U.S. Department of Energy - Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy

Fuel Cell Technologies Office

Biogas and Fuel Cells Workshop

The U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE's) National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) held a Biogas and Fuel Cells Workshop June 11–13, 2012, in Golden, Colorado, to discuss biogas and waste-to-energy technologies for fuel cell applications. Workshop objectives were to discuss the state-of-the-art of the technologies; identify challenges preventing or delaying widespread deployment of biogas fuel cell projects and opportunities to address those challenges; and develop strategies for accelerating the use of biogas for stationary fuel cell power or hydrogen fueling infrastructure for motive power fuel cells.

Proceedings

• Biogas and Fuel Cells Workshop Summary Report

Agenda

• Biogas and Fuel Cells Workshop Agenda

Presentations

Day 1

• Welcome to NREL, Dale Gardner, NREL
• DOE Perspective
  • Expanding the Use of Biogas with Fuel Cell Technologies, Sunita Satyapal, DOE Fuel Cell Technologies Office
  • Biomass Program Perspectives on Anaerobic Digestion and Fuel Cell Integration at Biorefineries, Brian Duff, DOE Biomass Program
• Markets and Legislative Outlook
  • Industry Perspective, Michael Hicks, Fuel Cell and Hydrogen Energy Association
  • State Level Incentives For Biogas-Fuel Cell Projects, Norma McDonald, Organic Waste Systems
  • Biogas Markets and Federal Policy, Patrick Serfass, American Biogas Council

Day 2

• Biomass Resources Overview and Perspectives on Best Fits for Fuel Cells, Darlene Steward, NREL
• Success Stories
  • Fuel Cell Power Plants: Biofuel Case Study — Tulare, CA, Frank Wolak, Fuel Cell Energy
  • High Temperature Fuel Cell Tri-Generation of Power, Heat & H₂ from Biogas, Jack Brouwer, University of California, Irvine
  • Renewable LNG: Update on the World's Largest Landfill Gas to LNG Plant, Mike McGowan, Linde North America
• Biogas Technologies and Integration with Fuel Cells
  • Biogas Impurities and Cleanup for Fuel Cells, Shabbir Ahmed, Argonne National Laboratory
  • Air Liquide — Biogas & Fuel Cells, Charlie Anderson, Air Liquide
  • Biogas Production Technologies, Ruihong Zhang, University of California, Davis
  • Biogas Technologies and Integration with Fuel Cells, Ian Handley, Ros Roca Envirotec USA
• Putting Resources and Technology Together
  • Biogas From Municipal WWTPs: Fuel Cells Viewed as a Value Proposition, Steve Hamilton, SCS Energy
  • Opportunities in Bond Financing, James Dack, Stern Brothers & Co.

Participants

Workshop participants included:

• Air Liquide
• American Biogas Council
• Argonne National Laboratory
• Army CERL
• Ballard Power Systems
• Bioferm Energy Systems
• Clean Energy Fuels
• Element Markets
• Energetics
• Fuel Cell and Hydrogen Energy Association
• Fuel Cell Energy
• Gas Technologies Institute
• HDR
• Landfill Energy Systems
• Linde
• National Renewable Energy Laboratory
• Organic Waste Systems, Inc.
• Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
• Ros Roca
• Sandia National Laboratory
• SCS Energy
• SRA
• State of Colorado
• Stern Brothers
• TDA Research, Inc.
• Tetra Tech
• U.S. Department of Energy
• University of California, Davis
• University of California, Irvine
• UTC Power
• Xcel Energy