EIFER

FDFC 2013: the opportunity to shape the role of fuel cells and electrolysis processes in the energy transition

adminRFR — 2013-05-24T12:33:08Z

Inspired by the original FDFC concept -the "France-Deutschland Fuel Cell" conference-, back in 2001, one of the objectives of the conference was to connect the French and the German communities on fuel cells and hydrogen technologies and to catalyze exchange between research institutes and industrial companies. In that respect, the conference reached its goal as it featured among the 250 scientific papers a well balanced mix from French, German and international contribution. The same proportion was reflected in the conference participation.

During the 3 intense days of presentations, which role fuel cells and hydrogen technologies could play in the current energy transition in Europe was at the heart of the discussions. Either for mobility, as expressed by Mr Wind from Daimler AG, or stationary applications, as presented by Mr Yasuda from Panasonic Fuel Cell Development Office in Europe, fuel cells are no more dreams. When they will become a reality in the market is however still today the main question, and the motivation for the whole research community. The answer for mobility is of course also highly connected to the availability of an affordable, clean and reliable hydrogen production. In that respect, the development of efficient electrolysis processes, also seen as enabling solutions for wide integration of renewable energy, is giving confidence on the ability to meet the ambitious European targets. The deployment of a hydrogen infrastructure is particularly supported in Germany as presented by Mr Herbert, Programme Manager Transportation at NOW GmbH.

Should the effort be focusing on demonstration projects to give confidence on the potential integration of the technologies, or on fundamental research to solve technological bottlenecks, was also part of the discussion raised by Prof M. Mogensen, from the Danish Technical University.

Starting with a deep dive in the materials challenge of the different technologies (low and high temperature fuel cells as well as their reversed electrolysis processes), the second day focused on the effort to optimize efficient and long-term operation of the components (from cell, stack, to system level). Finally, the practical challenge linked to the integration in the energy systems was addressed during the third day. The presentation of HySolutions on the model region Hamburg was a practical example of how cities, industries and research institutes can work together to facilitate citizen acceptance of new technologies, e.g. fuel cells cars and public buses fueled with hydrogen, in the frame of a wider electro-mobility project.

On Wednesday evening, for the gala event, the participants had the chance to visit the Center for Art and Media (ZKM) in Karlsruhe and its “sound dome” (Klangdom) for a unique visual and acoustic experience. The discussions raised during the conference revealed that the current transformation of the energy systems is a motivating driver for the research and development of fuel cells and electrolysis technologies. The scientific program and the gala event gave the perfect opportunity to research institutes, component manufacturers, and system integrators from all over the world to challenge their results and hopefully to build the connection to further progress towards a common goal: create a viable market place for fuel cells and electrolysis systems.

The 40 best papers will be published in a special edition of the scientific journal “Fuel Cells-from Fundamentals to Systems” (Wiley edition), whereas 3 awards were given to the best poster in 3 categories (Fuel Cells and Electrolyzers Materials, Fuel Cell Characterization & Modeling, Fuel Cell Applications).

More information to be found on http://fdfc2013.eifer.uni-karlsruhe.de/

EIFER scientific contribution

Besides the chair and the organization of the conference, EIFER also had the opportunity to present its scientific achievements through 10 oral presentations in 6 different sessions and 6 poster presentations.

Oral presentations

Session 2: SOFC/SOEC – Elaboration & Materials Processing A. Morandi, Q. Fu, M. Marrony, J.-M. Bassat, O. Joubert, Development of Solid Oxide Fuel Cells based on BaIn0.3Ti0.7O2.85 (BIT07).

Session 7: PEM Devices – Characterization, Diagnosis & Durability U. Antoni, N. Yousfi Steiner, B. Ludwig, E. Obé, Signal-based pattern recognition approach for PEM Fuel Cell diagnostics.

Session 8: SOFC/SOEC – Characterization & Durability J. Schefold, A. Brisse, Stability of Solid Oxide Fuel Cells operated in the steam electrolysis mode: approaching degradation rates compatible with practical application. Q. Fu, J. Schefold, A. Brisse, J.U. Nielsen, Durability testing of a high temperature Steam Electrolyser stack at 700°C. A. Esposito, B. Ludwig, P. Moçoteguy, P. Pierpaolo, C. Pianese, B. Iwanschitz, A. Mai, Experimental investigation of an SOFC µ-CHP system for the development and validation of diagnostic algorithms.

Session 9: H2 Infrastructure, Storage, Safety and Hybrid Vehicles D. Colomar, V. Schlabach, Modelling, design and construction of H2 infrastructure in the French context.

Session 11: Stationary applications D. Colomar, From demonstration to market: climbing the last steps towards mature CHPs (keynote).

Session 12: Integration of Fuel Cells & H2 in Energy Systems C. Schraube, International standardization of Fuel Cell components and application (keynote).

Special Session 4: Impact on Energy Systems & the Environment (chaired by U. Karl) T. Bachmann, A. Brisse, A. Patyk, Life Cycle Assessment of H2 generation with the high temperature solid oxide electrolysis cell from the Relhy project. S. Haefele, J. Dailly, M. Hauck, Life Cycle Assessment of high temperature electrolysis with LSCF and NdNi air electrodes in Solid Oxide Cells.

Poster presentations

P007: J. Dailly, M. Marrony, Elaboration of anode supported protonic fuel cells by wet chemical routes.

P062: A. Esposito, B. Ludwig, P. Polverino, C. Pianese, S. Boedker, Experimental characterization of a PEMFC system for the development of diagnostic tool.

P075: P. Kodjamanova, Q. Fu, L. Gautier, H.J. Seifert, Corrosion behaviour of ferritic interconnect steels in atmospheres simulating the inlet gas for co-electrolysis of CO2 and H2O.

P088: N. Griessbaum, Y. Mermond, E. Obé, Simulation based dimensioning and integration approach for fuel cells operated as domestic mCHP systems.

P091: F. Petipas, A. Brisse, C. Bouallou, Behaviour of a high temperature electrolyser fed with intermittent power.

P106: M. Marrony, B. Ludwig, D. Beretta, L. Montelatici, Durability study and lifetime prediction process.

First edition of EIFER's newsletter "What's Up at EIFER ?"

adminRFR — 2013-04-03T09:16:02Z

The Newsletter is focusing on our 3 research activities:
Energy in Cities and Territories
Energy Resources and Distributed Generation
Economics of Energy Systems and Environment

We hope you will gain in this quarterly newsletter a view on our multi-disciplinary competences and partners, and interesting insights on our research activities and the practical solutions we can provide to the energy industry, local authorities and the European research landscape, in the framework of the energy transition.

The Editorial Committee

Joint KIT-EIFER Workshop “Biomass - Energy without Frontiers” - March 21st, 2013

adminRFR — 2013-02-21T16:36:11Z

"Frankreich zu Gast am KIT" – France visiting the KIT: Under this umbrella the KIT is hosting multiple events from March 18th to 22nd demonstrating French-German cooperation on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the Elysée Treaty.

The European Institute for Energy Research EIFER and the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology KIT are therefore jointly organising the workshop entitled “Biomass: Energy without Frontiers”. This workshop will provide insights into the fascinating theme “Biomass” covering the whole supply chain ranging from the mobilisation of the resource to innovative conversion technologies. Workshop topics include solutions for isolated villages based on actual case studies, biomass conversion through combustion as well as innovative methods to recover its components for a subsequent use as energy carrier or raw material.

The intended audience of the workshop does not only include research and academics but also the interested public. The workshop language is English.

Please find the detailed programme below. The event is scheduled on March 21st, 2013 from 9h to 12h45 at Technologiepark Karlsruhe TPK, Emmy-Noether Strasse 11 (TPK conference room “Berlin”). The number of seats is limited. Therefore, we would like to ask you to register until March 10th, 2013.
We would be pleased to welcome you at the workshop.

5th International Conference on “Fundamentals & Development of Fuel Cells”

adminASO — 2012-10-21T12:20:00Z

The latest edition of the conference was held in Grenoble in 2011 and gathered 250 scientists from more than 20 countries. The conference was originally launched in 2002 in Forbach and in 2004 in Belfort by the French Fuel Cell Association (FCA), the French Fuel Cell Research and Innovation Network (FCRIN), the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG), the Verein Deutscher Ingenieure (VDI) and the Laboratory in Electrical Engineering and Systems (L2ES).

Fuel cells and its reverse process producing hydrogen being a promising enabler of the transformation of the energy system during the next decades, the aim of the conference is to gather key figures from public and industrial research to accelerate the transfer of the latest discoveries into reality.

The main topics at FDFC2013 will address fuel cells and electrolysers (both polymer electrolyte membrane and solid oxide), ranging from fundamentals of electrochemistry to systems operation. Recent advances in materials, single cells, stacks and system development, as well as recent, equally pertinent issues, such as fuel cell diagnosis, power processing and control, characterisation of MEA upon operation/ageing, will be presented during the conference. The conference will also address the role that these technologies play in local energetic concepts (storage, mobility, local production of energy).

Conference topics:

Fuel Cells & Electrolysis Technologies:
Components, Materials and Design
Modeling, Control and Optimization
Systems, Balance of Plant and Integration
Diagnosis, durability and Lifetime Improvement
Safety Aspects of Hydrogen Storage

Applications - Integration of Fuel Cells & Hydrogen in:
Clean Vehicles, Hybrid Vehicles
Energy Efficient-Buildings and CHP,
Portable Applications, Back-Up Power, Light Traction and Auxiliary Power Units
Smart Grids and Smart Cities
Storage of Renewable Energy (Systems, Hydrogen Infrastructure)
Environmental Impact, Markets and Policy Issues
The conference will take place from April 16th to April 18th 2013 in Karlsruhe, Germany. The venue, the Kongresszentrum, is located right at the heart of the city and the social program of the conference and tips for visitors can be found on the FDFC2013 website:

http://fdfc2013.eifer.uni-karlsruhe.de

We look forward to welcoming you to Karlsruhe.

Bildstelle Stadt Karlsruhe

Internal Workshop on the topic “hydrogen” at EIFER with EDF R&D experts – Feedbacks from H2 mobility demonstration projects in Karlsruhe

adminASO — 2012-10-15T11:44:08Z

The H2 refueling station has a capacity of 56 kg, corresponding to approximately 15 cars per day. There is no H2 production on site, the hydrogen being delivered by truck every day to fill out 48 bottles at 200 bars. The hydrogen is then compressed up to 700 bars, ready to refuel in 3 to 4 min the on-board high pressure reservoir of a Daimler Class-B Fuel Cell car. With 3.5 kg H2 on board feeding a 90 kW fuel cell, the car has autonomy of 350 km, enough to commute twice from Karlsruhe to Stuttgart. A new fuel station with on-site hydrogen production by electrolysis will be commissioned in Stuttgart at EnBW's headquarter in October 2012.

EnBW is partner of the German “Clean Energy Partnership”, the biggest European demonstration project on H2 mobility, gathering since December 2002, 16 industrial partners (automotive manufacturer, gas suppliers and energy utilities), with the ambition to prepare the market of fuel cell vehicles and the H2 refuelling infrastructure (50 refuelling stations are planned until 2015, with already 15 in operation).
http://www.cleanenergypartnership.de

In Karlsruhe, a second hydrogen fuelling station, with a storage capacity of 420 kg H2, will be commissioned in October 2012 on the KIT Campus Nord. It will fuel 2 Hybrid Fuel Cell Citaro bus shuttles to transport students from KIT Campus North to Campus South.
http://www.kit.edu/kooperieren/H2sh...

EDF annual challenge “Victoires du Commerce” 2012

adminASO — 2012-09-21T12:05:03Z

The Network of Cities in Alsace, VESTA, was presented for the Eastern Region (Région Est) on a ceremony at the Castle of Pommard, Dijon on 21 June 2012. This VESTA-network, which exists since 2005, is a partnership between EDF, Electricity of Strasbourg and EIFER together with 17 municipalities in Alsace. The objective of the project is to work and exchange ideas on concrete projects in the field of sustainable development and renewable energies. Thereby VESTA meets the needs of local actors in small and medium sized municipalities.

The project “Prospective Energétique Villes et Territoires” (Prospective of Energy in Cities and Territories) was awarded by the regional Jury in Paris on 1st June 2012 as “Coup de Coeur”. The aim of the project is to give the municipalities a better vision on the prospective of energy in cities and territories and to follow the performance of the political actions on a long term period. The tools and methods for this project were developed by EIFER, together with some EDF Research and Development departments.


Victoire du Commerce EDF: Victoire du Commerce EDF

EIFER celebrated its "10 Years"

adminRFR — 2012-09-20T12:15:00Z

A successful French-German partnership

Starting with a small team of 10 researchers from EDF R&D, EIFER was, from the beginning, imbued with an entrepreneurial spirit. Initially focused on innovation in distributed generation, EIFER grew through research in sustainable development and renewable energy. In 2012, with 110 multidisciplinary and multicultural staff, EIFER continues to pursue its unique human experience and is now a respected partner in European energy research. It is considered the EDF R&D center of competence for Sustainable Cities and Local Energy Solutions.

“EIFER 2.0”: fit for the future

On the 27th of March, to celebrate 10 years of successful partnerships, former and current EIFER staff gathered with representatives of EDF R&D and KIT, and local partners (research institutes, city representatives and industrial partners). EIFER dedicated one whole day to reflect upon and identify the institute's readiness to address the energy challenges of the future. Visits to testing facilities and offices provided an opportunity to present EIFER's major achievements. The evening session began with an exploration of the visions of Jean Copreaux, EIFER director, Bernard Salha, EDF R&D director, Dr. Peter Fritz, KIT Vice president of Research and Innovation, and Norbert Käthler, Director of Stadtmarketing Karlsruhe GmbH, and was oriented towards the future and anchored EIFER in a local context.

To initiate discussions on the challenges associated with the energy transformation of cities, four experts from different fields were invited to a round table panel:

Jo Spiegel, former President of the Mulhouse Communauté d'Agglomération and current Vice President in charge of Climate Plan
Gerhard Stryi-Hipp, coordinator 'Smart Energy Cities' at the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE
François Grosse, Senior Vice-President, Digital Services, Véolia Environnement
Prof. Andreas Wagner, KIT Institute of Building Design and Technology, Vice-Dean for Research, Department of Architecture

These discussions identified the importance of engaging the public in future energy initiatives and the challenge of coupling sustainable development and economic feasibility. It is clear that future investment in innovative solutions and technologies should be integrated in a sustainable business case, designed and shared by industries, utilities, local authorities and research institutes. EIFER's capacity to understand different stakeholders' positions, to collaborate with them and to apply our expertise to serve their strategic needs, is one of our major assets and has enabled us to become “fit for the future”.

Another unique feature of EIFER, as expressed during the evening's “EIFER Show” is the diversity and dynamism of our staff, in terms of culture, of experience and of expertise.

At the occasion of its 10 Years EIFER edited a special book "EIFER 2.0". It contains descriptions of a selection of projects as well as specifications about our history and future. Discover our "EIFER 2.0" - Book as downloadable file below.

These key factors, together with our continued engagement and commitment to our original goals, ensure the success of the institute and the future of “EIFER 2.0”.

5.-6. Juni: Woche der Umwelt, Schloss Bellevue, Berlin

adminRFR — 2012-05-23T12:37:16Z

Triangle Cycle: thermodynamic cycle with the theoretically highest efficiency

EIFER will present the new thermodynamic process "Triangle Cycle" for the conversion of low temperature heat into electrical power at the exhibition "Woche der Umwelt". Invited by Federal President to Bellevue Palace in Berlin, 200 companies, institutions, research institutes, associations and initiatives have the opportunity to present their technologies, products, projects and concepts for a sustainable and efficient dealing with our resources (http://www.woche-der-umwelt.de/1872.html).

With the funding of Deutsche Bundesstiftung Umwelt (DBU) and Energie Baden-Württemberg AG (EnBW) EIFER has developed a new thermodynamic process for the conversion of low temperature heat into mechanical or electrical power. In comparison to the commonly used processes, like the ORC (Organic Rankine Cycle) or the Kalina-Process, EIFER's new Triangle Process, can attain much higher electrical output and therefore has the potential to be economically successful.

The conversion of low temperature heat into mechanical and electrical power plays a major role in renewable energy, in fields like geothermal heat, solar thermal heat and industrial waste heat. Previously, thermodynamic processes like the Clausius Rankine cycle (CRC) the (ORC) and the Kalina-Process have been used to achieve this conversion. EIFER's new process is based on the flash evaporation of a high temperature and pressurized liquid fluid inside the working chamber of a reciprocating engine. After the liquid is injected into the expansion unit, evaporation takes place and the vapor moves the piston. The heat for evaporation is provided by the liquid phase, which then cools down. The main advantage of the new process is simultaneous evaporation and expansion which results in avoiding the exergy losses of an external evaporator.

To prevent hydraulic shocks from occurring in the reciprocating engine, the liquid is injected into a pre-chamber. The pre-chamber is modeled as a cyclone to separate the liquid from the vapor. The main challenge in this project is to develop a cyclone design that is capable of providing high separation at a low inner (death) volume. Furthermore a valve technique has to be established that makes a complete alternation of load available. For better understanding of the cyclone behavior and the optimization of the cyclone design computational fluid dynamics (CFD) is used. EIFER and its partner ITTK (KIT) are the first to use CFD methods to simulate flow behavior inside the cyclone to optimize its geometry. EIFER cooperated with various KIT departments (ITTK, IFKM and ETI) and MOT GmbH, Karlsruhe, to develop a optimized prototype and to enable the Triangle Process.

"Woche der Umwelt":
http://www.woche-der-umwelt.de/inde...

Milieux Durables Urbains report published

adminRFR — 2012-05-23T12:17:39Z

Achieving a massive reduction of greenhouse gas emissions is not only a question of energy efficiency; it also strongly depends on changing patterns of consumption. The great variety of individuals in modern societies is often neglected; instead, people are referred to as some kind of standard and uniform being called “the consumer”.
In the Milieux Durables Urbains project we aimed to approach the segmentation of the French society by applying the SinusMilieux® typology developed by the marketing company Sociovision. At the moment, nine quantifiable social Milieux are defined along social values, aspirations, consumption practices and socio-economic conditions. Based on this typology, we analyzed the carbon footprint of distinct social groups, and thus identifed the consumption areas generating the highest impacts. Subsequently, we suggested targeted “interventions strategies” addressing distinct Milieux and their typical characteristics. These intervention strategies are designed to counteract current unsustainable lifestyles and promote the spread of emerging low-carbon lifestyles.

French-German Seminar: Cities and Climate Change, January 31st 2012, Karlsruhe

tiz — 2011-09-28T07:20:40Z

The seminar was divided into 3 oral sessions with external partner's presentations and poster sessions highlighting the activities carried out by EIFER in relation with the topics of the sessions. The aim of the seminar was to identify the role research could play in the inter-relationships between cities, climate change and energy efficiency.

The first session was dedicated to local policy strategies, starting by a presentation of Klaus Stapf, the mayor of City Karlsruhe, sharing its vision on the future of Karlsruhe 2050. Other climate protection concepts were presented for the cities of Paris, London and Stockholm (respectively by Anne Ged, director of the Climate Agency of Paris, and J. Rutherford from the laboratory LATTS, Paris). As a conclusion, they highlighted the needs of “translators” between the cities and the different local stakeholders, where research institutes could play a role.

During the second session on the potentials of decentralised technologies in terms of energy efficiency and local optimisation, Prof. Schmeck from KIT, showed the needs of demand and supply management for a future reliable electrical system. The role of cogeneration was presented by Dr Arthkamp from ASUE whereas Dr Görres presented the specific project of Energy-Efficient Stuttgart.

The last session of the seminar gathered managers of Stadtwerke (Michael Schön, Stadwerke Karlsruhe) and the french equivalent of local/regional energy utilities. Through the examples of the cities Karlsruhe, Erstein and Strasbourg, the added value of close relationships between the city and the energy utility was evidenced. A combined presentation of Bruno Fyot, CEO of ES Group, and Mr Foresti from the City Strasbourg was a good example of this close collaboration. The presentation of Mr Weber, from the company YourSales, was focusing on the market potentials of energy services for regional energy utilities.

All the audience agreed to recognise the importance of business models and funding in the framework of cities, industries and energy utilities relationships. Research could contribute to the analysis of the current city situation and to the proposal of prospective scenarii useful for transition management. Its contribution is highly expected for the development of innovative concepts, and improvement of the level of maturity of any technical solutions impacting the demand and supply management.

For more information of the program from the seminar in:
German
French