Experimental characterization of an hydrogen fueled SOFC generator

Solid Oxide Fuel Cells (SOFCs) power generators are almost ready to be commercialized as heat and power micro-cogenerators. About the tubular cell geometry there are few well documented field tests on such units. The present work concerns with the characterization at various steady state conditions of the Acumentrics Gen521 (2.5kW rated), powered by hydrogen. A test rig was installed at Dipartimento di Energetica of the Università Politecnica delle Marche (Ancona, Italy) to determine the main characteristic curves of the Acumentrics Gen521. A principal component analysis was performed on the collected experimental data to know the operative parameters more influential in the stack voltage. Some multi-linear response surfaces were proposed to predict the stack voltage from operating conditions