Why Solid Oxide Fuel Cells as a Remote Power Source

Solid oxide fuel cells (SOFC) are over a century old but have been seeing rapid innovations and growing use cases over the past several decades. These fuel cells have been used in transportation, industrial equipment, cooling, providing power, and various other applications where direct grid power is unavailable. At SPS, our unique SOFC technology is what has made us a recognized leader in remote power generators. They truly are an amazing source of power for remote applications. 

If you’re looking into generators and possible power sources for a remote location or where auxiliary power is needed, then this information will help. It will help you decide whether SOFC are right for your specific application. 

Why SOFC vs other power sources

Power sources tend to have their advantages and disadvantages depending on the source and application. Some power sources are cheap, others burn cleaner, some are quite efficient at providing power and others offer extended life. The best case really depends on the specific needs of the user. 

Why solid oxide fuel cells? 

Fuel cells are highly efficient and modular which brings scalability of the energy source. 

Solid oxide fuel cells share some of the basic operating principles as other fuel cells but are very different in application. 

• SOFC perform at higher temperatures than most other fuel cells which allows for further efficiency and allows for hybrid cycling such as SOFC/Gas turbine cycles. 
• They are fuel flexible making them ideal for many use case applications. 
• There’s no routine maintenance and less maintenance overall which is especially useful for commercial operations and power generation in harsh environments. 

Overall, solid oxide fuel cells are highly efficient and are a perfect solution for scalable energy.

Use cases for Solid Oxide Fuel Cells

At SPS, we’ve taken on many projects that utilize our solid oxide fuel cells in various applications. The unique properties and efficiencies of SOFC allow us to create specialized solutions for remote power applications.

Because of its flexibility and efficiency SOFC technology can be used to provide power sources where other technology would be cumbersome, inefficient or downright fail. Here are some of the many applications and use cases for solid oxide fuel cells.  

• Auxiliary power
• Electric utility
• Distributed generation
• Aviation
• Space travel

From aiding military vehicle innovations to powering off-the-grid locations each new unique project presents us with an opportunity to further innovate the technology we have before us. 

If you would like to inquire about SOFC and/or generators for your power needs then please contact us online or call (978) 808-0825.