Proposal and analysis of a combined cooling, heating, and power system with humidity control based on solid oxide fuel cell

Abstract

In the context of green and low-carbon production, efficient co-generation systems have received more attention. Many production and life scenarios exhibit the need of constant temperature and low humidity environment. In this paper, an efficient SOFC-based combined cooling, heating, and power (CCHP) system with humidity control has been established for a plant. The innovation is that the cascade absorption refrigeration dehumidification (CARD) subsystem is driven by the waste heat of SOFC to controlling air temperature and humidity effectively. Comprehensive modeling and thermodynamic analysis are carried out. The results reveal that the SOFC stack should be operated in the ohmic loss region. When the recycle ratio is greater than 0.85, the output and efficiency will reduce. The temperature of the liquid desiccant has a large effect on the CARD subsystem. There is a limit to the efficiency gain caused by the increase in the mass flow rate of liquid desiccant. For the system, the energy efficiency reaches 68.3%, the exergy efficiency is 56.3%, and the payback time is less than the life cycle, indicating that the system has better efficiency and economic benefits. This work provides an efficient and cost-saving design solution for practical applications of novel cogeneration systems.