Feasibility of a
Hydrogen Blower Design for Fuel Cell Recirculation Applications
J. Patrick Sterchi
02-19
EISG Project
Title: Feasibility of a Hydrogen
Blower Design for Fuel Cell Recirculation Applications
EISG Grant Number: 02-19
PIER Area: Environmentally-Preferred Advanced Generation
Principal Investigator: J. Patrick Sterchi
Contact Information: Phone:
(760) 788-7699 email:
p.sterchi@h2systems.net
Organization: H2Systems, Inc.
Grant Amount: $75,000
Grant Term: 12 Months
Project Description:
Proposes to demonstrate the feasibility of using a unique blower design for recirculation of anode tail-gas in a hydrogen-fueled fuel cell system application.
Proposed Outcomes:
§ A 7cm blower prototype will be constructed. Blower performance curved based on experimental data will be produced showing flow rate, pressure rise, and power consumption for several operating points.
Anticipated Benefits:
§ Potential to produce a system with a low volume production cost of each unit to be in the $250 to $300 range.
§ Potential to produce a hydrogen blower design that will meet the recirculation needs of a 1-10kW fuel cell power plant.
§ Potential to provide a 25% - 30% direct savings on the fuel cell material platinum catalyst that must be used in production. Since platinum is very expensive, this may result in significant savings in the cost of each fuel cell unit.