A proposal on SOFC-PEMFC combined system for maritime applications

Maritime transportation is going to transfer to alternative fuels as a result of the worldwide demands toward decarbonization and tougher maritime emissions regulations. Methanol is considered as a potential marine fuel, which has the ability to reduce SOx and CO2 emissions, reduce climate change effects, and achieve the objective of green shipping. This work proposes and combines the innovative combination system of direct methanol solid oxide fuel cells (SOFC), proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFC), gas turbines (GT), and organic Rankine cycles (ORC) for maritime vessels. The system's primary power source is the SOFC, while the GT and PEMFC use the waste heat from the SOFC to generate useful power and improve the system's ability to use waste heat. Each component's thermodynamics model and the combined system's model are established and examined. The multigeneration system's energy and exergy efficiency are 76.2% and 30.3%, respectively. When compared to a SOFC stand-alone system, the energy efficiency of the GT and PEMFC system is increased by 19.2%. The use of PEMFC linked SOFC has significant efficiency when a ship is being started or maneuvered and a quick response from the power and propulsion plant is required.