How do you provide a more efficient and virtually pollution free electrical power system? The U.S. Postal Service (USPS) Anchorage, AK Processing and Distribution Center (PDC) Fuel Cell Project (FCP) accomplished this with new technology to meet electrical power needs. USPS formed a joint venture with Chugach Electric, DOE, Department of Defense, National Rural Electric Cooperatives Association, and the Corp of Engineers to install five 200 kilowatt, ONSI fuel cells to provide an electrical power source for the 325,000 square foot Anchorage PDC. When dedicated, the PDC FCP was the largest fuel cell installation in the world.
The fuel cell generates electricity like a battery by setting up a potential energy between a cathode and an anode. This is accomplished by passing hydrogen fuel through a catalyst. As long as fuel is supplied electrical energy is produced. The source of hydrogen in the USPS PDC FCP is natural gas.The fuel cells generate electricity at 45% efficiency as compared to 35% for the best conventional power plants. The emissions are practically pollution-free as they contain only water vapor and small amounts of carbon dioxide.
The Anchorage PDC FCP is a “distributed energy resource” that creates other advantages over conventionally generated grid distributed electrical power.
- The by-product of the system is simply water and carbon dioxide, thus eliminating other carcinogenic pollutants entering into the atmosphere.
- Increased efficiency for generating electricity over a conventional power plant.
- Decentralized energy production.
- Reduced line loss to almost zero a result of the fuel cell plant being co-located with the customer’s facility.
- Source of supplemental heat for the facility, thus reducing the fuel consumption for heating.
For more information, contact Mr. Sharad Shrestha at (303) 220-6523 or via e-mail at sshrestha@email.usps.gov
