Liquid fuel utilization in SOFC hybrid systems

The interest in solid oxide fuel cell systems comes from their capability of converting the chemical energy of traditional fuels into electricity, with high efficiency and low pollutant emissions. In this paper, a study of the design space of solid oxide fuel cell and gas turbine hybrids fed by methanol and kerosene is presented for stationary power generation in isolated areas (or transportation). A 500 kW class hybrid system was analysed using WTEMP original software developed by the Thermochemical Power Group of the University of Genoa. The choice of fuel-processing strategy and the influence of the main design parameters on the thermoeconomic characteristics of hybrid systems were investigated. The low capital and fuel cost of methanol systems make them the most attractive solutions among those investigated here.