"With the new structure, we are consolidating Sunfire's fuel cell activities in Neubrandenburg by creating a center of excellence for fuel cells that is unique in Germany - both for domestic requirements and for off-grid applications," explains Sunfire CEO Carl Berninghausen.
With Sunfire-Home, Sunfire Fuel Cells is introducing an add-on device for supplying electricity and heat to single-family households that do not have a gas grid connection and, for example, would like to replace the existing oil heating with an environmentally friendly, efficient and innovative system. The micro-CHP solution offers a rated electrical output of 750 watts and a thermal output of 1,300 watts. In addition to reducing emissions, the advantages of Sunfire-Home include high efficiency, fully automatic operation with remote access and simple integration with modern building technology such as a peak load boiler and a hot water storage tank.
The Sunfire-Home fuel cell system can be operated both with LPG (liquid gas) and natural gas from the grid in the future. The first 500 devices will be placed on the market as part of the PACE market launch program, funded by the Fuel Cells and Hydrogen Joint Undertaking (FCH JU) with Horizon 2020.
Looking at Sunfire-Remote, the Neubrandenburg-based company promotes compact solid oxide fuel cells (SOFC) for self-sufficient and off-grid power supply from liquid gas, which are also available for car trailers as a hybrid system with batteries and photovoltaic elements. Typical applications include the power supply of measurement and control equipment for oil and gas pipelines, the signal lighting of wind farms in the construction phase and the mobile power supply for security systems and telecommunications stations.
Sunfire-Remote has an electrical output of 400 watts and can be powered by conventional liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) in off-grid applications. When configured as a hybrid system, it also serves applications with more than 1.2 kilowatts.
