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Fuel Cell Technology for Distributed Generation: An Overview

Conference Paper · August 2006

DOI: 10.1109/ISIE.2006.295713 · Source: IEEE Xplore

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 IEEE ISIE 2006, July 9-12, 2006, Montréal, Québec, Canada

Fuel Cell Technology

for Distributed Generation: An Overview
Xinhong Huang, Member, IEEE, Zhihao Zhang, Student Member, IEEE, and Jin Jiang, Senior Member, IEEE
Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering, The University of Western Ontario
London, Ontario, Canada. N6A 5B9
E-mail: [email protected], [email protected], [email protected]

Abstract-Fuel cell technology for distributed generation (DG) including combustion gas turbines, micro-turbines, wind
is attracting more and more attention due to its high efficiency turbines, photovoltaic/solar panels, and fuel cells. Among these
and unique environmentally friendly features. In this paper, the
system characteristics, state-of-the-art, prospective markets and technologies, the use of fuel cells for distributed generation is
applications of different fuel cells are discussed. The operational attracting more and more attention due to its unique
principles of these fuel cell systems are also presented and their environmentally friendly features.
distinct characteristics are summarized. As a new technology for Fuel cells convert chemical energy directly into electrical
DG, this paper focuses more attention on the DG application energy by an electro-chemical reaction between hydrogen and
aspect of fuel cells. Comparison of different type of fuel cells in
the framework of DG is also made. Furthermore, the power oxygen. The by-products are water, heat, and carbon dioxide in
conditioning and control techniques for fuel cell based DG are very small amount (only when carbon-containing fuels other
also reviewed. Finally, future prospects of fuel cell based DG are than pure hydrogen are used, such as CO and CH4). In the last
predicted. decade, fuel cells have become one of the most promising
technologies to meet the increasing energy demands for the 21
century. Fuel cell technology is well suited to distributed
I. INTRODUCTION generation due to its high efficiency, scalability, modularity
According to the International Energy Outlook 2005 report and negligible amount of harmful emissions. Moreover, the
[1] prepared by the Energy Information Administration of the next generation nuclear power plants known as “Generation
USA, world net electricity consumption will nearly double IV” will be able to produce the hydrogen directly from thermo
from 14,275 TWh in 2002 to 26,018 TWh in 2025. In addition, cracking [5]. It is expected that this will greatly increase the
environmental concerns have lead to reduce the greenhouse gas popularity of fuel cell applications.
emissions. Under such circumstances, the traditional This paper provides an overview of the fuel cell technology
centralized power generation alone can no longer satisfy the for distributed generation. The current research and recent
requirement of the ever increasing in power demands, the developments on this subject has been reviewed. In section II,
power quality and safety. Distributed generation (DG) becomes the basic notion of fuel cell technology is introduced. The
an important supplement to centralized power generation. system characteristics, state-of-the-art, prospective markets and
Moreover, deregulation and restructuring in the energy market applications of several types of fuel cells are also covered.
also create incentive for small-scale power generation in Section III compares fuel cell based DG with other DG
distributed forms. The total capacity of DG is expected to grow technologies. A comparison of DG technologies based on
rapidly in the near future. A proper combination of traditional different fuel cell types is also presented. In Section IV, the
centralized and newly developed distributed power generation power conditioning and control techniques for fuel cell based
will be less costly to consumers, can increase generation and DG are reviewed. Different power conditioning unit (PCU)
transmission efficiency, improve the security and flexibility of topologies and control techniques are presented. Finally, the
the entire power system, and in the meantime reduce the future prospects of fuel cell based DG is summarized in
greenhouse gas emissions. Section V.
Distributed generation relies on small-scale power
generation technologies to provide electricity at or close to the II. DEVELOPMENT AND APPLICATION STATUS OF FUEL CELL
load site. A DG system is generally not centrally planned and TECHNOLOGIES
dispatched, and usually connected to a distribution network,
A. Principles
directly to customer’s facilities, or both [2][3]. The rating of
The principle of fuel cells is not a new concept. The first fuel
DG ranges can range from a few KW up to 100 MW
cell was invented in 1839. It used hydrogen and oxygen on
depending on different applications [4]. Distributed generation
platinum electrodes with sulfuric acid as the electrolyte to
is also capable of providing diversified energy options to both
generate electricity. However, like many of the early
utilities and consumers, including standby generation, peak
discoveries in electricity generation, fuel cell technology
shaving capability, premium power, remote power, or
remained only as curiosity to general publics for more than a
cogeneration. There are various technologies available for DG,
century until late 1950s [6][7].

1-4244-0497-5/06/$20.00 © 2006 IEEE 1613

 A fuel cell is an energy conversion device that converts the TABLE I
CHARACTERISTICS AND REQUIREMENTS OF MAJOR FUEL CELL TYPES
chemical energy directly into electric energy and some heat
without any intermediate thermal or mechanical processes [8]. Fuel Cell Type
Parameters
Fuel cells are similar to batteries containing electrodes and PEMFC PAFC MCFC SOFC
electrolytic materials to generate electricity. The structure of a Stabilized
Solid
simplified fuel cell is shown in Fig. 1 [3]. A positive electrode polymer
Phosphoric Lithium and solid oxide
(anode), a negative electrode (cathode), and an electrolyte are Electrolyte acid potassium electrolyte
membrane
(H3PO4) carbonate (yttria,
essential for the reaction to take place. In addition, the material (Nafion)
zirconia)
of electrolyte is generally used to identify the type of fuel cells. Operating
50-100 ~200 ~650 ~1000
temp. (˚C)
Operating
15-30 ~15 15-150 ~15
press. (psig)
Pure H2 H2, CO,CH4, H2, CO,CH4,
Pure H2 (tolerates other other
Fuel (tolerates CO2, hydrocarbons hydrocarbons
CO2) approx. 1% (tolerates (tolerates
CO) CO2) CO2)
Oxidant O2 in air O2 in air O2 in air O2 in air
Efficiency 35-45% 40% >50% >50%
Cell voltage
1.1 1.1 0.7-1.0 0.8-1.0
(VDC)
Install Cost
1,400 2,100 2,600 3,000
(US$/KW)

Ideally, the theoretical maximum voltage produced by a

single cell as shown in Table I would be realized at all
Fig. 1. Fuel cell operation diagram operating currents. In reality, the cell achieves its highest
output voltage only at open circuit conditions and voltage
In principle, a fuel cell can operate with a variety of fuels drops off with increasing current drawn, similar as any voltage
and oxidants. Hydrogen has long been recognized as the most source with internal resistance. In fuel cell terminology, it is
effective fuel for practical use because of its high electro- known as polarization and can be represented by a polarization
chemical reactivity, which minimizes the need for expensive curve as shown in Fig. 2 [3][7].
catalysts. Oxygen is the preferred oxidant due to its abundance The polarization curve characterizes the cell voltage as a
in the atmosphere. The chemical reactions in fuel cells can be function of the current. The current, in turn, depends on the
described by (1) to (3). size of the external electrical load that the fuel cell powers. The
Over all cell reaction: H2 + ½O2 → H2O (1) polarization curve also shows the electrochemical efficiency of
+ - the fuel cell at any operating current since the efficiency is
Anode reaction: H2 → 2H + 2e (2) often defined as the ratio of the actual cell voltage over the
- +
Cathode reaction: ½O2 + 2e + 2H → H2O (3) theoretical maximum voltage.
Polarization is caused by chemical and physical factors
B. Fuel Cell Types and Characteristics
associated with various elements in the fuel cell, such as
Presently, there are five major types of fuel cells in different
temperature, pressure, gas composition, and fuel properties and
stages of commercial availability or research/development.
reactant utilization. These factors limit the reaction processes
They are proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC),
alkaline fuel cell (AFC), phosphoric acid fuel cell (PAFC),
molten carbonate fuel cell (MCFC), and solid oxide fuel cell
(SOFC). Since AFCs are nearly zero tolerance to CO2 and CO
constituents in the fuel, therefore, they require high purity
hydrogen and oxygen for reaction, which makes AFCs
unsuitable for DG. Hence, AFCs will not be discussed
hereafter.
Even though different fuel cells operate on similar chemical
reactions, they are still very different in many aspects in terms
of operating characteristics, materials used in construction, and
suitability for potential applications [9].
Table I [6-9] shows the characteristics and requirements of
four types of fuel cells, which are potentially suitable for DG
applications. Fig. 2. Typical fuel cell polarization curve

1614
when the current flows through. There are three main types of with 250kW and 1MW units. In Europe, the research of MCFC
polarizations – activation polarization, ohmic (or resistance) technology has been carried out mainly in Holland, Italy,
polarization, and concentration polarization. The deviation of Germany, Denmark, and Spain. Now the manufacturers are
the cell potential from the ideal behavior is a direct result of the focusing on improving performance of the components,
sum of these factors over the entire load range. As can be seen endurance, cost reduction, systems integration, and high
from Fig. 2, fuel cells have the best performance in the ohmic volume manufacturing methods to speed up the pace of its
polarization region. commercialization. MCFCs are expected to locate their largest
market share in industrial cogeneration once the cost target is
C. State-of-the-Art in Development and Applications
achieved [7].
In the last 20 years, the fuel cell technology experienced
SOFCs, which are considered as a third generation fuel cell,
several stages of development from AFC, PAFC, MCFC, and
are approaching commercialization in a big pace, especially in
SOFC to PEMFC. From inception in the 1970s to 2004, the
stationary applications and distributed generation market [7].
market shares for each major type of fuel cells are: PAFC-6%,
So far the SOFC technology has demonstrated satisfactory
PEMFC-65%, MCFC-3%, and SOFC-4% respectively [10].
efficiency and life performance. There are two different SOFC
The total share is about 78% of the whole fuel cell applications
designs: tubular and planar. To date, Siemens Power
market.
Generation, the world leader in SOFC technology, has
So far, among all fuel cell types, PAFC technology is the
developed the most advanced tubular SOFC, and successfully
most advanced and matured, without any significant technical
demonstrated 1kW-250kW SOFCs in field. Planar SOFC
barriers. PAFC is also the first type of fuel cell to be
technology lags tubular development, but is making good
commercially available. PAFC technology for power
progress in improving performance and reducing
generation has been demonstrated by stationary power plants
manufacturing cost. In addition, when integrated with a gas
up to 11 MW in size. PS25, 200kW PAFC produced by ONSI
turbine (GT), SOFCs are expected to achieve system
Corporation in the USA since 1993, is the market entry unit
efficiencies over 70%, which is much higher than any of the
targeted primarily for commercial cogeneration. Presently,
current power generation technologies. Currently, significant
there are over 200 units operating throughout the world. Many
amount of research has been devoted to hybrid systems
of them have now been operating for several years with some
coupling fuel cells with power generation device based on
operating experience gained. The stack life of PAFC has
other technologies. Westinghouse has devoted their efforts to
exceeded five years and mean-time-between-forced-outage is
developing 1-5MW pressurized SOFC-GT units to achieve
longer than any other engine based systems [11]. Moreover, a
high system efficiency and to reduce capital and production
new enhanced PAFC with an estimated 80,000 hours operating
cost of electricity. Ztek (Waltham, MA) has developed 1 kW
lifetime, the longest on the market, is scheduled to be released
and 25 kW stacks to date. Their 25 kW stack module will be
soon by the United Technologies Corporation (UTC) [12].
the building block for larger applications. In addition, Ztek has
The electrode/electrolyte technology for PAFC has now
planned to develop two main product lines. One combines a
reached a mature level where developers and users are
15-100 kW SOFC module with an HVAC system. The other is
focusing their resources on producing commercial capacity,
a 250 kW packaged system that would integrate seven 25 kW
multi-unit demonstrations and pre-prototype installations [13].
SOFC stacks with a small (60-100 kW) micro-turbine.
However, cost reduction is still the major hurdle in sustained
Meanwhile, the development efforts for SOFCs are also
development and commercialization. In order to achieve
focused on reducing manufacturing cost, improving system
significant cost reduction at a commercialization level, both
integration, and lowering the operating temperature [9].
higher sales volumes and design improvements in the power
Overall, market analysis is favorable for SOFC based systems.
plant itself are required. Costs associated with every element of
If the cost targets are achieved, SOFCs will likely to be a very
the power plant, including fuel processor, stack design, power
successful candidate for DG markets.
conditioning and control, and ancillary components and their
PEMFC has attracted increasing attention due to recent
assembly, must be reduced also.
technical breakthroughs. In the last few years, the cell power
MCFC is often considered as the second generation fuel cell
density has been increased in an order of magnitude and the
as they are anticipated to be commercialized after PAFC [7]. It
substantial cost reductions have been achieved [7]. The low
still has some technical and economic issues to be resolved.
operating temperature, rapid startup, high power density, and
Many demonstrations have been carried out in the USA and
simplicity in operation make it the most flexible technology
Japan. Up to now, Energy Research Corporation (ERC) in the
and the only one being tested for automotive applications.
USA still leads the worldwide commercialization effort. It has
Furthermore, these properties also make PEMFCs attractive in
demonstrated a large-scale MCFC technology with the
remote, standby, and premium power onsite markets. In 2005,
construction and test of a 1.8MW power plant in Santa Clara,
PEMFC has dominated the whole fuel cell market in their
California, which is the largest fuel cell power plant in North
applications to transportation, small stationary, portable and
America. MC-power has been developing MCFCs since 1987
some less well-defined niche usages [12].
and is slightly behind ERC in the timeframe for expected
Now many major automakers are devoting themselves to the
commercial product release. It plans to enter the power market

1615
research on PEM fuel cell vehicles. These include Chrysler, the overall system efficiency.
Ford, GM, Honda, Nissan, and Volvo, named a few. Among Fuel cells are particularly well suited to distributed power
them, Daimler-Benz and Ford Motor Company have generation applications because of the above characteristics.
committed $750 million US dollars for the PEMFC research, However, they also have some drawbacks, such as [6][7]:
development, and cost reduction [7]. With this investment, - High initial cost. Even though the cost of fuel cell
PEMFCs are expected to overcome the numerous fuel systems has been dramatically reduced since their first
processing, system, and cost reduction hurdles within the next application in space industries, however they still cost
few years. GM Canada Ltd. and Hydrogenics Corp. have much more than other competing DG technologies.
demonstrated a hydrogen powered PEMFC forklift in early This is the major barrier for fuel cells to succeed in the
2005. Ballard Power Systems in Canada, Plug Power in the already competitive market.
USA are the two of those pioneering companies for the - Complex support and control systems. The complexity
developing of PEMFC technologies. Ballard Power currently is of fuel cell systems increases significantly when the
pursuing distributed generation applications aimed at the fuel cells operate in conjunction with an on-board
commercial market with large systems of 250 kW. Plug Power reformer.
has developed a 7kW DG system for residential applications. - Fuel sensitivity. Many fuel cells are more sensitive to
In brief, the potential dual market (transportation and impurities in the fuel, such as PEMFC and PAFC, than
stationary power) for PEMFCs will drive the rapid reciprocation or turbine engines.
improvement of PEMFC technologies. - Unproven track record. Since fuel cells do not have a
long history of commercial usage, therefore they are
III. FUEL CELL BASED DISTRIBUTED GENERATION often considered risky from a commercial application
A. Advantages and Disadvantages as Compared to Other point of view.
Distributed Generation Technologies B. Comparison of Distributed Generation Technologies
Based on the source of energy utilized, distributed based on Different Type of Fuel Cells
generation technologies can be divided into three categories: Comparison of DG technologies based on four different fuel
(1) DG based on fossil fuel (relying on such systems as: cell types is shown in Table II [6][7][15].
reciprocating engine, micro-turbine, combustion gas turbine, TABLE II
and fuel cells); (2) DG based on renewable resource energy COMPARISON OF DIFFERENT FUEL CELL TYPES BASED DG TECHNOLOGIES
including solar power photovoltaic (PV) system, wind power, Fuel
or low-head hydropower production; and (3) mixed DG cell Advantages Disadvantages Applications
types
combined two or more DG technologies together with some
-Expensive platinum
energy storage devices [6][14]. -Solid non-corrosive catalyst
Compared with other DG technologies, fuel cell based DG electrolyte -Sensitive to fuel
-Low temperature impurities Residential,
has a number of advantages as listed below [6][15]: RP, PP,
PEMFC operation -Lower efficiency L&MT,
- High energy conversion efficiency, on the order of -Quick start-up -No ability for portable power
17% to 33% higher than other fossil fuel based DG -High power density internal reforming
options. -Higher safety -Expensive
membrane
- Low emission, when using hydrogen, the emission of -Produce high grade -Corrosive liquid
fuel cell based DG is almost zero. waste heat for electrolyte
MT, PP,
- No moving parts apart from the air and fuel PAFC
cogeneration -Sensitive to fuel
commercial
compressors. Therefore, it is more reliable, less noisy application impurities cogeneration
-Stable electrolyte -No ability for
and low vibration. It also has lower maintenance cost characteristics internal reforming
and longer operating life compared to an equivalent -High efficiency
-Corrosive liquid
coal-fired power plant or an internal combustion engine. -No metal catalysts
electrolyte
MCFC needed HT, PP
- Modularity, scalability and quick installation. Fuel cells -Internal reforming
-Intolerance to sulfur
are manufactured as standard size units and can be -Slow start-up
ability
easily combined to meet any amount of power demand -Solid electrolyte -Moderate
-High efficiency intolerance to sulfur
without having to redesign and reconstruct the whole
-Generate high grade -Slow start-up Residential,
plant. waste heat - No practical commercial
SOFC
- Good opportunities for cogeneration. In addition to -Fuel flexible fabrication process cogeneration,
yet PP, RP
electrical power, medium to high temperature fuel cells,
- Technology is not
such as PAFC, MCFC, and SOFC, will also generate mature yet
pure hot water and medium grade heat, both of which Note: L&MT-Light and medium duty transportation applications (e.g.,
can potentially be used for domestic or industrial automobiles, trucks, buses)
applications. This is known as combined heat and naval HT- Heavy duty transportation applications (e.g., rail, marine-ships,
vessels)
power (CHP) applications that could further increase PP-Premium power; RP-Remote power

1616
 PEM fuel cells use a solid polymer electrolyte, and operate that establishes criteria and requirement for the interconnection
at relatively lower pressures and temperatures with higher of distributed resources with electric power systems, IEEE
power density as compared to other types of fuel cells. 1547: Standards for Distributed Resources Interconnection
Therefore, they are more suitable for applications in small to with Electric Power Systems [9].
medium power levels, such as potable applications, The PCU often includes DC-DC converters and DC-AC
automobiles, small stationary applications, or micro-grid power inverters. In addition to the common requirements of low cost
generation. The major advantages of PEMFCs are the low and high reliability, the electrochemical characteristics of fuel
internal temperature, high power density, and quick start-up. cells also demand the following stringent requirements for
The disadvantages are relatively low efficiency, high cost, with PCU [16-18]:
no ability for internal fuel reforming, and a low tolerance to 1) High efficiency in operation over a wide input voltage
carbon monoxide. and load ranges. This is due to the fact that the
PAFCs operate with efficiency comparable to PEMFCs but unregulated DC voltage can vary widely with the load
at lower power densities. The operating temperature of PAFC and aging of the stack. In addition, considering the
is high enough to facilitate the recovery of heat produced low-voltage, high-current nature of the fuel cell,
within the stack for hot water supplies or heating in building switching & conduction losses of PCU need to be
applications, but not high enough to overcome the need for minimized. A high efficiency PCU will contribute to
noble metal catalysts. Similarly, PAFCs are also very sensitive improve the total system efficiency.
to the fuel impurities. 2) Sluggish power transients. The PCU cannot react to
MCFCs are typically designed for mid-size to large load changes faster than the fuel cell, otherwise it will
stationary power applications. Their operation temperatures are demand more instantaneous power than actually
fairly high, which allow them to have both higher efficiency available. A constant power loop must be employed to
and more recoverable exhaust heat for cogeneration. Moreover, prevent an overload or fault condition. Bulk storage
noble metal catalysts are not required. Furthermore, at this high capacitors or batteries can be used for this purpose.
temperature, fuels other than hydrogen can be used by 3) PCU is often required to convert the low input voltage
reforming the fuel within the cell stack in a process called to a higher level. Two-stage power converter is
“internal reforming”. This makes MCFCs more fuel flexible. commonly used in such a circumstance. A front end
Unfortunately, the high temperature also contributes to the DC/DC converter is used to boost the voltage to a
significant disadvantages for MCFCs: slow start-up and required level, and then an inverter is used to generate
unsuitable for small modular manufacture. the AC output.
SOFCs operate at the highest temperatures among all fuel As mentioned above, in the PCU, a DC-DC converter is used
cell types that provide very high efficiency, fuel flexibility, and when the output voltage is at a low level. The electric
produce considerable amount of reusable waste heat for CHP characteristic of the DC-DC converter should be
applications. This also simplifies the system configuration by complementary to that of the fuel cell to match the load
permitting internal reforming and facilitates the development characteristics [19]. The ripple in the input current/voltage
of cogeneration systems as well as hybrid power systems that needs to be limited to a low level to reduce their effects on the
use fuel cells as topping cycles for gas turbines and/or steam output current/voltage of fuel cell. When a fuel cell is working
cycles [9]. under load current pulses, it should be able to adjust the output
power to ensure high-efficiency and reliable operation.
IV. POWER CONDITIONING FOR FUEL CELL BASED Furthermore, isolation may be required to meet the safety
DISTRIBUTED GENERATION regulations and effective protection.
The typical DC-DC converter topologies considered for fuel
Since a fuel cell generates only unregulated DC power that cell based DG including: boost converter, buck-boost converter,
varies with load, therefore it cannot be directly used in most half bridge converter, and full bridge converter, etc [23]. These
applications. In this case, it is essential to use a power converters can also be divided into hard-switching converters
conditioning system to convert the unregulated power source and soft-switching converters according to the switching
into a more stable AC power source for DG applications. A method used [20]. Pulsewidth modulation (PWM) technique is
power conditioning unit is a critical component for a fuel cell often adopted in the control strategy for DC-DC converters.
based distributed generation system. A generic fuel cell based There are two types of control modes: voltage and current
DG system is illustrated in Fig. 3 [7]. mode [21]. The voltage mode is based on the single loop, while
DG systems can be grid independent or grid parallel as well the current control mode adopts two-loop configuration.
as a combination of both. If the application involves Control unit for DC-DC converter includes digital control unit
interconnection with the grid, then the PCU must also be able and analog control unit. Now digital signal processing (DSP)
to synchronize the frequency of the fuel cell power system with technique is widely adopted in implementation of the control
that of the utility grid. These issues are common to all types of unit [22].
DG technologies. In 2003 the IEEE has developed a standard A DC-AC inverter is needed when the fuel cell based DG

1617
 Depleted anode gas

Fuel H2 rich gas DC Power Power

Fuel Processor Fuel Cell Conditioning AC Power
Unit
Air

Heat and
Power Power or Process Heat
Recovery
System Low-grade Heat

Air
Fig. 3. Generic fuel cell system

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