Investigating a fuel cell as a combined heat and power for a house in Sweden

Paper in proceeding, 2023

The high energy consumption by the residential sector makes it a relevant sector to address efficient and clean electricity use, and thus, a potential application for hydrogen fuel cells. Therefore, in this work, proton-exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cell systems of different sizes are simulated as combined heat and power technologies for a house in Sweden. Two cases are investigated: with no energy storage besides the hydrogen storage and, with a lithium-ion battery as energy storage. For all the cases, we have shown that fuel cells are promising devices to be applied as combined heat and power technologies. Using the battery as the energy storage, the house energy systems could reach efficiencies of 84-88%. The results obtained indicate a promising path for hydrogen application and thus, for a cleaner energy transition.