PRELIMINARY STUDY OF THE INTEGRATION OF A COMMERCIAL METAL HYDRIDE UNIT FOR HYDROGEN STORAGE AND A COMMERCIAL PEM STACK

In this paper the integration of a commercial metal hydride storage unit with a commercial PEM (Proton Exchange Membrane) stack has been analyzed. A reversible metal hydride requires heat power to release the stored H₂ and a PEM stack using a H₂ flow produces also heat power. The performances of the storage unit at three different temperatures were tested and the energy request to release the H₂ was calculated. At the same time, a commercial PEM stack of 800 W has been tested to analyze the produced electric and thermal power at different current density and operating conditions. Finally, the possibility to feed the PEM stack with the H₂ released by the metal hydride unit, using the heat produced by the same stack, was analyzed and discussed.