|
For the first time in the UK, innovative hydrogen fuel technology is delivering both electrical power and hot water in the home, following the successful outcome of a two-year research project undertaken by Black Country Housing & Community Services Group (BCH).
The fuel cell system, supplied by Alternative Fuel Systems, incorporating a first generation cell from ZeTek Plc, was switched on at one of BCH’s new homes in Sandwell in the West Midlands. The research work and trial has been part funded by The Department of Trade & Industry, with sponsorship from gas supplier BOC, who have provided the hydrogen fuel for the project.
As a social landlord, BCH is planning for the future, as global warming is becoming an increasingly important issue and the security of essential gas and oil supplies is becoming less certain. A key aim of the research project was therefore to find out what needs to be done to ensure that fuel cell technology can successfully replace the use of carbon-based fuels such as natural gas, in providing electrical power and hot water in the home.
Fuel cells generate electricity by combining hydrogen gas with oxygen from the atmosphere in the presence of a metal catalyst – in this case an alkaline electrolyte. As a result, the two gases react to form water, producing electricity and heat which can be used in the home. The heat is fed into a secondary hot water cylinder where it heats incoming cold water that is then passed into the normal hot water cylinder in the airing cupboard.
Meeting household demand
Part of the research project has been to find out if normal domestic electrical demand will cause enough heat to be generated to supply the hot water cylinders and whether it will be available when the householders need it. The electrical output is governed by the load imposed on the system by electrical appliances in the home and the more load there is, the more electricity and heat is produced. The maximum output of the system is 4.4 kW electricity and 3 kW heat although this was rarely required. During the trial 1.5 kW was generated for all the electrical demands, and sufficient heat was produced to do household laundry and to heat water to a temperature of 60°C - which is comparable to the typical thermal output of a solar water heating panel on a summer’s day.
Richard Baines, BCH’s Project Leader for the fuel cell trial, said “Laboratory experiments and computer predictions suggest that, of all the alternatives for combined heat and power systems, fuel cell output could well be the ‘best fit’ but the only way to be sure was to try it for real. Fuel cells are part of our energy future, they burn hydrogen to make electricity without any pollution. When hydrogen is eventually produced from water and not, as now, from fossil fuels, we can begin to help stop global warming and reduce our reliance on scarce and dirty carbon-based fuels like gas and oil.”
jean@fuelcellpower.co.uk
+44 1359 245 073
www.fuelcellpower.co.uk
|