Solid oxide technology presents one of the most promising routes to a low-carbon economy. By funding the development of increasingly marketable, cost effective and efficient technologies, the Fuel Cells and Hydrogen Joint Undertaking (FCH JU) is nourishing a thriving supply chain for the European solid oxide industry.
Ready to roll
Power-to-gas and gas-to-power technologies play a key role in the energy transition. As a highly efficient, flexible and environmentally friendly technology, solid oxide fuel cells (SOFC) and solid oxide electrolyser cells (SOEC) are valuable decarbonising tools for Europe and to make Europe’s energy system more flexible. However, costly and time-intensive manufacturing processes are impending their mass deployment and preventing them from reaching their full potential.
By 2017, the FCH JU-funded NELLHI project had developed a mass-producible, high-performance SOFC stack. More recently, projects like SOSLeM have increased performance and production speed, while the qSOFC project has reduced the cost of SOFC stacks by automating the manufacturing process. In addition, the HEATSTACK project has worked to cut the cost of the two most expensive components – the stack and the heat exchanger – by supporting component and fuel cell manufacturers to optimise their manufacturing processes.
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