Patent · US Active

Hybrid cycle SOFC-inverted gas turbine with CO2 separation

US9228494B2 · kind B2 · utility

2Cited by
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20Claims
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Assignee

Inventors

Key dates

Filing dateJun 9, 2010
Grant dateJan 5, 2016
Priority date
Expiry dateMar 11, 2033

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC Y)Emerging Cross-Sectional Technologies
  • CPC primaryY02E60/50
  • WIPO fieldElectrical machinery, apparatus, energy
  • WIPO sectorElectrical engineering

Abstract

A new gas turbine-fuel cell Hybrid Cycle is proposed. The fuel cell advantageously operates close or under atmospheric pressure and is fully integrated with the gas turbine that is based on an Inverted Brayton-Joule Cycle. The idea of the invention is to capitalize on the intrinsic oxygen-nitrogen separation characteristic of the fuel cell electrolyte by sending to the Inverted Brayton-Joule Cycle only the anodic flow, which is the one free of nitrogen. In this way the flow that expands in the turbine consists only in steam and carbon dioxide. After the expansion the steam can be easily condensed, separated and pumped up. Therefore the compressor has mainly only to compress the separated carbon dioxide. This effect generates a substantial advantage in term of efficiency and enables separating the carbon dioxide. The new proposed Hybrid Cycle enables to: substantially increase the system efficiency compared to the known gas turbine-fuel cell Hybrid Cycle, maintain the fuel cell operating under or close to atmospheric pressure and separate the carbon dioxide.

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.