Produção de energia elétrica a partir de um sistema integrado que utiliza hidrogênio como combustível.

Abstract

Currently, electricity produced worldwide comes mostly from fossil fuels that are processed and burned, releasing large amounts of pollutants. In this approach, hydrogen fits as a self-sustaining alternative in the world energy matrix. Hydrogen production by electrolysis of water using Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM) technology has been exploited due to the flexible operation, higher potential density generation compared to other types of electrolysers, hydrogen with high purity and absence of pollutant residues. It is proposed, in this work, to evaluate the operational and economic parameters of an integrated system of electricity production using electrolytic hydrogen. The integrated system consists of two blocks: one related to hydrogen production and the other related to the production of electricity. The main results obtained show characteristic curves with a profile similar to the curves of the manufacturer 's manual and identification of activation losses and ohmic losses in the polarization curve. Real hydrogen production reached 59.5% of its maximum capacity, showing that there was a decrease in the efficiency of the electrolyser. Fuel cell power generation of 0.7 kW during 1 hour of operation consumed around 723 L of hydrogen. Hydrogen production costs using hydroelectric power are in the range of 3.33 to 4.52 US$/kWh, showing a high cost. The daily operation of 21 h/day is the most advantageous because it has the lowest hydrogen production costs among the others. The amortization period was approximately 7 years for the electrolyzer with PEM technology. The consumption and production values of electricity present a significant difference in monetary values, even considering the electricity generation for consumption in the time range of higher value in the energy tariff.