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Thermodynamic Analysis of Solid Oxide Fuel Cell Based Combined Cooling, Heating, and Power System Integrated with Solar-Assisted Electrolytic Cell

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Abstract

Syngas fuel such as hydrogen and carbon monoxide generated by solar energy is a promising method to use solar energy and overcome its fluctuation effectively. This study proposes a combined cooling, heating, and power system using the reversible solid oxide fuel cell assisted by solar energy to produce solar fuel and then supply energy products for users during the period without solar radiation. The system runs a solar-assisted solid oxide electrolysis cell mode and a solid oxide fuel cell mode. The thermodynamic models are constructed, and the energetic and exergetic performances are analyzed. Under the design work conditions, the SOEC mode’s overall system energy and exergy efficiencies are 19.0% and 20.5%, respectively. The electrical, energy and exergy efficiencies in the SOFC mode are 51.4%, 71.3%, and 45.2%, respectively. The solid oxide fuel cell accounts for 60.0% of total exergy destruction, caused by the electrochemical reactions’ thermodynamic irreversibilities. The increase of operating temperature of solid oxide fuel cell from 800 °C to 1050 °C rises the exergy and energy efficiencies by 11.3% and 12.3%, respectively. Its pressure from 0.2 to 0.7 MPa improves electrical efficiency by 13.8% while decreasing energy and exergy efficiencies by 5.2% and 6.0%, respectively.

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Abbreviations

Abs:

absorber

ARS:

absorption refrigeration system

C:

condenser

CCHP:

combined cooling heating and power

COP:

coefficient of performance

E:

evaporator

HG:

high pressure generation

HX:

heat exchanger

HTX:

high temperature heat exchanger

LHV:

low heat value

LG:

low pressure generation

LTX:

low temperature heat exchanger

MRS:

methane reforming reaction

ORC:

organic Rankine cycle

PV:

photovoltaic

PTSC:

parabolic trough solar collectors

RGibbs:

gibbs reactor

RStoic:

stoichiometric rector

R U :

reactant utilization ratio

RWGS:

reverse water gas shift

SOCs:

solid oxide cells

SOFC:

solid oxide fuel cell

SOEC:

solid oxide electrolysis cell

WGS:

water gas shift

A :

area/m2

Ex :

the specific exergy/kW

ex :

the exergy ratio/kJ·kmol−1

e :

electrode porosity

E n :

Nernst voltage/V

E an :

activation energy of anode/kJ·mol−1

E :

activation energy of cathode/kJ·mol−1

F :

Faraday constant/K·kmol−1

H :

Enthalpy/kJ

h :

the specific enthalpy/kJ·kmol−1

G :

electrical energy demand/kJ·kmol−1

J :

current/A

j :

current density/A·m−2

k :

the pre-exponential factor/A·m−2

M :

the mass flow rate/kg·h−1

m :

the mole flow rate/kmol·h−1

N :

solid oxide fuel cell quantity

P :

power/kW

P :

pressure/MPa

R :

universal gas constant, 8.314 kJ/(kmol·K)

r :

mean radius of electrode pore/m

T :

temperature/°C

t :

thickness/m

U :

fuel utilization of fuel cell

V :

voltage/V

W :

the electrical power/kW

α :

conversion rate/%

δ :

molar fraction/%

η :

efficiency/%

Λ:

irreversibility loss

ω :

concentration

act:

the activation over potential

avg:

average

an:

the anode of fuel cell

ca:

the cathode of fuel cell

comp:

compressor

cell:

fuel cell

conc:

the concentration over potential

che:

chemical

chilled:

chilled water

dhw:

domestic hot water

des:

the destruction of exergy

ele:

the electricial power

en:

the specific energy

ex:

the specific exergy

heat:

heat output

in:

input

inv:

dc-ac inverter

net:

the net power output

OP:

operating

ohmic:

the ohmic over potential

out:

output

phy:

physical exergy

tur:

turbine

0:

the state of ambient environment

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Acknowledgments

This research has been supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 51876064 and 52090064) and the Bureau of Shihezi Science & Technology (Grant No. 2021ZD02).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Hebei Key Laboratory of Low Carbon and High Efficiency Power Generation Technology, North China Electric Power University, Baoding, 071003, China

    Yuefen Gao, Wenqi Yao, Jiangjiang Wang & Zhiheng Cui

Authors
  1. Yuefen Gao
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  2. Wenqi Yao
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Correspondence to Jiangjiang Wang.

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Gao, Y., Yao, W., Wang, J. et al. Thermodynamic Analysis of Solid Oxide Fuel Cell Based Combined Cooling, Heating, and Power System Integrated with Solar-Assisted Electrolytic Cell. J. Therm. Sci. 32, 93–108 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11630-022-1680-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11630-022-1680-z

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