Progress on residential fuel cell combined heat and power systems: A technological review

In recent years, residential fuel cell combined heat and power (FC-CHP) systems have garnered significant attention in the home energy sector as a high-efficiency, low-carbon distributed energy solution. This paper provides a systematic review of key technologies and renewable energy integration schemes for FC-CHP systems. First, the technical characteristics of solid oxide fuel cells (SOFC) and proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFC), as well as the supporting needs of fuel processing and energy storage devices, are analyzed in detail. Analysis shows that compared with PEMFC, SOFC has higher power generation and overall system efficiency, excellent high-temperature waste heat utilization capabilities, broader fuel adaptability, and lower costs, making it more advantageous in FC-CHP systems. Secondly, the compatibility of FC-CHP systems with renewable energy sources such as solar, wind, and air energy was explored, revealing the advantages of multi-energy complementarity in adapting to demand fluctuations, significantly improving the flexibility of supply and demand dynamic regulation, system efficiency, and environmental friendliness, which are in line with the goals of low-carbon sustainable development. The review also summarized global commercialization progress and found that China’s SOFC industry lags behind international advanced levels. Finally, it should be noted that efficiently and stably operating FC-CHP systems still presents major challenges. For instance, the degradation of key components in PEMFCs over time will hinder improvements in system efficiency and large-scale application. This review provides theoretical reference for the application and commercialization of residential FC-CHP systems.