Recen Inno a ions in Mecha onics (RIiM) Vol. 2. (2015). No. 1-2.
DOI: 10.17667/ iim.2015.1-2/17.
1
Sizing and Economic Analysis o S andalone PEM
Fuel Cell Sys ems o Residen ial U iliza ion
She i M. Imam
The Elec ical Enginee ing Depa men ,
Facul y o Enginee ing, Ka elsheikh Uni e si y
Ka elsheikh, Egyp
(She i [email protected] s.edu.eg)
Ahmed M. Azmy
Elec ical Powe and Machines Enginee ing Depa men ,
Facul y o Enginee ing, Tan a, Uni e si y,
Tan a, Egyp
([email p o ec ed].edu.eg)
Abs ac — This s udy discusses he economic u iliza ion o
p o on exchange memb ane uel cell (PEMFC) based on cos o
ene gy (COE) o supply esiden ial elec ical and he mal loads.
The uel cell sys em is sized using simpli ied ma hema ical
exp essions conside ing he s ack deg ada ion and he sys em
sal age alue a he end o i s li e ime. The s udy is based on a 5
kWh/day esiden ial loads wi h a peak load powe o 1300W.
Two scena ios o economic su ey a e s udied. The i s scena io
is o ind he comme cial p ice o each FC componen
conside ing ha he supply uel is hyd ogen. The o he scena io
is o a comple e FC sys em comme cial p ice conside ing ha
he supply uel is na u al gas. The economic analyses a e based
on he ac ual sale p ices in he ma ke . The COE o he uel cell
sys em is compa ed wi h p e ious wo k by he au ho s o he
same esiden ial a ings bu supplied om a s and-alone pho o
ol aic sys em (SAPV). The analysis esul s show ha he COE
elies hea ily on he capi al cos o he sys em.
Index Te ms— PEMFC uni sizing, Cos o ene gy,
Economic analysis, FC deg ada ion.
Lis o symbols
Symbol
Desc ip ion
Uni / alue
Acell
The cell a ea
cm2
CAO&M
Annual O&M cos
$
CC
The capi al cos o he FC
$
CHG, CNG
Hyd ogen and na u al gas cos s
$/MMB u
COE
Cos o ene gy
$/Wh
1
P
C
,
2
P
C
A e age speci ic hea o cooling
luid o he FC s ack and wa e
cal/gm.K
CR
Running cos o he FC pe yea
$
C h
Numbe o he mal cycles
d
In e es a e
%
De, D h
Elec ical and he mal powe
deg ada ion
%
Ee, E h
FC elec ical and he mal ene gy
Wh
EL
A e age elec ical load
Wh/day
F
Fa aday cons an
96485
C/mol
gm
Mola mass o hyd ogen
g/mol
h c
FC unning hou s
h
H2,in,
The amoun o hyd ogen in oduced
o he uel cell
g
H2,ou
The amoun o unconsumed
hyd ogen in he uel cell
g
I
The FC a ed cu en
A
IC
Cu en capaci y
Ah
j
The cu en densi y
A/cm2
LLC
Li e cycle cos
$
1
M

,
2
M

Mass low a es o coolan luid in
he hea exchange and wa e
gm/s
mH2
The hyd ogen low a e
g/min
MH2O
Wa e molecula weigh
0.018
Kg/mol
mw
The mass low a e o he wa e in
he humidi ie
Kg/s
n
Numbe o moles o a subs ance
Mol
NCell
The numbe o cells
ne
Numbe o elec ons pe second o
1 ampe
6.28E+18
nem
Numbe o elec ons pe each
molecule o hyd ogen
2
nmm
Numbe o molecules pe hyd ogen
mol
6.02E+23
P
The p essu e o he hyd ogen in a
ank
A m
Pe
The a ed elec ical powe o he FC
W
Pm
The maximum load powe
W
P h
The a ed he mal powe o he FC
W
1abs
Q
,
2abs
Q
Abso bed he mal powe by cooling
luid o he uel cell and wa e
cal/s
R
The gas cons an
a m/mol.K
SV
Sal age alue o he FC sys em
$
T
The empe a u e o hyd ogen
K
c
T1
,
c
T2
Cold empe a u e o he uel-cell
cooling luid and wa e
K
h
T1
,
h
T2
Ho empe a u es o he uel-cell
cooling luid and wa e
K
Recen Inno a ions in Mecha onics (RIiM) Vol. 2. (2015). No. 1-2.
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U
U iliza ion ac o
%
Vcell
The cell ol age
V
VH2
Hyd ogen ank olume
li e s
Vs
The s ack ol age
V
y
The li e ime o FC in yea s
yea s
ηDC/AC
The e iciency o DC/AC in e e
%
ηe
Elec ical e iciency o CHP plan
%
η h
The mal e iciency o CHP plan
%
µFC
Ma gin coe icien o FC sizing
1.1
µV
Ma gin coe icien o hyd ogen
ank sizing
1.1
φ
Inle ai humidi y coe icien
%
I. INTRODUCTION
Fuel cell (FC) is one o he mos e icien ene gy
con e sion de ices. I is used o con e chemical eac ion in o
elec ical powe . Simple FC consis s o anode, ca hode, and
memb ane. Fuel, such as hyd ogen, is ed o he anode and he
oxygen is ed o he ca hode. The memb ane is used o p e en
elec ons low be ween he elec odes and o p e en hyd ogen
and oxygen om di ec mixing.
The e a e many ypes o FC, whe e each ype has i s
ad an ages and disad an ages [1]. In his pape , he PEMFC
will be used. In PEMFC, he eeding hyd ogen molecule a he
anode is spli in o hyd ogen ions and wo elec ons. Bo h he
hyd ogen and he wo elec ons mo e o he ca hode. The
hyd ogen mo es o he ca hode h ough he memb ane, while
and he wo elec ons mo e h ough he load. A he ca hode,
he eeding oxygen combines wi h he hyd ogen and he
elec ons o p oduce wa e . The eac ion equa ions a e as
ollows:
Anode eac ion:
  eHH 442 2
(1)
Ca hode eac ion:
OHeHO 22 244  
(2)
O e all cell eac ion:
OHOH 222 22 
(3)
The PEMFC has low ope a ing empe a u e be ween 60 oC
and 100 oC. I s elec ical e iciency is be ween 40% and 50%
and i has as s a -up p ocess. Since i has no mo ing pa s in
he s ack, i equi es minimum main enance. Howe e , i has
high cos and low du abili y o p ac ical applica ions [1].
A e iew o PEMFC echnologies and applica ions a e
in oduced in [2]. The amoun o hyd ogen and he ank size
a e in oduced in [3]. Howe e , his esea ch didn' pay
a en ion o nei he uel u iliza ion no cell ol age. One o he
challenges in uel cell pe o mance is he wa e managemen
o he humidi ie . A e iew o wa e managemen echniques
and expe imen al se up o eliable humidi ie we e p esen ed
in [4]. The ela i e humidi y o he gas and he p essu e
changes in he sys em ha e been conside ed in [4], bu i didn'
pay a en ion nei he o he accumula ed wa e a he ca hode
no he load cu en .
Con olling he s ack empe a u e o he uel cell is a
c i ical issue. High empe a u e educes he humidi ica ion and
hus leads o educing bo h he p o on conduc i i y and he
memb ane li e ime. On he o he hand, low empe a u e
inc eases he condensa ion o wa e a he ca hode causing
ol age losses and limi ing he load cu en [5]. A e iew o
di e en cooling echniques o PEMFC and he ad an ages
and disad an ages o each echnique a e in oduced in [6]. The
analysis o he ela ion be ween he empe a u e o he hea
exchange inle coolan luid and accep able empe a u e
di e ence ac oss he uel cell aking in o conside a ion he
hea exchange e ec i eness alue is in oduced in [7]. The
echnical and economic easibili y o using mic o combined
hea and powe (CHP) uel cell o di e en clima e zones o
I an is s udied in [8]. Howe e , he deg ada ion in he
elec ical and he he mal powe o he uel cell did no
conside ed in his esea ch. A compa ison o deg ada ion
beha iou s o open-ended and closed PEMFC and a e iew
on pe o mance deg ada ion du ing s a up and shu down
p ocesses a e p o ided in [9] and [10] espec i ely.
This pape aims o in oduce a sizing me hodology and o
analyse he economics o PEMFC sys em o esiden ial
u iliza ion. The economic s udy conside s he alue o cell
ol age and he u iliza ion ac o when calcula ing he low
a e o supplying uel. FC deg ada ion and he sys em sal age
alue a e aking in o conside a ion o he li e cycle cos
“LCC”. Each subsys em is sized using simpli ied
ma hema ical exp essions. Two scena ios o economic su ey
a e s udied. The i s one is based on inding he comme cial
p ice o each FC componen conside ing ha he supply uel
is hyd ogen. The o he scena io is o a comple e FC sys em
comme cial p ice conside ing ha he supply uel is na u al
gas. The COE is in es iga ed o each sys em and compa ed
wi h p e ious wo k by he au ho s o he same esiden ial
a ings bu supplied om a s and-alone pho o ol aic sys em
(SAPV).
II. SIZING METHODOLOGY
The sizing p ocedu es adop ed o s and-alone PEMFC
sys em a e pe o med as ollows:
A. De ining he elec ical load
A esiden ial load is analyzed as shown in able 1 o de ine
i s a e age daily consump ion. In he able, he a e age
elec ical load (EL) o a household is abou 5kWh/day.
Table 1: Elec ical load o he PEMFC powe sys em
Appliance
Numbe
Powe
[W]
To al
powe
[W]
Wo king
hou s
[h/day]
To al
Ene gy
[Wh/day]
Ceiling an
2
60
120
5
600
Lamps
6
40
240
6
1440
Re ige a o
1
175
175
6
1050
TV
1
150
150
3
450
Wa e pump
1
245
245
3
735
Washing
machine
1
370
370
2
740
To al
1300
5015
Recen Inno a ions in Mecha onics (RIiM) Vol. 2. (2015). No. 1-2.
DOI: 10.17667/ iim.2015.1-2/17.
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B. De e mina ion o PEMFC size
The maximum load powe mus be co e ed by he FC
s ack. The a ed powe o he FC can be calcula ed as ollows
[11]:
ACDC
m
P
FCe
P/



(4)
Acco ding o he FC cha ac e is ics, he cell ol age o he
s ack is a unc ion o he cu en densi y as illus a ed in Fig.
1. The s ack o he FC can be sized as ollows [12]:
I
s
V
e
P
(5)
cell
AjI 
(6)
cellcells NVV 
(7)
Fig. 1: The ela ionship be ween he cell ol age and he cell cu en
densi y
C. De e mina ion o hyd ogen consump ion
The ene gy con en o hyd ogen is measu ed by hyd ogen's
lowe hea ing alue (LHV) [3]. The amoun o hyd ogen's
LHV s o ed in he ank should equal o he equi alen
elec ical ene gy needed by he load. F om (1), each molecule
o hyd ogen gi es wo elec ons. Thus, by iden i ying he load
cu en , i is possible o ge he equi ed amoun o hyd ogen
since one Ampe ep esen s one coulomb pe second and he
cha ge o a single elec on is 1.602×10-19 coulombs. The
equi ed amoun o hyd ogen low a e can be calcula ed
acco ding o he ollowing equa ions [13]:
CCellL IVE 
(8)
mmemCell
meL
HnnV
gnE
m

60
2
(9)
Due o incomple e eac ion o hyd ogen a he anode and
he opened-end s ack o he uel cell, he consumed hyd ogen
is less han he o al hyd ogen in oduced in o he uel cell. A
u iliza ion ac o (U ) is de ined as he ac ion o he o al uel
o oxidan in oduced in o a uel cell ha eac s
elec ochemically. The u iliza ion ac o can be in oduced as
ollows [13]:
in
ou in
H
HH
U,2
,2,2 

(10)
Conce ning he u iliza ion ac o , (9) should be modi ied as
ollows:
mmemCell
meL
HnnVU
gnE
m

60
2
(11)
D. De e mina ion o hyd ogen ank size
The olume o he hyd ogen ank can be de e mined om
he ideal gas law as ollows [3]:
P
TRn
VH

2
(12)
The olume o he hyd ogen in he ank is con olled by
bo h he empe a u e and he p essu e. PEMFC ope a es a low
empe a u es be ween 60oC and 100oC. This means ha he
hyd ogen has o be eleased om he ank a his empe a u e
ange. The sui able p essu e o his ange o empe a u e is 1-
10 ba s, which limi s he ou pu low a e o hyd ogen below
2g/s, and consequen ly, limi s he powe o he PEMFC below
10kW [14]. The ank size has o be mul iplied by a ma gin
ac o due o he unexpec ed ci cums ances o bo h excessi e
p essu e luc ua ion and empe a u e ising. The ma gin ac o
“
V

” anges a e om 1.1 o 1.3 [15]. Thus, (12) should be
modi ied as ollows:
P
TRn
VVH 


2
(13)
E. De e mina ion o he humidi ie size
The uel cell memb ane should ha e mode a e wa e
con en . High wa e con en in he memb ane has he
ad an age o inc easing he p o on conduc i i y since i
dec eases he ohmic loss, and consequen ly, inc eases he
li e ime o he memb ane. On he o he hand, he high wa e
con en in he memb ane esul s in high wa e accumula ion in
he ca hode, which dec eases he oxygen low. Dec easing he
oxygen low will limi he load cu en [16]. The humidi ie
wo ks by passing he hyd ogen and oxygen h ough a low o
ho wa e apo sa u a ed wi h ine bubbles. The mass low
a e o he wa e in he humidi ie can be calcula ed as ollows
conside ing he accumula ed wa e a he ca hode and he load
cu en [16]:
OH
cell
WM
F
IN
m2
19.1


(14)
F. The hea exchange sizing
To con ol he empe a u e in PEMFC and maximize i s
economic bene i s, a hea exchange has o be used. The c ux
o hea exchange ope a ion is o ans e hea om wa m exi
coolan o he cool inle coolan by con olling he low a e o
he coolan ci cula ion o ob ain he desi ed ope a ing
empe a u e. A e ce ain ime o ci cula ion p ocess, he
coolan inle empe a u e will each a s eady s a e condi ion.
This se ling ime depends on he hea exchange e ec i eness
and bo h empe a u e o coolan and he desi ed ope a ing
Cell ol age (V)
Cu en densi y (mA/cm2)
0 200 400 600 800 1000
1
0.8
0.6
0.4
0.2
0
Ohmic Po en ial
Ac i a ion Po en ial
Concen a ion
Po en ial
Recen Inno a ions in Mecha onics (RIiM) Vol. 2. (2015). No. 1-2.
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empe a u e o he uel cell. The hea exchange e ec i eness
is a a io o he ac ual a e o hea ans e be ween he ho and
cold luids o he maximum possible hea ans e a e [7]. The
maximum possible hea ans e a e is ob ained om an
in ini ely sized hea exchange [7]. The cooling me hod
depends on he a ed powe o he uel cell. Fo powe a ing
below 2kW, he s ack can be cooled by ai , which is di e en
om he ca hode ai . Fo powe a ings g ea e han 10kW,
wa e is used o he cooling p ocess [17].
The exhaus hea om PEMFC can be used in p ehea ing
bo h wa e and space o esiden ial usages. A de ailed design
o he hea exchange was men ioned in [18].
This s udy concen a es on he economic bene i o using
he exhaus hea om he PEMFC in p ehea ing esiden ial
wa e usages as shown in Fig. 2. The equa ions desc ibing he
ope a ion o he hea eco e y sys em can be illus a ed as
ollow [18]:
 
chPabs TTCMQ 11
1
1
1 
(15)
 
chPabs TTCMQ 22
2
2
2 
(16)
Fig. 2: Block diag am o a simple hea eco e y sys em
G. Fuel cell auxilia y componen s
The auxilia y componen s in he uel cell sys em o he
balance o plan (BOP) as i may be called consis o ai
il a ion and comp esso , p essu e elie al es, wa e pumps,
hea exchange and senso s. The ai il a ion sys em is used
o emo al o pa icula ma e and con aminan s such as
sul u , sal s, ca bon monoxide and hyd oca bons. The
comp esso is used o supply p essu ized ai o he PEMFC a
he ca hode. The wa e pumps a e used o humidi ica ion and
empe a u e coolan ci cula ion. The hyd ogen ueling sys em
consis s o blowe , ejec o and pu ge al e. Bo h he blowe
and ejec o a e used o con ol he eed o hyd ogen o he
anode o he uel cell s ack. The blowe is used o low a es
below 25% o he a ed capaci y, while he ejec o is used o
low a es be ween 25% and 100% o he a ed capaci y. The
low empe a u e o he liquid hyd ogen causes he a mosphe ic
ai o condensa e. The pa ial e apo a ion o ni ogen can
cause he liquid ai o become en iched wi h oxygen. In
addi ion, i will ac as a i e agen when con ac s wi h any
combus ible subs ances. Fo his eason, a high hyd ogen
low a e, a pu ge al e is used o mixing a sa e pe cen age
alue o hyd ogen wi h ca hode exhaus ai o minimize he
dilu ion e ec s o ni ogen c osso e [19].
III. THE LIFE-CYCLE COST
PEMFC has an a e age li e ime anging o 3000-5000
ope a ing hou s in passenge ehicles sys ems, while i has an
a e age li e ime o 40000-80000 ope a ing hou s in s a iona y
powe sys ems. The li e cycle cos o he PEMFC sys em
depends hea ily on bo h he capi al cos o he uel cell and
he unning cos o he ueling sys em. The capi al cos o he
PEMFC elies hea ily on i s ou pu powe and he olume o
manu ac u ing pe yea [20]. The cos o uel, which in inal
o m is hyd ogen, depends on i s p oduc ion me hod [21]. The
LCC can be calcula ed depending on he capi al cos , he
p esen alue o he unning cos du ing i s li e ime, ope a ion
and main enance cos (O&M) and he sal age alue a he end
o i s li e. The capi al cos o he FC sys em includes he FC
s ack, s o age ank, BOP, and he in e e . The LCC o he
PEMFC sys em can be calcula ed om he ollowing equa ion
[22]:
   




 Y
yY
d
SV
y
d
R
O&M
C
C
CLCC C
111
(17)
The O&M cos depends on he FC gene a ed ene gy. Thus
he p esen alue o he annual O&M cos can be calcula ed
and in oduced in (17) as ollows:
     






 Y
yY
d
SV
y
d
R
Y
yy
d
MO
A
C
C
CLCC C
111
11
&
(18)
The elec ical and he mal ene gy o he CHP uel cell can
be calcula ed om he ollowing equa ions [8]:
c
h
e
P
e
E
(19)
c
h
h
P
h
E
(20)
e
h
e
P
h
P



(21)
Equa ions (19) h ough (21) did no ake in o accoun he
e ec o deg ada ion on he uel cell ou pu . The causes o uel
cell deg ada ion a e he non comple ed humidi ied gases a he
anode and ca hode, he high empe a u e o he uel cell and
ca hode ca bon co osion [23]. The deg ada ion can in ol e
one o all uel cell componen s like elec oly e, elec odes and
bipola pla es. The deg ada ion in he uel cell can be
measu ed by one o he ollowing uni s: he pe cen age loss
ela i e o he ini ial alue o e iciency, powe , cu en o
ol age. The common measu ing uni o uel cell deg ada ion
is he ol age loss pe uni ime ( ypically µV/h). The
deg ada ion a e in he uel cell depends on many ac o s such
as he uel cell ype, he ope a ing ol age and cu en densi y,
maximum ou pu powe , uel ype, ope a ing condi ions, and
he unning hou s. Cumula i e deg ada ion o small a ings
below 2kW can be exp essed as a pe cen age pe o mance loss
pe MWh elec ical ene gy ou pu , and pe 1000 he mal
cycles. The deg ada ion anges a e be ween 0.16% and 8% pe
1000 h o PEMFCs o elec ical powe , and be ween 0% o
Hea
exchange
h
TM1
,
1

2c
2
T

M
T1c
T2h
Tank
Fuel
cell
S ack
Recen Inno a ions in Mecha onics (RIiM) Vol. 2. (2015). No. 1-2.
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10% pe o mance deg ada ion pe 1000 he mal cycles o
he mal powe [24].
Conce ning he e ec o deg ada ion on FC ou pu , he
elec ical ene gy o he CHP uel cell will be as ollows:
















 e
D
c
h
loo
c
h
e
P
e
E3
10
1
(22)
whe e loo means ounds down he ac ion o he nea es
in ege numbe .
The he mal cycle means cycling om FC ope a ing
empe a u e o cold empe a u e and back o ope a ing
empe a u e again. La ge sys ems can be exposed o a ew
he mal cycles h oughou hei li e as hey ope a e o longe
pe iods be ween shu downs. Fo he smalle PEMFC, he uni
has o be s opped app oxima ely e e y 600 h [24].
The COE can be calcula ed by di iding he li e cycle cos
o he sys em o e he o al gene a ed ene gy, included he
elec ical and he mal ene gy, du ing he sys em li e cycle as
ollows:
h
E
e
E
LCC
COE 

(23)
IV. RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS
A comme cial ma ke su ey is done o in oduce he COE
h ough he uel cell sys em p ice. Two su ey scena ios a e
s udied. Acco ding o he a ailable p ices in he comme cial
ma ke , one scena io is o ind each FC componen p ice, and
he o he scena io is o a comple e FC sys em p ice. I is
supposed ha he i s scena io will use hyd ogen di ec ly o
eed he FC, while he second scena io will use he na u al gas
o eed he FC h ough a e o me .
A. The i s sena io
Table 2 illus a es he a ings; speci ica ions and he cos o
he PEMFC s ack [25]. The da a o able 2 a e analysed and i
is concluded ha , he a e age cos o PEMFC s ack is abou
3500 $/kW as appea s om he cu e slop o Fig. 3. The s ack
e iciency is be ween 35% and 45% acco ding o he
consumed hyd ogen o he p oduced powe when he powe
densi y o H2 is 65.8 Wh/mole, and he hyd ogen consump ion
occu s a 0.5 ba & 30Co.
Table 2: PEMFC s ack speci ica ions and cos .
S ack
a ing [W]
Max.
O/P Powe
No. o
cells
Dim.
[cm]
H2 Cons.
[L/min]
P ice
[$]
5000
72 V/70 A
120
38×16×46
70
15000
3000
43.2 V/70 A
72
38×16×28
42
10500
2000
28.8 V/70 A
48
38×16×20
28
7500
1000
43 V/23.5 A
72
32.4×22×12.2
14
4000
500
21 V/24 A
36
25×19×7.5
6.5
3435
300
43 V/7 A
72
32.4×10.9×9.4
3.9
2450
200
28 V/7.2 A
48
22.3×10.9×9.4
2.8
1780
100
14 V/7.2 A
24
14.3×10.9×9.4
1.3
1029
30
9 V/3.4 A
12
8×6.4×4.6
0.42
742
20
7.8 V/2.6 A
13
7.6×6.4×4.7
0.28
433
12
7.8 V/1.6 A
13
7.6×6.4×4.7
0.18
347
Fig. 3: The ela ionship be ween he PEMFC s ack a ing and
i s capi al cos .
The mos popula me al hyd ides SOLID-H, hyd ogen
s o age, con aine s supply hyd ogen in low a mosphe ic
p essu e a oom empe a u e. This is he sa es me hod known
o s o ing lammable hyd ogen gas. Typical SOLID-H
con aine sizes a e gi en in able 3. Me al hyd ides a e he
mos compac way o s o e hyd ogen (mo e dense han liquid
hyd ogen). The lowe cos SOLID-H CL-se ies con aine s,
including CL-370 and CL-910, a e based on aluminum
indus ial gas cylinde s. These wo con aine s hold 370 and
910 li e s o hyd ogen espec i ely. The aluminum cylinde s
used o cons uc he CL-se ies a e a ed o e y high
p essu es. This makes hem hea ie han equi alen hin
walled s ainless s eel BL-se ies con aine s o compa able
capaci y [26].
Table 3: SOLID-H con aine s size and cos .
Model
Size [Li e s]
Cos [$]
BL-18
18-20
345
BL-30
30-34
675
BL-60
60-69
991
BL-120
120-135
1523
BL-220
220-242
2337
BL-740
740-822
3139
CL-370
334-370
525
CL-910
819-910
1320
The mos economical sou ces o p oduce hyd ogen a e
coal and na u al gas. The linking equa ion be ween bo h he
cos o hyd ogen and na u al gas is as ollow [21]:
985.027.1  NG
C
HG
C
(24)
The a e age na u al gas esiden ial p ice o he las wel e
mon hs is 12.62 dolla s pe housand cubic ee acco ding o
Ene gy In o ma ion Adminis a ion, U.S. na u al gas p ices
[27]. The same p ice can be ob ained om linking he cos o
hyd ogen o he cos o gasoline, whe e he ene gy con en o
one kilog am o hyd ogen equal he ene gy con en in one
gallon o gasoline. A compu e p og am has been de eloped o
analyze he COE o e he sys em li e ime. Table 4 illus a es
he pa ame e s alues ha a e used in he p og am, whe e he
ollowing assump ions a e aking in o conside a ion in he
p og amming [8], [13], [22], [28], [29]:
Table 4: The se ing pa ame e s o he compu e p og am.
01000 2000 3000 4000 5000
0
5000
10000
15000
Ra ed powe [Wh]
Ma ke p ice [$]

Recen Inno a ions in Mecha onics (RIiM) Vol. 2. (2015). No. 1-2.
DOI: 10.17667/ iim.2015.1-2/17.
6
Pa ame e
Se ing alue
Peak load powe
1300W
To al ene gy
5KWh/day
The in e e e iciency
90%
Ma gin coe icien o FC sizing
1.5
S ack single cell ol age
0.65V
Cu en densi y
0.65A/cm2
Single cell a ea
7.5*7.5 cm2
U iliza ion ac o
0.8
FC li e ime
60000 h
FC unning ime
8760h/yea
In e es a e
6%
Elec ical deg ada ion in FC
2% pe 1000h
The mal o elec ical powe a io
140%
1-) The O&M cos is 0.035 $/kWh.
2-) The FC sal age alue is 10% o i s capi al cos .
3-) The BOP including he hea exchange cos is abou 40%
o he FC capi al cos o 500,000 uni s pe yea p oduc ion
olume.
In suppo o accu a e calcula ions, he deg ada ion in FC
ou pu a ec s only he o al gene a ed ene gy no he hyd ogen
o na u al gas consump ion. The he mal deg ada ion in
PEMFC has been neglec ed as i will no exceed 150 he mal
cycles pe i s li e. The esul s show ha he mass low a e o
wa e in he humidi ie is 1.17 l/h . The low low
humidi ica ion sys em cos is $1700 [30]. The hyd ogen low
a e is 0.14Kg/h . The co esponding hyd ogen ank is CL-
910.
The capi al cos o he uel cell sys em is abou 9250$/kW
and he COE equal 0.19$/kWh including he elec ical and
he mal ou pu powe o he uel cell. The pie-cha illus a ed
in Fig. 4 shows he pe cen age cos o each componen o he
FC sys em wi hin i s li e ime. The analysis shows ha
hyd ogen cos ep esen s he majo COE which equals 43%,
while cos o powe condi ioning in e e and he hyd ogen
ank ep esen only 8% o he whole cos . The pe cen age cos
o he s ack and he BOP a e almos equals.
Fig. 4: The pe cen age cos o each componen o he FC
sys em wi hin i s li e ime.
B. The second sena io
Following is ano he su ey o he comple e CHP PEMFC
sys ems in he comme cial ma ke . These sys ems a e
p oduced wi h all equi ed componen s such as: s ack, hea
exchange , hyd ogen s o age ank and he BOP. The
comme cial sys em also includes i s e o me o p oduce he
equi ed hyd ogen om he na u al gas.
The Japanese go e nmen has suppo ed he esiden ial-
based ENE-FARM CHPFC since 2009. By he end o 2012,
34,000 o he na u al gas-powe ed uel cell sys ems had
al eady been ins alled. The p oduc speci ica ions a y
somewha om company o company. The new model o
ENE-FARM, which is launched in he ma ke om he i s o
Ap il 2014, is ypically sold a a ed elec ical and he mal
ou pu s o 0.75kW and 1.08kW espec i ely, wi h a o al,
elec ic and he mal, e iciency anging om 80% o 95%
ega ding o he low hea ing alue o hyd ogen. The li e ime
o he sys em is 60000 hou s and i s p ice is abou $18500
[31].
Like he ENE-FARM p og am in Japan, he ENE-FIELD
p og am is suppo ed by he go e nmen , co- unded by he
pa ne s and he Eu opean Commission’s Fuel Cells and
Hyd ogen Join Unde aking p og am (FCH-JU). In Janua y
2013, he ENE-FIELD p ojec is launched as he la ges
Eu opean demons a ion o uel cell-based mic o-CHP. The
i e-yea demons a ion, which is co- unded by (FCH-JU),
will deploy up o 1,000 esiden ial uel cell ins alla ions ac oss
12 key membe s a es. The sys em ou pu elec ical and
he mal a ings a e 1kW and 1.4kW espec i ely. The sys em
li e ime is 40000 hou s and i s cos is abou € 9000, [32].
Fuel cell manu ac u e , Balla d Powe Co., gene a es
elec ical powe and hea om CHP PEMFC a ed as 1kW and
1.52kW espec i ely. The sys em li e ime is 40000 hou s and
i s cos is C$ 11600. The company’s high- empe a u e PEM
uel cell is being sold p ima ily in Cali o nia, whe e he Sel
Gene a ion Incen i e P og am (SGIP) p o ides gene ous
unding o uel cell ins alla ions [33].
Ano he p og am has been de eloped o calcula e he COE
o he p e ious sys ems. Table 5 summa izes he COE o
each sys em acco ding o each sys em a ed ou pu elec ical
and he mal powe , he li e ime, and he cos . When
calcula ing he unning cos , he na u al gas is conside ed as
he ueling inpu . The low a e o na u al gas o esiden ial
uel cell is 0.0066 MMB u/kWh [34]. The ollowing exchange
a e is conside ed: 1€=1.29$=1.42CAD.
Table 5: COE o di e en comme cial CHP PEMFC
sys ems in he ma ke .
Sys em
Pe
[KW]
P h
[KW]
Li e ime
[hou s]
Sys em
p ice [$]
COE
[$/KWh]
ENE-FARM
0.75
1.08
60000
18500
0.26
ENE-FIELD
1
1.4
40000
11520
0.19
Balla d Powe
1
1.52
40000
10540
0.16
The p og am esul s show ha he COE anges a e om
0.16 o 0.26 $/kWh acco ding o each sys em speci ica ions
and cos . Figu e 5 shows he pe cen age cos o LCC o he FC
sys em wi hin i s li e ime. The analysis shows ha he sys em
24%
4%
BOP 25% 4%
43%
S ack
H2 Tank
BOP
In e e
Hyd ogen
Recen Inno a ions in Mecha onics (RIiM) Vol. 2. (2015). No. 1-2.
DOI: 10.17667/ iim.2015.1-2/17.
7
capi al cos ep esen s he majo cos , while he unning cos
ep esen s only 29% o he o al LCC.
Fig. 5: The pe cen age cos o LCC o comple e CHP
PEMFC.
The ob ained esul s a e compa ed o he COE ob ained in
a p e ious wo k by au ho s [35], o he same esiden ial
a ings bu supplied om a s and-alone PV (SAPV) sys em.
The compa ison shows ha using CHP PEMFC sys em is
ad an ageous since he COE is cheape han using SAPV
sys em, which is 1.84$/kWh. In addi ion, he CHP PEMFC
sys em is no dependan on he clima e condi ions. On he
o he hand, SAPV does no need any ossil uels. The main
p oblem o uel cells is he absence o hyd ogen in as uc u e
o supply hyd ogen uel. On-boa d hyd ogen s o age is a
majo issue and since hyd ogen is he uel, he e a e conce ns
abou explosions. On he o he hand, pho o ol aic sys ems a e
conside ed as comple ely sa e, clean, and enewable ene gy
sou ce. I doesn' need in as uc u e and hence, i can be used
in emo e a eas.
V. CONCLUSION
An economic analysis o a PEMFC sys em o esiden ial
applica ions is ca ied ou o simply de ine he size o each
componen and he COE o e he sys em li e ime. The FC
deg ada ion and he sys em sal age alue a e conside ed. In
addi ion o he elec ical ou pu powe , he uel cell he mal
ou pu powe is aking in o conside a ion o calcula ing he
COE. Two scena ios o economic su ey a e s udied. One
scena io is o ind he comme cial p ice o each FC
componen conside ing ha he uel inpu is hyd ogen. The
second scena io is o a comple e FC sys em comme cial p ice
conside ing ha he uel inpu is na u al gas. F om he esul s
and discussion, i is ound ha he COE anged om
0.16$/kWh o 0.26$/kWh acco ding o each sys em p ice, li e
ime, uelling inpu , and i s elec ical and he mal ou pu
powe . The FC capi al cos has a majo ole in de ining he
COE o e he unning cos ha includes he O&M and
uelling cos . Compa ing he uel cell COE wi h p e ious
wo k by he au ho s, o he same esiden ial a ings bu
supplied om SAPV, he use o CHP PEMFC sys em can be
cheape and mo e eliable powe . Howe e , uel cells use
ossil uel and hey ha e many p ecau ions o hyd ogen
s o age. On he o he hand, pho o ol aic sys ems conside ed as
comple ely sa e, clean, sus ainable and enewable ene gy
sou ce. Mo e in es iga ion is equi ed o de elop hyb id
con igu a ions and educe he capi al cos o uel cells.
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
The wo k is suppo ed by he TÁMOP-4.2.2.A-11/1/KONV-
2012-0041 p ojec . The p ojec is co- inanced by he Eu opean
Union and he Eu opean Social Fund.
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