Trigeneration systems with fuel cells

Abstract

Trigeneration systems include those processes of production and simultaneous use of electricity, heat and cold, from a single fuel source. The simultaneous use of energy allows obtaining high levels of overall energy efficiency, lower emissions, security of supply, as well as lower losses and investments in networks.

The context of implementation of trigeneration ranges from low voltage distributed generation to the electric microgrid prototypes currently under research. In this last environment, the work is mainly focused in the following power generation technologies: Fuel Cells, Microturbines, Stirling Engines, Small Wind Turbines, and Photovoltaic plants.

This paper focuses on those research proposals that are currently being developed using fuel cells as base technology for trigeneration. The paper presents the different subsystems that are part of these power generation systems, as well as their most important characteristics and applications