Performance assessment of solar-powered high pressure proton exchange membrane electrolyzer: A case study for Erzincan

In this study, a performance assessment of a solar-powered high-pressure proton exchange membrane (PEM) electrolyzer for hydrogen production is conducted. The feasibility analysis of photovoltaic systems equipped with a high pressure PEM electrolyzer is presented for a university campus-scale community in Erzincan- Turkey. Variable solar irradiance data sets are utilized to assess the performance of the proposed system. A parametric study is conducted in order to evaluate the influence of some design parameters as well as operating conditions on the efficiency of the system. Efficiency of the overall system in the case of relevant inverter sizing is in the range of 11–12%. An ascent of the number of stacks leads to an increase in production rate which is almost linear by photovoltaic (PV) array size. The results shows that in order to have a higher efficiency, the inverter size should be higher than 0.75% of maximum excess power. The proposed system investigated in this study shows great promise of opening up opportunity to develop the high pressure PEM electrolyzer. © 2018 Hydrogen Energy Publications LLC