Fuel Cell Plant Description

Figure 1-4     Fuel Cell Power Plant Major Processes

As shown in Figure 1-1, the fuel cell combines hydrogen produced from the fuel and oxygen from the air to produce dc power, water, and heat. In cases where CO and CH₄ are reacted in the cell to produce hydrogen, CO₂ is also a product. These reactions must be carried out at a suitable temperature and pressure for fuel cell operation. A system must be built around the fuel cells to supply air and clean fuel, convert the power to a more usable form such as grid quality ac power, and remove the depleted reactants and heat that are produced by the reactions in the cells. Figure 1-4 shows a simple rendition of a fuel cell power plant. Beginning with the fuel processing, a conventional fuel (natural gas, other gaseous hydrocarbons, methanol, naphtha, or coal) is cleaned, then converted into a gas containing hydrogen. Energy conversion occurs when dc electricity is generated by means of individual fuel cells combined in stacks or bundles. A varying number of cells or stacks can be matched to a particular power application. Finally, power conditioning converts the electric power from dc into regulated dc or ac for consumer use. Sections 7 and 8 describes the processes of a fuel cell power plant system.

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