Energy, Exergy and Thermoeconomic Analysis of the Novel Combined Cycle of Solid Oxide Fuel Cell (SOFC) and Biogas Steam Reforming (BSR) for Cogeneration Power and Hydrogen

In this paper, a new configuration of a solid oxide fuel cell / gas turbine (SOFC/GT) combined cycle system with biogas reforming cycle is presented for the purpose of coproduction production of power and hydrogen. The heat output from the base system of the SOFC/GT is used to supply the energy required for the reforming reaction and to drive the biogas reforming cycle for hydrogen production. Comprehensive thermodynamic and thermoeconomic modeling has been performed using EES Software. Also, the parametric study has been analyzed for the effect of different parameters on the net output power, energy and exergy efficiency, exergy destruction rate and the Sum Unit Cost products (SUCP) of the whole system. The results show that the energy efficiency and exergy efficiency of the proposed combined system have increased comparison the SOFC/GT system by 23.31% and 28.19%, respectively. The net output power and hydrogen production rate are obtained 2726 kW and 0.07453 kg/s, respectively. From the exergy viewpoint, the afterburner causes a considerable amount of exergy destruction for the system by approximately 26% of the total exergy destruction rate. By increasing the inlet temperature fuel cell, the cell voltage reaches a maximum value at a temperature of 679 K and then decreases.