Development of robust metal-supported SOFCs and stack components in EU METSAPP consortium

The potential of MS-SOFCs was demonstrated through the previous EU METSOFC project, which concluded that the development of oxidation resistant novel metal-supported solid oxide fule cell (MS-SOFC) design and stack is the requirement to advance this technology to the next level. The following EU METSAPP project has been executed with an overall aim of developing advanced metal-supported cells and stacks based on a robust, reliable and up-scalable technology. During the project, oxidation resistant nanostructured anodes based on modified SrTiO3 were developed and integrated into MS-SOFCs to enhance their robustness. In addition, the manufacturing of metal-supported cells with different geometries, scalability of the manufacturing process was demonstrated and more than 200 cells with an area of ∼150 cm2 were produced. The electrochemical performance of different cell generations was evaluated and best performance and stability combination was observed with doped SrTiO3 based anode designs. Furthermore, numerical models to understand the corrosion behavior of the MS-SOFCs were developed and validated. Finally, the cost effective concept of coated metal interconnects was developed, which resulted in 90% reduction in Cr evaporation, three times lower Cr2O3 scale thickness and increased lifetime. The possibility of assembling these cells into two radically different stack designs was demonstrated

Competitiveness of renewable energies for heat production in individual housing: A multicriteria assessment in a low-carbon energy market

International audienc

Modelling of heat, mass and charge transfer in a PEMFC single cell

International audienc

Diagramme ternaire des systèmes dithermes

International audienc

Principal Component Analysis for the characterisation of spatiotemporal variations of the solar resource in urban environments

International audienceUrban areas are serious candidates for the production of solar energy but their intrinsic complexity makes it challenging. The heterogeneity in the geometries and radiative properties of the different elements composing the urban fabric, specifically induces important spatiotemporal variations of the distribution of incident solar radiations. Besides, Principal Component Analysis (PCA) has been widely validated as an efficient tool to identify the principal behavioural features of a high-dimensional physical model. This paper proposes a novel approach to analyse and characterise the spatiotemporal variability of the solar resource within an urban context by means of PCA. A theoretical 100 × 100 m² asymmetric urban district made of nine cuboids with various heights is studied. The distribution of the incident field of irradiances is modelled via backward Monte-Carlo ray tracing over a full year on the facets of the central building under a clear sky, with a 15 min timestep and 1 m spatial resolution. PCA is subsequently applied to the simulated model to analyse its spatial and temporal variabilities. First results validate modal decomposition as a powerful technique for the analysis of the variability distribution, allowing the identification of the district areas subjected to important spatial and temporal variations of the solar resource. Characteristic scales are clearly represented by orders of decomposition. The contribution of surrounding geometries is also transcribed by particular spatial modes and similar influential variables are encountered across multiple evaluated surfaces but at different modal ranks

Modelling the operation of polymer exchange membrane fuel cell in the presence of electrodes flooding

International audienc

Expert survey and classification of tools for modeling and simulating hybrid energy networks

Sector coupling is expected to play a key role in the decarbonization of the energy system by enabling the integration of decentralized renewable energy sources and unlocking hitherto unused synergies between generation, storage and consumption. Within this context, a transition towards hybrid energy networks (HENs), which couple power, heating/cooling and gas grids, is a necessary requirement to implement sector coupling on a large scale. However, this transition poses practical challenges, because the traditional domain-specific approaches struggle to cover all aspects of HENs. Methods and tools for conceptualization, system planning and design as well as system operation support exist for all involved domains, but their adaption or extension beyond the domain they were originally intended for is still a matter of research and development. Therefore, this work presents innovative tools for modeling and simulating HENs. A categorization of these tools is performed based on a clustering of their most relevant features. It is shown that this categorization has a strong correlation with the results of an independently carried out expert review of potential application areas. This good agreement is a strong indicator that the proposed classification categories can successfully capture and characterize the most important features of tools for HENs. Furthermore, it allows to provide a guideline for early adopters to understand which tools and methods best fit the requirements of their specific applications

Modelling the operation of polymer exchange membrane fuel cell in the presence of electrodes flooding

International audienc