|
BP plans fuel cell project at Nikiski gas-to-liquids facility Solid oxide fuel cell will convert natural gas directly into electricity Petroleum News Alaska
BP will demonstrate a state-of-the-art power generation system to increase electrical efficiency and reduce emissions at the gas-to-liquids test facility it is building in Nikiski.
BP said the technology could have far-reaching implications for power generation in remote areas like villages in rural Alaska.
A Siemens Westinghouse solid oxide fuel cell unit will convert natural gas directly into electricity through an electrochemical process similar to that used in a battery. With few moving parts, the fuel cell runs quietly and significantly reduces air pollution, BP said.
The project is expected to cost about $6.5 million and begin operating by mid-2003.
“This technology isn’t commercial today, but we believe it has tremendous potential, both for BP and for the state of Alaska, and this project will help to accelerate commercialization,” said Shane O’Leary, BP’s GTL program manager.
“It may be very attractive for future use in remote and environmentally sensitive locations like offshore oil and gas platforms, as well as areas of rural Alaska that rely on diesel fuel for power generation.”
Natural gas as feedstock BP said its Nikiski fuel cell project will use natural gas as feedstock. It will generate 250 kilowatts of electricity — roughly the consumption of 50 average homes — and power the warehouse and administration building at the GTL facility. The technology eventually could be applied to enhance electricity efficiency with any hydrocarbon fuel, including diesel.
The unit operates at an electrical efficiency of 45 percent, compared to about 30 percent for diesel generation. Total energy efficiency can be increased by more than 70 percent by capturing and using heat produced in the process.
It also reduces carbon dioxide emissions by more than a third from an equivalently sized diesel generator and virtually eliminates emissions of other pollutants prevalent in generation systems that rely on combustion, including carbon monoxide, nitrous oxide, sulfur oxide, particulates and volatile organic compounds.
BP said the U.S. Department of Energy is providing funding assistance with a $2 million grant requested by Sen. Ted Stevens. Chugach Electric Association also secured and will administer a $450,000 grant from the Cooperative Research Network of the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association.
The fuel cell will be connected to the local electric grid operated by Homer Electric Association to study operating characteristics and costs. Homer Electric and Chugach Electric will share operating information.
| 