SOFC Micro-CHP integration in residential buildings

SOFC technology has reached many of the performance goals that where indicated by scientific society and is providing several application that permits market penetration. One of the main targets is related to Micro Cogeneration Heat and Power (μ-CHP) for residential application. The integration of this system with a residential house has to be deeply investigated to individuate market targets in terms of costs and efficiency. This study evaluates the Italian market condition and analyzes the integration possibility with both thermal and electrical systems. Different solutions are investigated evaluating thermal and electrical driven logic for μ-CHP SOFC based unit and the opportunity of integration with local electrical grid. Evaluation on heat and electricity storage was also considered as integration strategy. The study is based on electrical and thermal loads in typical residential users and the evaluation is based on Italian technical standards and guidelines. Several operating conditions were evaluated and compared to obtain an optimized size and integration of μHP SOFC based solution.