SOFC modeling considering electrochemical reactions at the active three phase boundaries

Abstract It is expected that fuel cells will play a significant role in a future sustainable energy system, due to their high energy efficiency and the possibility to use renewable fuels. A fully coupled CFD model (COMSOL Multiphysics) is developed to describe an intermediate temperature SOFC single cell, including governing equations for heat, mass, momentum and charge transport as well as kinetics considering the internal reforming and the electrochemical reactions. The influences of the ion and electron transport resistance within the electrodes, as well as the impact of the operating temperature and the cooling effect by the surplus of air flow, are investigated. As revealed for the standard case in this study, 90% of the electrochemical reactions occur within 2.4 μm in the cathode and 6.2 μm in the anode away from the electrode/electrolyte interface. In spite of the thin electrochemical active zone, the difference to earlier models with the reactions defined at the electrode–electrolyte interfaces is significant. It is also found that 60% of the polarizations occur in the anode, 10% in the electrolyte and 30% in the cathode. It is predicted that the cell current density increases if the ionic transfer tortuosity in the electrodes is decreased, the air flow rate is decreased or the cell operating temperature is increased.

[1]  George E. Marnellos,et al.  CFD modeling of a biogas fuelled SOFC , 2011 .

[2]  Bengt Sundén,et al.  Review on modeling development for multiscale chemical reactions coupled transport phenomena in solid oxide fuel cells , 2010 .

[3]  Yixiang Shi,et al.  Numerical modeling of an anode-supported SOFC button cell considering anodic surface diffusion , 2007 .

[4]  Junxiang Shi,et al.  CFD analysis of a symmetrical planar SOFC with heterogeneous electrode properties , 2010 .

[5]  Jin Hyun Nam,et al.  A micro/macroscale model for intermediate temperature solid oxide fuel cells with prescribed fully-d , 2010 .

[6]  Martin Andersson,et al.  SOFC Modeling Considering Mass and Heat Transfer, Fluid Flow with Internal Reforming Reactions , 2009 .

[7]  C. Adjiman,et al.  Anode-supported intermediate temperature direct internal reforming solid oxide fuel cell. I: model-based steady-state performance , 2004 .

[8]  Ali Volkan Akkaya,et al.  Electrochemical model for performance analysis of a tubular SOFC , 2007 .

[9]  Miriam Kemm.  Dynamic Solid Oxide Fuel Cell Modelling for Non-steady State Simulation of System Applications , 2006 .

[10]  R. Herbin,et al.  Three-dimensional numerical simulation for various geometries of solid oxide fuel cells , 1996 .

[11]  R. Reid,et al.  The Properties of Gases and Liquids , 1977 .

[12]  W. Bessler,et al.  A new framework for physically based modeling of solid oxide fuel cells , 2007 .

[13]  Emmanuel Kakaras,et al.  Comparison between two methane reforming models applied to a quasi-two-dimensional planar solid oxide fuel cell model , 2009 .

[14]  Masoud Soroush,et al.  Mathematical Modeling of Solid Oxide Fuel Cells: A Review , 2011 .

[15]  J. Young,et al.  Thermodynamic and transport properties of gases for use in solid oxide fuel cell modelling , 2002 .

[16]  B. Haberman,et al.  Three-dimensional simulation of chemically reacting gas flows in the porous support structure of an integrated-planar solid oxide fuel cell , 2004 .

[17]  P. Pommier,et al.  3D Microstructural characterization of a solid oxide fuel cell anode reconstructed by focused ion be , 2011 .

[18]  Marco Sorrentino,et al.  A Review on solid oxide fuel cell models , 2011 .

[19]  S. Kakaç,et al.  A review of numerical modeling of solid oxide fuel cells , 2007 .

[20]  Van P. Carey,et al.  The properties of gases & liquids: 4th Edition. Robert C. Reid, John M. Prausnitz, and Bruce E. Poling, McGraw-Hill Book Company, New York, NY, 1987, 741 pages, $49.50. , 1988 .

[21]  W. Bessler,et al.  The influence of equilibrium potential on the hydrogen oxidation kinetics of SOFC anodes , 2007 .

[22]  T. Reitz,et al.  Polarization measurements of anode-supported solid oxide fuel cells studied by incorporation of a reference electrode , 2008 .

[23]  Murat Peksen,et al.  Numerical modelling and experimental validation of a planar type pre-reformer in SOFC technology , 2009 .

[24]  B. Sundén,et al.  Modeling Validation and Simulation of an Anode Supported SOFC Including Mass and Heat Transport, Fluid Flow and Chemical Reactions , 2011 .

[25]  S. Aruna,et al.  Synthesis and properties of Ni-YSZ cermet: anode material for solid oxide fuel cells , 1998 .

[26]  G. Ozin,et al.  Practical solid oxide fuel cells with anodes derived from self-assembled mesoporous-NiO-YSZ. , 2002, Chemical communications.

[27]  Nigel P. Brandon,et al.  Anode-supported intermediate-temperature direct internal reforming solid oxide fuel cell. II. Model-based dynamic performance and control , 2005 .

[28]  Samuel Stucki,et al.  Charge, mass and heat transfer interactions in solid oxide fuel cells operated with different fuel gases-A sensitivity analysis , 2008 .

[29]  Ellen Ivers-Tiffée,et al.  Model anodes and anode models for understanding the mechanism of hydrogen oxidation in solid oxide fuel cells. , 2010, Physical chemistry chemical physics : PCCP.

[30]  N. Shikazono,et al.  Evaluation of SOFC anode polarization simulation using three-dimensional microstructures reconstructed by FIB tomography , 2011 .

[31]  Bengt Sundén,et al.  Modeling Analysis of Different Renewable Fuels in an Anode Supported SOFC , 2010 .

[32]  B. Maribo-Mogensen,et al.  Internal Steam Reforming in Solid Oxide Fuel Cells , 2008 .

[33]  Yann Bultel,et al.  Modeling of a SOFC fuelled by methane: From direct internal reforming to gradual internal reforming , 2007 .

[34]  Hiroshi Iwai,et al.  Quantification of SOFC anode microstructure based on dual beam FIB-SEM technique , 2010 .

[35]  Moses O. Tadé,et al.  A CFD-based model of a planar SOFC for anode flow field design , 2009 .

[36]  Jim P. Zheng,et al.  Characterization of RuO 2 xH 2O with various water contents , 2002 .

[37]  S. Chan,et al.  A complete polarization model of a solid oxide fuel cell and its sensitivity to the change of cell component thickness , 2001 .

[38]  H. Iwai,et al.  Mesoscale-structure control at anode/electrolyte interface in solid oxide fuel cell , 2011 .

[39]  M. Soroush,et al.  Mathematical modeling of solid oxide fuel cells: A review , 2011 .

[40]  Dennis Y.C. Leung,et al.  Micro-scale modelling of solid oxide fuel cells with micro-structurally graded electrodes , 2007 .

[41]  Yixiang Shi,et al.  Modeling of an anode-supported Ni–YSZ|Ni–ScSZ|ScSZ|LSM–ScSZ multiple layers SOFC cell: Part I. Experiments, model development and validation , 2007 .

[42]  Kevin Kendall,et al.  Numerical modelling of methane-powered micro-tubular, single-chamber solid oxide fuel cell , 2010 .

[43]  R. Mark Ormerod,et al.  Implications for Using Biogas as a Fuel Source for Solid Oxide Fuel Cells: Internal Dry Reforming in a Small Tubular Solid Oxide Fuel Cell , 2002 .

[44]  R. J. Romero,et al.  Thermodynamics of Fuel Cells , 2011 .

[45]  Vinod M. Janardhanan,et al.  CFD analysis of a solid oxide fuel cell with internal reforming : Coupled interactions of transport, heterogeneous catalysis and electrochemical processes , 2006 .

[46]  Ioannis K. Kookos,et al.  Modelling mass transport in solid oxide fuel cell anodes: a case for a multidimensional dusty gas-based model , 2008 .

[47]  Bengt Sundén,et al.  Analysis of parameter effects on chemical reaction coupled transport phenomena in SOFC anodes , 2009 .

[48]  Amornchai Arpornwichanop,et al.  Electrochemical study of a planar solid oxide fuel cell: Role of support structures , 2008 .