Thermodynamic Analysis of Energy Efficiency and Fuel Utilization in Protonic-Ceramic Fuel Cells with Planar Co-Flow Configurations

Protonic-ceramic fuel cells (PCFC) are typically based on doped-perovskite electrolyte membranes that have mixed ionic-electronic conducting (MIEC) properties, compared to single-ion-conducting membranes that are typical in solid-oxide fuel cells (SOFC) technology. The PCFCs offer some significant advantages compared to more traditional SOFC. This paper develops a thermodynamic model that predicts maximum possible fuel-cell efficiency and fuel utilization as functions of fuel composition and operating conditions, and makes direct comparisons between theoretically predicted PCFC and SOFC performance. Because the product H2O is formed on the cathode side in PCFC, the maximum possible efficiency is greater in PCFC than it is in SOFC where H(2)O( )is formed on the anode side. In practice, the actual realized operating efficiency depends on factors that are not considered in the present analysis. Nevertheless, it is valuable to understand the thermodynamically limited maximum possible performance. (C) 2018 The Electrochemical Society.