Energy and exergy analyses of a proton exchange membrane (PEM) electrolyzer integrated with concentrating solar plant

Hydrogen production using PEM electrolysers is an effective method to produce a renewable energy resource. Also, the hydrogen and oxygen generated by electrlyzer can be used in a fuel cell of drones. Thermodynamic analysis of PEM electrolyzer is essential to identify key losses and to optimize the performance of the electrolyzer. In this article, the process of water electrolysis in a PEM electrolyser integrated with concentrating solar plant to produce power and hydrogen is studied and the effect of solar intensity, current density and other operating parameters on the rate of the hydrogen production is investigated. The results indicate that increase of current density and consequently the rate of the hydrogen production leads to increase of voltage and decrease of energy and exergy efficiency of the electrolyser. Also, increase of temperature, decrease of pressure and thickness of nafion membrane lead to decrease of voltage and improve the performance of electrolyser. Increase of solar intensity by 145 percent leads to increase of the rate of hydrogen production by 110 percent and decrease the exergy and energy efficiency of electrolyser by 13.8 percent.