SRP operates state's first hydrogen fuel cell plant
An innovative fuel-cell power plant, owned and operated by SRP, is running 24/7 in east Mesa to produce low-emission electricity from hydrogen extracted from natural gas. The fuel cell is Arizona's first demonstration of a commercial-scale fuel cell power system and is located at the Photovoltaic Testing Laboratory on the Arizona State University Polytechnic campus.
The fuel-cell plant is interconnected to the SRP electric grid and can generate up to 250 kilowatts of electricity - enough to power about 100 homes. While hydrogen is the most abundant element in our universe, it is not easily found in its pure form; it must be extracted from other sources such as natural gas.
Since it began operation in the spring of 2005, the plant has generated more than 2.5 million kilowatt hours of electricity for SRP customers. There are only 35 fuel cell plants of this kind in the world; this facility is monitored and evaluated daily by ASU students and professors.
Many consider fuel cells to be the next generation in power plants because of their ability to store electricity. Currently, as electricity is generated, it must be used or it is lost. Another benefit of this type of technology is the ability to be mobile - thus allowing utilities to build smaller, modular power plants in remote locations for entities such as the military.
A third benefit of a fuel cell is the plant's byproduct. When hydrogen is burned with oxygen, the byproducts are heat and water, which can be utilized as a source for water heaters and air-conditioning units.
