Preliminary design of a small-scale system for the conversion of biogas to electricity by HT-PEM fuel cell

In this work a novel concept for the decentralized conversion of biogas to electricity is introduced. It consists of five segments: gas supply, gas treatment, gas reforming, gas usage and post-combustion. The system was designed in a regional project called GREEN-FC. The project is dealing with a design study for the conversion of 1 m3 h−1 biogas to electricity, based on equilibrium calculations for steam reforming and water–gas shift reaction in combination with CFD simulations. The simulation results revealed that the system converts methane fully and delivers a maximum yield of hydrogen with a low concentration of carbon monoxide, thus making it suitable for a high-temperature polymer–electrolyte membrane (HT-PEM) fuel cell. The calculated electrical efficiency of the novel process is approximately 40%. Another important result of this work is the modular prototype design, because the individual components of the prototype can be replaced. For example alternative reactors that convert biogas into hydrogen and other technologies that use hydrogen can be included. •We designed the GREEN-FC process for decentralized hydrogen production from biogas.•We determined optimal process conditions on chemical equilibrium calculations.•The design was evaluated by CFD simulations with chemical reactions included.•The electrical efficiency of the GREEN-FC process is approximately 40%.•The first industrial prototype should have investment costs of 5000 € kW−1.