2011 International Conference on Instrumentation, Communication, Information Technology and Biomedical Engineering 8-9 November 2011, Bandung, Indonesia Demonstration of Renewable Electrical Energy Generation based on Solar-Hydrogen Fuel Cell Technology Daniel Santoso, Fransiscus Dalu Setiaji, and Deddy Susilo Department of Electronic and Computer Engineering Satya Wacana Christian University, Salatiga, Indonesia (Tel : +62-298-311884; E-mail: danvicz@yahoo.com) Abstract-Currently, fossil fuels as main energy source to fulfill world’s energy demand is depleting fast. Their waste products are also causing global environment problems. One of the solutions is to replace the existing fossil fuel energy systems by the hydrogen energy system. This paper presents a small electrical energy generator based on solar-hydrogen fuel cell. The system comprises solar modules, electrolyzer, fuel cell, and hydrogen storage. Two solar modules of 50 watts peak output each with the help of DC-DC converter provide constant power of 26.28 watts to an PEM electrolyzer to produce 10 liters hydrogen gas within 150 minutes. Using high pressure, the hydrogen gas is then injected into metal cartridge to form metal hydride. The energy efficiency of electrolyzer is up to 75%. The cartridge containing hydrogen is then plugged in to PEM fuel cell to generate electricity. The global power output of fuel cell is 2.8 amperes and 23.5 watts evaluated at 8 volts. The current energy efficiency deduced for the load of 6 ȍ is up to 36%. Supplied with 10 liters of hydrogen gas and operated under 6 ȍ load, the running time is approximately 40 minutes with average power output of 9.8 watts. The waste products of entire process are merely pure water, heat, and oxygen gas. This small system is successful in demonstrating the future energy scenario of renewable and clean energy. Keyword: solar, hydrogen, electrolyzer, fuel cell, renewable I. INTRODUCTION The search for reliable, sustainable, and clean energy sources has been an ever-challenging quest for mankind. These days, the search is more urgent than ever before due to the heavy dependence of modern life on energy. Fossil fuels which meet dominant portion of the world’s energy demand are being depleted fast currently. In addition, their wasted combustion products are causing global problems such as pollutions, the greenhouse effect, ozone layer depletion, and acid rains. One of the solutions to those global problems proposed by many scientists and engineers is to replace the existing fossil fuel energy systems by the hydrogen energy system. Hydrogen is a very efficient and clean fuel [1]. Hydrogen represents number ten of the most abundant element on the surface of earth. The problem is that it is not free. It is combined with oxygen as water that covers about quarters of the earth’s surface. To separate hydrogen from water a method called electrolysis is required. Electrolysis of water is the decomposition of water into oxygen and hydrogen gas due to electric current being passed through the water. The energy required for electrolysis process may be generated from either fossil fuel sources or renewable fuel sources. Water electrolysis is an attractive option to generate renewable hydrogen and oxygen with solar energy without any purification process. It is also one of the most important energy related electrochemical processes because water is an inexhaustible natural resource and hydrogen is a renewable non-polluted energy source [2 – 6]. Water electrolysis is a proven method for continuous production of hydrogen by converting the electrical energy into electrical energy. Conversely, a fuel cell is an electrochemical cell which can continuously convert the chemical energy of a fuel into electrical energy. There are no barriers to the introduction of hydrogen and fuel cells either from a technological perspective or from a safety point. Hydrogen has been produced and utilized in industry for over a hundred years [7]. In the current demonstrative prototype system hydrogen is produced from electrolysis of water with the help of photovoltaic panel and the produced fuel is fed to a fuel cell to generate electrical energy. A commercial PEM electrolyzer and fuel cell from Horizon Fuel Cell Technologies Ltd. are used in this research. The electrolyzer also equipped with removable hydrogen cartridge to store extracted hydrogen gas in solid form. The purpose of the study is to demonstrate clean electrical energy generation from solar-hydrogen fuel cell to energize small DC load in short period of time. II. THEORETICAL BACKGROUND A. Solar Module The sun supplies the earth with an annual energy of 1.5 x 10 18 kilowatt-hours, and energy received by the earth from the sun in one hour is adequate for human energy needs, for nearly a year. Radiation from the sun takes 9 minutes to travel 93 million miles which is the distance between the earth and the sun [8]. The sun has a very high surface temperature, approximately 5800 degree Celsius, and the radiation corresponding to this temperature can be divided into high 978-1-4577-1166-4/11/$26.00 ©2011 IEEE 342