Development of photovoltaic-electrolyzer-fuel cell system for hydrogen production and power generation

To fulfil the aim of carbon neutrality, expanding the scale of renewable energy utilization is necessary. Hydrogen is considered as the future of green energy because it is not only a carbon-free fuel, but also a good energy storage medium for renewables. In this work, a renewable energy utilization model including photovoltaic module, electrolyzer module, and fuel cell module, is developed to simulate the performance of hydrogen production and power generation system. The influences of solar radiation intensity and ambient temperature on the performance and efficiency of the system are investigated and the results show that the system efficiency firstly increases but then decreases as solar radiation intensity rises. However, the system efficiency shows a monotonically decreasing trend with higher ambient temperature. The calculated efficiency of the system is about 6%–7% under different environmental conditions. In addition, the feasibility and benefits of the system in Tianjin, China, are studied, combined with the meteorological conditions in the area such as daily solar radiation and average temperature. The system can generate above 4100 kWh of electricity during one year within an area of 28 m2 photovoltaic array, which can almost meet 70% of the annual electricity demand of one household.