The third half year meeting of the EU ECo project took place at the EIFER facilities in Karlsruhe, Germany, where Winter just had made its entry with the first snow.
At ca. half time of the ECo project it was important to make a status, to prepare for the mid-term report and to make sure that all activities had been started and were running on track. The director of EIFER, Pascal Terrien, gave us a warm welcome.
All partners involved in the improvement of state-of-the-art cells, are deeply imerged in the activties using backbone/infiltration concepts or optimisation of micro structural properties. Promising performance test results were reported and next optimisation steps discussed. Exchange of improved electrodes and cells was intensified to integrate electrodes from one partner into half cells of another in order to achieve best synergies for performance and durability. Furthermore, the integration of improved cells into stacks to achieve a higher TRL was in progress.
The testing partners reported on benchmark tests with state-of-the-art cells – all using different cell geometries/sizes of the same cell generation, and different test setups. The results show clearly that co-SOEC testing is a challenge and that these differences can lead to a variation of results on cell level.
Durability testing has covered more and more relevant, realistic operating conditions, including dynamic and potentiostatic operation. The test matrix promised in the project description is beginning to take shape.
A co-SOEC plant was designed and the effect of operating conditions on system efficiency and other parameters has been evaluated.
As the ECo concept finally should find its way into application, it is important to analyse favorable conditions. Three specific application cases were identified in very different industries: biomass, biogas, and cement and will be studied in the forthcoming period.
The status of dissemination was updated and it was made sure to follow the agreed dissemination plan. A concept for a workshop has taken more and more shape and is planned in collaboration with the EU GrInHy project for 2018. It was decided to submit a poster for the European Fuel Cell Forum to present the progress of the ECo project.
No meeting without getting a glimpse of the local cuisine during the dinner in Karlsruhe. And of course, the participants got the possibility to visit the impressive experimental sites of EIFER.
Thanks a lot to the organisers for a very efficient and motivating meeting.