AUTomotive deRivative Energy system
Objective
• develop system components allowing reduced costs, increased durability and efficiency
• build and validate a first 50 kW PEM prototype CHP system
• create the required value chain from automotive manufacturers to stationary energy end-users
Mass-market production of fuel cells will be a strong factor in reducing first costs. In this respect, joining the forces of two non-competing sectors (automotive and stationary) will bring benefits to both, to increase production volume and ultimately reduce costs to make fuel cells competitive. As a consequence, the project partners have identified a PEM fuel cell based CHP concept to address the stationary power market, primarily for commercial and industrial buildings requiring an installed capacity from about 50 kWe to some hundreds of kWe. The main components of the system have been validated to at least laboratory scale (TRL>4). As a part of the present AutoRE proposal, the overall system will be demonstrated and further validated to increase the technology readiness level to TRL5. In addition, innovative solutions will be demonstrated to continuously improve performance and reduce costs and complexity. The project consortium reflects the full value chain of the fuel cell CHP system which will enhance significantly the route to market for the system/technology.
The proposal relates to FCH-02.5-2014: Innovative fuel cell systems at intermediate power range for distributed combined heat and power generation, and it addresses the main specific challenges and scope laid down in the FCH JU AWP2014 to “develop, manufacturing and validation of a new generation of fuel cell systems with properties that significantly improve competitiveness""."
Funding Scheme
FCH2-RIA - Research and Innovation action
Coordinator
ALSTOM POWER LTD
Address
St. Leonards Avenue
St17 4lx Stafford
United Kingdom
Activity type
Private for-profit entities (excluding Higher or Secondary Education Establishments)
EU Contribution
€ 1 535 110
Participants (8)
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GENERAL ELECTRIC (SWITZERLAND) GMBH
Switzerland
DAIMLER AG
Germany
ELVIO ANONYMI ETAIREIA SYSTIMATON PARAGOGIS YDROGONOU KAI ENERGEIAS
Greece
EU Contribution
€ 757 327,50
SVEUCILISTE U SPLITU, FAKULTET ELEKTROTEHNIKE, STROJARSTVA I BRODOGRADNJE
Croatia
EU Contribution
€ 83 750
UNIVERSITA DEGLI STUDI DELLA TUSCIA
Italy
EU Contribution
€ 121 250
STIFTELSEN SINTEF
Norway
EU Contribution
€ 186 175,70
NUCELLSYS GMBH
Germany
EU Contribution
€ 713 122
SINTEF AS
Norway
EU Contribution
€ 100 211,80
Project information
AutoRE
Grant agreement ID: 671396
Status
Closed project
-
Start date
1 August 2015
-
End date
30 April 2019
Funded under:
H2020-EU.3.3.8.1.
-
Overall budget:
€ 4 464 447,25
-
EU contribution
€ 3 496 947
Transportation and power generation sectors join forces to accelerate fuel cell development
TRANSPORT AND MOBILITY
ENERGY
Creating synergies between these two non-competing markets has benefits, both in terms of increasing production volume and ultimately reducing costs to make fuel cells competitive to incumbent technologies. The EU-funded AutoRE project “paved the way to next-gen fuel cell systems for combined heat and power for commercial and industrial buildings,” says coordinator Greg Kelsall.
First fuel cell unit prototype at intermediate power range a reality
The AutoRE team built and tested a 50 kWe fuel cell combined heat and power prototype system. It includes a fuel cell container that comprises an automotive derivative proton-exchange membrane fuel cell, a hydrogen production container that contains natural gas reformer reactors and heat exchangers, together with a pressure swing absorption unit and tail gas/hydrogen buffer tanks. Validation demonstrated that the prototype wasn’t capable of running as a fully integrated system. As a result, the project turned its focus to exploiting several system components that are capable of reducing costs and increasing durability and efficiency. These are the natural gas reformer, the automotive derivative fuel cell and the membrane hydrogen separator. Testing of the prototype system nevertheless provided project partners with some key lessons learned. For future designs, it would be better to reduce the reformer operating pressure. This will allow for standard materials to be used while avoiding corrosion issues, then to pressurise the reformate at a stage in the process following the main reactor. In future systems, if a method for cleaning the reformate could be implemented that significantly reduces the pressure fluctuations and removes the need to store hydrogen and syngas, then the risk of explosion could be significantly reduced. This will simplify a site’s permit and regulatory compliance requirements. The risk of explosion would be reduced by removing the tanks themselves, and more importantly by significantly reducing the volume of gas stored in the system at any one time. By removing the loads associated with the pressure swing absorption and the safety shutoff valves on each inlet and outlet pipework would also decrease the parasitic loads on the system. These shutoff valves are required to prevent the tanks from emptying during a leak. For future designs, the partners also recommend that gas storage should be kept to an absolute minimum, and durable leak-tight fittings should be used wherever possible.
Modelling shows the way forward
Team members performed extensive modelling on the prototype to improve the system in the future. This was done for the baseline configuration and for future design improvements such as replacement of the pressure swing absorber with a selective membrane-based system. Based on the modelling, the target electrical efficiency of 47 % can be achieved. By reducing the loading on the fuel cell within the system, the electrical and thermal loading targets of 90 % and 43 %, respectively, can both be obtained. “By bringing together automotive and stationary fuel cell system developers for the first time in Europe, such a cooperation will further speed up fuel cell development,” concludes Kelsall. “It’s a win-win situation for automotive fuel cells.”
Keywords
AutoRE, fuel cell, automotive, fuel cell system, combined heat and power, stationary fuel cell system
Project information
AutoRE
Grant agreement ID: 671396
Status
Closed project
-
Start date
1 August 2015
-
End date
30 April 2019
Funded under:
H2020-EU.3.3.8.1.
-
Overall budget:
€ 4 464 447,25
-
EU contribution
€ 3 496 947
Discover other articles in the same domain of application
Periodic Reporting for period 1 - AutoRE (AUTomotive deRivative Energy system)
Reporting period: 2015-08-01 to 2017-01-31
Project information
AutoRE
Grant agreement ID: 671396
Status
Closed project
-
Start date
1 August 2015
-
End date
30 April 2019
Funded under:
H2020-EU.3.3.8.1.
-
Overall budget:
€ 4 464 447,25
-
EU contribution
€ 3 496 947
Deliverables
Publications
Project information
AutoRE
Grant agreement ID: 671396
Status
Closed project
-
Start date
1 August 2015
-
End date
30 April 2019
Funded under:
H2020-EU.3.3.8.1.
-
Overall budget:
€ 4 464 447,25
-
EU contribution
€ 3 496 947
Project information
AutoRE
Grant agreement ID: 671396
Status
Closed project
-
Start date
1 August 2015
-
End date
30 April 2019
Funded under:
H2020-EU.3.3.8.1.
-
Overall budget:
€ 4 464 447,25
-
EU contribution
€ 3 496 947
