Adaptive management of a cooperative fuel cell system

Residential fuel cells are expected to become widely used as a measure to decrease the anthropogenic greenhouse effect on global warming. In general, residential fuel cells are individually installed and utilized by a household, and cannot be efficiently used during periods of low power demand. We have examined an adaptive management model, in which the number of operating fuel cells is controlled, and compared this model with an individually used fuel cell model. Comparisons were made between simulated CO₂ emissions, the rated capacity of the fuel cell, maximum electrical efficiency, and the number of houses that use a fuel cell.