Energy performance and CO2 emissions of fuel cells for residential application in Chinese hot summer and cold winter areas

The energy consumed in residential buildings has become a key factor in China. An energy-efficient and low-emission fuel cell co-generation system (FC-CGS) is a promising electric and thermal energy generation technology to enhance the energy-saving effects for residential application. SOFC-CGSs and PEFC-CGSs are the two major types of residential FC-CGSs. This paper aims to analyze the energy-saving effects of FC-CGSs for residential buildings in Chinese hot summer and cold winter areas. Changsha city is selected as an example. This study at first outlines SOFC-CGSs and PEFC-CGSs, introduces the simulation methods and develops a standard family model for simulation, then calculates domestic demands of the system, and finally compares the primary energy consumption and CO2 emissions of FC-CGSs with those of a traditional power and heat generation system based on gas and electricity. The results show that residential PEFC-CGSs offered primary energy reduction of 8.8% in winter. However, the average reductions of primary energy and CO2 emissions of SOFC-CGSs were 15.1% and 9.9%, respectively.