An evaluation of integrated fuel cell and energy storage systems for residential applications

One of the strategies that can be applied to achieve significant reductions in CO
₂
emissions is to introduce micro combined heat and power (¿CHP) technologies into residential energy systems, especially fuel cell technology. Consequently, a proton exchange membrane fuel cell based ¿CHP system has been chosen for this research since it offers several advantages. A model of an integrated PEMFC based ¿CHP and energy storage systems, has been built. Results show that the integrated ¿CHP system can significantly reduce the operational costs and the CO
₂
emissions of single dwellings. In addition, it has been concluded that optimally sizing the prime mover unit and choosing the most appropriate control strategy for its operation are of great importance.