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Technical Paper

Multi-Fuel PEM Fuel Cell Power Plant for Vehicles

2009-04-20
2009-01-1004
A multi-fuel PEM fuel cell power plant has demonstrated power production from both diesel and E85. The system combines a compact autothermal reformer (ATR) based fuel processor with an automotive fuel cell stack to convert liquid fuel into hydrogen and then electricity. While both the fuel processor and fuel cell have been developed over several years of collaboration with the automotive industry1,2,3,4,5, this system is the first generation (Gen 1) demonstration of a lab-independent power plant with embedded controls, no external water input, an integrated heat rejection system, and automotive-style air, fuel, and water controls. The Gen 1 prototype power plant has produced up to 10 kWe net electrical output and demonstrated system efficiencies up to 31%. To achieve a tight schedule, the system utilized non-optimized off-the-shelf balance of plant (BOP) components including air compressors and water pumps that increased the parasitic power and reduced the efficiency.
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