METHANE OXIDATIVE COUPLING - TECHNICAL AND ECONOMIC-EVALUATION OF A CHEMICAL COGENERATIVE FUEL-CELL

A technical and economic evaluation of a chemical cogenerative solid o xide fuel cell plant that uses methane (natural gas) as fuel is presen ted, The 100 MW electrical power plant produces simultaneously 0.21 x 10(9) fb of ethylene from the methane oxidative coupling reaction that takes place at the anodic electrode-catalyst of yttria-stabilized zir conia solid electrolyte cells, The technoeconomic evaluation gives an acceptable return on investment before taxes of about 21.5%. The econo mics are also compared to those of a conventional oxidative coupling c hemical plant. The return on investment after taxes (ROIAT) is 13% for the fuel cell plant while for the equivalent conventional chemical pl ant it is about 14%. The most important contributors to the total cost are identified, Areas of possible cost reduction that could significa ntly increase the competitiveness of the fuel cell plant are also iden tified and discussed.