Combined Heat And Power Fuel Cells (CHP)

The creation of electricity from a fuel cell is an exothermic reaction.  This means that heat is always created.  In most systems this heat is then dissipated to the air.  In many cases and especially in cold climates, what would happen if you took this heat and used it for heating buildings and homes?

This is called CHP and it is very interesting. This can increase the efficiency of the unit to over 90%!  So the turnaround, from creating the hydrogen in the electrolyser when there is wind and power, using the heat to warm buildings or thermal storage, then when there is no sun and wind, releasing the hydrogen into a fuel cell, for lights and heat as well.  The combined round trip energy loss would then be less than that of battery storage

Let’s dive a bit deeper into this technology.

What is a Combined Heat and Power (CHP) System?

A CHP system is a smart way to produce both electricity and useful heat from a single fuel source. It’s more efficient than generating electricity and heat separately.

Why Hydrogen?

Hydrogen is getting a lot of attention as a clean energy source:

• It has 3 times more energy per unit than gasoline
• It produces 50% less carbon emissions over its lifecycle compared to traditional fuels
• When used, it only produces water vapor, not harmful emissions

How Does a Hydrogen CHP System Work?

These systems can use hydrogen in different ways:

1. Internal combustion engines (like car engines, but running on hydrogen)
2. Gas turbines (similar to jet engines)
3. Fuel cells (which can be up to 90% efficient – that’s really good!)

Where Does the Hydrogen Come From?

Currently, 96% of hydrogen is made from fossil fuels. But there are cleaner ways to produce it:

• Using renewable electricity to split water (electrolysis)
• Producing it from biomass

Challenges to Overcome

While hydrogen CHP systems are promising, there are some hurdles:

1. Cost: It’s still expensive compared to traditional systems
2. Infrastructure: We need better ways to store and transport hydrogen
3. Integration: Figuring out how to best use these systems with renewable energy sources

Why It Matters

Hydrogen CHP systems could help reduce pollution and fight climate change. They’re especially useful in places that need both electricity and heat, like hospitals or factories.

The Future

Researchers are working on making these systems more efficient and environmentally friendly. As technology improves and costs come down, we might see more hydrogen CHP systems in the future!

Here are some references and companies.  This is just for information and Thermogym does not see this as a recommendation, nor do we have any business relationship with any of these companies.

Convion (Finland)

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