Chutichai B., Tiraset S., Assabumrungrat S., Arpornwichanop A., 2012, Analysis of Biomass Gasification and PEMFC Integrated Systems for Power Generation: A Combined Heat and Power Approach, Chemical Engineering Transactions, 29, 283-288.
A proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) is expected to play a significant role in the next energy generation system. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the performance and the feasibility of an alternative combined heat and power (CHP) system based on biomass gasification and PEMFC processes for residential applications satisfying thermal and electrical demands. A model of the integrated CHP system is employed to analyze its performance under different operating conditions. The system is designed for the electrical load of 5 kW. The simulation results show that the gasification process can produce the synthesis gas having the hydrogen content of around 25-35 mol.% and the high heating value of 4-10 MJ/Nm3. A purification process consisting of a water gas shift reactor and a preferential oxidation reactor is also necessary in order to reduce the concentration of CO in thesynthesis gas to be lower than 10 ppm for PEMFC. The useful heat in the high-temperature synthesis gas derived from the gasifer is recovered and used in the purification step and thus the efficiency of the fuel processor is enhanced. Effect of a load level on the performance of PEMFC is investigated. The results of the system evaluation indicate that the total efficiency of the PEMFC-based cogeneration system is 92 % and the electrical efficiency is 22 %.
