Finnish platform for SOFC research and development

The aim of the Finnish publicly-funded solid oxide fuel cell program (FINSOFC) is to develop technology for a SOFC power plant demonstration and to provide a development platform for industrial enterprises in order to support their development work. The program was originally proposed by Wärtsilä Corporation, which is interested in the large fuel cell applications in a power range of 50 kW to 5 MW to be used in various CHP and marine applications. The program is also supported by several other companies with interest in different business areas related to the SOFC technology such as production of balance of plant (BOP) components or utilising SOFC systems in a wide range of possible applications, e.g. as distributed combined heat and power systems and auxiliary power units (APU). This platform development program is managed by Fuel Cell Group at VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland. The general objective of FINSOFC is to create possibilities for SOFC-related business to the companies involved in the program. We also offer good facilities for research and education to the Finnish universities. However, the concrete target of the project is to construct a natural gas fuelled 5 kWe SOFC (planar type) power plant demonstration connected to heat and electricity grids and run it for a long period of time to gain valuable operational experience