Economic optimization and uncertainty analysis of hydrogen fuel cell in integrated energy systems

Cheng Zihan; Ma Xiaojuan; Wang Yufei

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Economic optimization and uncertainty analysis of hydrogen fuel cell in integrated energy systems

Updated：2026-08-24

- Economic optimization and uncertainty analysis of hydrogen fuel cell in integrated energy systems
- Chinese Journal of Chemical Engineering Vol. 94, Issue 6, Pages: 208-222(2026)
- Affiliations：
  
  School of Chemical Engineering and Environment, China University of Petroleum (Beijing), Beijing 102249, China
- Author bio：
  
  Corresponding author. E-mail address: wangyufei@cup.edu.cn(Y. Wang)
- Funds：
- DOI：
  CLC：
- Received：24 October 2025，
  
  Revised：2026-01-01，
  
  Accepted：04 January 2026，
  
  Online First：07 February 2026，
  
  Published：2026-06
- Accepted：
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Cheng Zihan, Ma Xiaojuan, Wang Yufei. Economic optimization and uncertainty analysis of hydrogen fuel cell in integrated energy systems[J]. Chinese Journal of Chemical Engineering, 2026, 94(6): 208-222.
DOI：

Cheng Zihan, Ma Xiaojuan, Wang Yufei. Economic optimization and uncertainty analysis of hydrogen fuel cell in integrated energy systems[J]. Chinese Journal of Chemical Engineering, 2026, 94(6): 208-222. DOI：

摘要

Abstract

As a key technology for stabilizing renewable energy

hydrogen fuel cells (FC) play a crucial role in enhancing energy utilization efficiency and reducing carbon emissions in the power and chemical industries. Previous studies have examined FC mainly from technical or microgrid perspectives

hydrogen fuel cells (HFC) economic performance and stability contribution in electricity-hydrogen integrated energy systems (EH-IES) under uncertainty remain insufficiently explored. This paper proposes an optimization model for integrated energy systems (IES) with Solid oxide fuel cells (SOFC)

aiming at minimizing total annual costs using mixed-integer linear programming (MILP). Based on real-world cases

the sensitivity analysis is carried out to evaluate the impacts of various factors on the economic viability of SOFC

while a robust optimization method is introduced to simulate the uncertainties in energy demand and renewable output. Results show that SOFC becomes economically compet

itive when the carbon price exceeds 187 CNY·t

- 1

or when the fuel cell capital cost falls below 1676.64 CNY·kW

- 1

. Moreover

SOFC economics improve with increasing electricity and hydrogen demand

while higher thermal and cooling demand reduces their cost-effectiveness. Integrating SOFC reduces total annual cost

cost of carbon emission

and curtailment rates by 0.2%

7.8%

and 7.1%

respectively. Under high power-hydrogen demand uncertainty

SOFCs mitigate cost increases and enhance system stability. This study provides theoretical underpinnings for SOFC applications in low-carbon energy systems and serves as a reference for IES optimization design.

关键词

Keywords

references

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