Fuel Cell Based Power-Generating Installations: State of the Art and Future Prospects

Abstract

Specific features of power-generating installations constructed using different types of fuel cells are considered. Problems and trends of their development in Russia and abroad are analyzed. Fuel cell commercialization lines, their application niches, and the most well-known projects of constructing and exploiting fuel cell-based power-generating installations are described. Special attention is paid to analyzing the specific features pertinent to the domestic market of fuel cells and prospects of different lines of their application taking into account competition from other energy sources. Conclusions about the most topical development lines of the considered technologies under the conditions of Russia are drawn with due regard to the available groundwork as well as technical and economic aspects. It is pointed out that the main application field of fuel cells in Russia may be distributed generation of electricity, including off-grid supply of power to consumers on the basis of network and liquefied natural gas, liquefied hydrocarbon gases, and also renewable energy sources. In this regard, installations involving combined generation of electricity and heat, including small ones with a capacity of a few tens or hundreds of kilowatts, are of special interest. Prospective market niches for using fuel cells may include pipeline cathodic protection stations, utilization of biogas obtained, e.g., in reprocessing domestic waste, emergency and uninterruptible power supply systems, propulsion power installations of air drones, auxiliary power installations with a capacity of 1–3 kW, and utilization of hydrogen rejected from chemical production facilities. In view of existing groundwork and cooperation, concentration of efforts aimed at developing solid oxide, solid polymeric, and alkaline fuel cells in Russia seems to be the most topical issue. The use of molten carbonate fuel cells may be of considerable practical interest for reclaiming landfill gas at solid domestic waste landfills and at aeration fields, a problem that is an issue for many cities in the country; such cells can also be used for concentrating and extracting CO2 from fuel gases.