Economics of D.C. power applications of phosphoric acid fuel cells utilizing co-product hydrogen

Along the road to the horizon of Canada's “Hydrogen as an Energy Currency Scenario” we shall have to learn to operate hydrogen electrolysis on off-peak power with controls for load following and energy input modulation and to reconvert hydrogen to electrical or mechanical energy efficiently. The fuel cell which uses the electrochemical energy of hydrogen and oxygen and escapes the Carnot Heat Cycle Limitation is a lively candidate. Phosphoric acid fuel cells operating at atmospheric pressure and utilizing co-product hydrogen and air may theoretically be used to produce about 15–20% of the d.c. energy needed for chlor-alkali electrolysis and installations might be designed to establish the capability of such fuel cells to operate under electrical load following. These application conditions would eliminate the conventional need for a gas shift reformer and d.c. to a.c. inverter commonly considered with fuel cell power plants. The applied development and prototyping of such an installation could find economic markets within the chlor-alkali industry in high power cost areas where hydrogen is presently substituted for coal or wood waste fuels. Such a development in Canada would provide a basis for establishing a commercial fuel cell production and marketing capability over the coming 5–10 years.