EBZ (Germany), a developer of planar solid-oxide fuel cells (SOFCs), has produced a compact demonstration unit of 1.5 kW electrical power that runs on urban natural gas. Equipped with two planar SOFC stacks, manufactured by Fraunhofer IKTS, it is thought to be the first time that a planar mutli-SOFC-stack system has been implemented in Europe. All the main components (fuel processing, post-combustion, heat exchanger and controls) have been developed and qualified by EBZ.
The next milestone for EBZ will be the development of a prototype with 4.6 kW electrical power that fits the same external dimensions. It will contain a SOFC stack module of the Jülich Research Centre and auxiliary burners of varying size. EBZ's main focus is on the integration of planar stacks into stationary heating appliances and small CHPs.
