National fuel cell research center

The most recent system is a 220 kilowatt fuel cell/gas turbine power plant operating at the University of California s National Fuel Cell Research Center located in Irvine, California. The first-of-a-kind hybrid power plant consists of a 200 kilowatt fuel cell generator pressurized at about 3.5 atmospheres in combination with a 20 kilowatt two-shaft gas turbine. The system was first run at the Pittsburgh facility and started operating at Irvine in June, 2000. Total run time until July, 2000 was 264 hours. Electric energy delivered was 42 megawatt-hours. Electric efficiency was 51% (LHV). An electric power feed-through mounted on the pressure vessel devel-... 

The 25 kilowatt system is back on test at the National Fuel Cell Research Center. The unit typically operates at 21.7 kW DC and 173 amperes. The unit has operated at two facilities on various fuels for a combined time of more than 9,500 hours. Support for this test is provided by Wright Patterson Air Force Base. 

Siemens-Westinghouse Power Corporation of Pittsburgh, PA developed and fabricated the first advanced power plant to combine a solid oxide fuel cell and a gas turbine. The microturbine generator was manufactured by Northern Research and Engineering Corporation of Woburn, Mass. The factory acceptance test was completed in April 2000. Southern California Edison will operate the new hybrid plant at The National Fuel Cell Research Center at the University of California-Irvine. A year of testing in a commercial setting will be performed at this site. The system cycle is expected to generate electric power at 55 % efficiency. 

National Fuel Cell Research Center WWW.Nfcrc.uci.edu... 

National Fuel Cell Research Center. Available online. URL http //www. nfcrc.uci.edu/. Accessed May 28,2009. Based at the University of California, Irvine, the National Fuel Cell Research Center investigates fuel cell systems and the strategies that will allow businesses to take advantage of this technology. The center also develops educational resources such as tutorials, answers to frequently asked questions (FAQs), and other important information included on their Web site. 

FIGURE 3.1 Configuration of a typical proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cell. Source National Fuel Cell Research Center. 

Siemens Westinghouse also produced a 220 kW pressurized SOFC/gas turbine hybrid system, which was installed and tested at the National Fuel Cell Research Center on the campus of the University of Califomia-Irvine (USA). This system was the world s first demonstration of a pressurized SOFC generator coupled with a microturbine generator. The system accumulated nearly 3,400 h of run-time while operating at a calculated net AC electrical efficiency of 53 %. Analysis indicates that with such systems in large MW sizes, an electrical efficiency of 70 % is achievable. 

Fuel Cell Catalyst - quarterly. Published by U.S. Fuel Cell Council and National Fuel Cell Research Center and sponsored by National Energy Technology Laboratory. To subscribe http //lb.bcentral.com/ex/manage/subscriberDrefs.aspx customerid=9927... 

Since 1986, Siemens Westinghouse has tested at least 12 fully integrated SOFC systems on customer sites, ranging from 0.4 kW to 220 kW [47]. The most recent demonstrations were a 100 kW atmospheric SOFC system, operated in Westervoort, the Netherlands, by a consortium of Dutch and Danish energy companies and a 220 kW SOFC/GT hybrid system, installed and tested at the National Fuel Cell Research Center on the campus of the University of California-Irvine for Southern California Edison [48-51]. These two systems are discussed below. 

Table 13.4 Target and actual performance of the Siemens Westinghouse 220 kW SOFC/GT hybrid system at the National Fuel Cell Research Center, California 48-S1 ...

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