Solid Oxide Fuel Cell Development and Hybrid Vehicle Applications

Presented by, Eric Potter Global Thermoelectric Inc.

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Presentation Contents
l Solid

Oxide Fuel Cell (SOFC) Introduction l Recent SOFC Advancements l Automotive Applications l Summary

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Solid Oxide Fuel Cell Introduction

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SOFC Advantages
l High

Efficiency Electricity Production Can attain over 50% l Higher tolerance to fuel contaminants (eg. sulfur) l Simple, low cost hydrocarbon fuel reforming l Integral and internal reforming are possible l Both H2 and CO are fuels
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Fuel
(Hydrogen or Carbon Monoxide)

Cathode: O2+2e- O2Anode: H2+O2-H2O CO+ O2- CO2 Cell Overall:

WATER
Anode

H2+ O2 H2O CO+ O2 CO2

Electrolyte Cathode

SOFC

Air
(Oxygen)

Solid Oxide Fuel Cell Membrane Approximately 50 Watts

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SOFC Stack
Cell membranes

Interconnect plates
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9 Cell SOFC Stack

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Hydrocarbon Fuel Reforming

l Cells

need hydrogen and / or carbon monoxide as fuel l REFORMING separates the hydrogen from a hydrocarbon fuel, eg. natural gas l Natural gas / gasoline reforming must be done at temperatures of 625 o C or more l Heat energy used to break hydrogen to carbon bond
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Gasoline Partial Oxidation Reforming

Gasoline + Air + Heat at > 625 C l Outputs: 40 to 50% (H2 + CO) + 50 to 60% N2 l PEM System cannot accept CO shift reactions, and CO cleanup required l SOFC accepts reformate fuel stream directly into fuel cell stack CO is fuel. Heat from SOFC used for reforming gasoline.
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l Inputs:

1 kW Natural Gas SOFC Reformer

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Recent SOFC Advancements

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Historical Concerns with SOFCs High Operating Temperature

l SOFCs

typically operated at 850 C + l High operating temperature means high cost alloys, or high corrosion rate for metal stack interconnects, end plates etc.

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Typical Stainless Steel Corrosion vs Temperature

50 Relative Corrosion Rate 40 30 18 20 8 10 0 700 750 800 850 900
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14 times faster
26

41

Temperature,

oC

900 C

Recent Advancements in SOFC Technology Operating Temperature

l New

SOFC technology provides high power density at operating temperatures of 700 C and lower. l 650 C to 700 C matches minimum requirement for hydrocarbon fuel reforming l Low cost stainless steels can be used for fuel cell stack interconnects, end plates etc. l High Power density means lower cost, weight and volume GLE June 2000

Evolution of SOFC Power Density

(mW/cm2)

600 C 650 C 700 C 750 C 800 C 1997 1999 2000 156 197 318 382 125 487 635 230 538 900 350 594 1093

@ 0.7 V on Hydrogen
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Performance Curves for Glob #5048 1.10 1.00

Voltage, Volts

1.20 1.00 0.80 0.60 0.40 0.20 0.00 1.80

Power Density, W/cm2

0.90 0.80 0.70 0.60 0.50 0.00

0.20

0.40

0.60

0.80

1.00

1.20

1.40

1.60

Current Density, A/cm2

800 - V 750 - P 750 - V 700 - P 700 - V 650 - P 650 - V
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600 - V

800 - P

27 Cell / 1 kW +SOFC Stack

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Historical Concerns with SOFCs Thermal Cycling and Vibration

l SOFCs

historically utilized a glass seal between the membrane and interconnects l Thermal cycling causes the glass seal to crack l Vibration causes the glass seal to break

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Recent Advancements in SOFC Technology Stack Sealing Compressive Gasket

Anode Interconnect Plate
Industry standard was a brittle glass seal. New developments provide a Compressive Gasket, which allows thermal cycling and vibrational tolerance.
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Historical Concerns with SOFCs Cost of Manufacture

l Previous

efforts to manufacture SOFC membranes were based on labour intensive laboratory methods l Cell membranes can now be manufactured with high volume tape casting and screen printing methods transferred from the semiconductor industry
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Solid Oxide Fuel Cell Membrane Manufactured by Tape Casting and Screen Printing Methods (Approx. 50 Watt output)
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Historical Concerns with SOFCs Slow Startup

l Due

to a relatively high operating temperature, SOFC startup time can be an issue in automotive applications insulation materials can allow an SOFC system to remain at standby temperature for up to 48 hours.
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l New

Automotive Applications for Solid Oxide Fuel Cells

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42 Volt Auto Electrical Systems

l Development

started by MIT in 1995 l 26 company consortium involved l BMW, Daimler-Benz, Delphi, Ford, GM, Renault, Siemens, Volvo l Increased electrical capacity with safe voltage for accidental contact l Reduced weight, higher efficiency l Allows for increased electrical loads
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Automotive Industry Shift SOFC APUs

l Industry moving to hybrids IC engine, only for propulsion Electric loads powered by APU (Auxiliary Power

Unit) Personal comfort items such as heating, cooling, entertainment can be used with the engine off, or on, with virtually no emissions APU needs to run on existing fuels IC engine run at higher RPMs- greater efficiency
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42 Volt Automobile Electrical Systems

Electric Suspension

Air Conditioner

Auxiliary Power Unit

Catalyst Heater Electric Braking

Electric Valves

Electric Steering
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High Efficiency Vehicle with SOFC APU

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BMWs Opinion
l As

stated in BMWs paper at the March 2000 SAE Conference:

The first viable application of the fuel cell in

the passenger car market will beTo generate electricity operating independently of the engine itself The SOFC has been selected as the key technology using conventional gasoline. This ensures that in principle every car running on the road could use a fuel cell instead of an alternator
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Progress
l December

1999 Global Thermoelectric and Delphi announce successful test of Globals SOFC stack with Delphis Gasoline Reformer l BMW expects to have a proof of concept vehicle with a gasoline fueled SOFC APU during 2000.

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Summary Automotive Applications for Solid Oxide Fuel Cells

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SOFC Summary
l SOFCs

offer inherent advantages of high efficiency and low cost, simple operation on standard hydrocarbon fuels l Recent advances in SOFC power density, compressive sealing methods, and high volume manufacturing methods have opened up a large potential in automotive applications
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SOFC Summary
l Use

of SOFCs as auxiliary power units on passenger and commercial vehicles will provide user enhanced vehicles with improved efficiency and reduced emissions

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Global Thermoelectric Inc.

www.globalte.com