Ceres Power continues SOFC CHP progress, sheltered field trials
- Publisher
- Elsevier Science
- Year
- 2010
- Tongue
- English
- Weight
- 84 KB
- Volume
- 2010
- Category
- Article
- ISSN
- 1464-2859
No coin nor oath required. For personal study only.
✦ Synopsis
Union and state funding to develop a 500 W mini combined heat and power (CHP) plant that runs on methanol. The intended application is for an auxiliary power unit for use in vehicles.
The direct methanol fuel cell power plant can operate in areas where there is no electricity grid. The DKK8.6 million (US$1.5 million) project is being supported by the Danish ministry of science, technology and innovation, as well as by the EU's Eurostars research program for SMEs, which is contributing DKK2.3 million ($400 000). The Austrian vehicle development company AVL List is a collaboration partner in the 30-month project.
The NextGENDMFC project aims to develop a next-generation DMFC auxiliary power unit, focusing in particular on R&D to enhance durability, cost and functionality. IRD will utilize its expertise as a DMFC system developer, while AVL has knowhow in fuel cell optimization for such applications.
IRD believes there is a market for a fuel cell plant of 500 W capacity, but that a substantial amount of development, testing and approval work is needed before the plant will be ready for the market.
Methanol is attracting interest as an alternative to hydrogen for powering fuel cells, for several reasons. The biggest advantage is that it is a liquid rather than a gas at ambient temperatures, and so does not need pressurizing -which uses energy and costs money -for storage and transport. It also has a higher energy density than hydrogen.
However, methanol does have some drawbacks. Methanol contains carbon, which unavoidably results in the production of CO 2 during reforming, so in this respect it is not as clean a fuel as hydrogen. Methanol is also toxic to humans, and needs to be handled with care.