A model of a combined cycle system consisting of a solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) and a proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) operating on methane is described in this paper. While generating power, the SOFC also produces hydrogen that can be used to fuel the PEMFC, increasing the overall system efficiency. As the hydrogen is contained in the SOFC anode off-gas, this gas flow is purified and separated in water gas shift (WGS) reactors and separators to create a high-purity hydrogen (H2=99.98 mole %) gas stream. This system is thermodynamically analysed, to reveal the influence of SOFC fuel utilisation, cell voltage, operating temperature and PEMFC cell voltage on the system performance.
Thermodynamic evaluation of a combined SOFC-PEMFC cycle system
