°C (Fraunhofer IKTS).

Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)

CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.

You need to log in or register to use this function

Keywords

Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)

Programme(s)

Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.

Topic(s)

Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.

Funding Scheme

Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.

RIA - Research and Innovation action

See all projects funded under this funding scheme

Call for proposal

Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.

(opens in new window) H2020-JTI-FCH-2020-1

See all projects funded under this call

Coordinator

AGENZIA NAZIONALE PER LE NUOVE TECNOLOGIE, L'ENERGIA E LO SVILUPPO ECONOMICO SOSTENIBILE
Net EU contribution

Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.

€ 300 750,00
Address
LUNGOTEVERE GRANDE AMMIRAGLIO THAON DI REVEL 76
00196 ROMA
Italy

See on map

Region
Centro (IT) Lazio Roma
Activity type
Research Organisations
Links
Total cost

The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.

€ 300 750,00

Participants (10)

My booklet 0 0