Toshiba to partner with Kawasaki City on 5-year demo of independent energy supply system utilizing solar power and hydrogen

14 November 2014

Toshiba Corporation and Kawasaki City will conduct a cooperative demonstration experiment of an independent energy supply system utilizing solar power and hydrogen. This system will be set up in the Kawasaki Marien public facility and Higashi-Ogishima-Naka Park in the Kawasaki Port area. The demonstration will run from April 2015 (the beginning of fiscal 2015) until the end of fiscal 2020 (March 2021).

The independent energy supply system combines a 25 kW photovoltaic facility; a storage battery; hydrogen-producing water electrolysis equipment; hydrogen (275 Nm³) and water tanks; and fuel cells. Electricity generated from the photovoltaic installations will be used to electrolyze water and produce hydrogen, which will then be stored in hydrogen tank and used in the fuel cells to provide electricity and hot water (60ℓ/h). Hydrogen electrical power storage capacity is 350 kWh. (Hydrogen storage capacity increases by about a maximum of 20%, depending on the weather.)

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Since the system can operate on only sunlight and water, it will be able to independently provide electricity and hot water in times of emergency, even when lifelines are cut. It will also be possible to transport the system to disaster-hit areas on trailers.

Under normal circumstances the system’s overall energy management system will be used to contribute to peak shifting and peak cutting for power used in the Kawasaki Marien public facility and Higashi-Ogishima-Naka Park, through optimized control of the photovoltaic installations and the storage battery, etc.

As well as utilizing Toshiba’s superior long-life SCiB lithium battery (earlier post) as the storage battery, the system will use Toshiba’s highly durable Ene-farm hydrogen fuel cells (earlier post) to achieve long-term stable operation.

Kawasaki City will supply the demonstration test environment, and Toshiba is responsible for the design, manufacture and maintenance of the equipment. The results obtained will be jointly utilized by Kawasaki City and Toshiba.

Kawasaki Marien, a municipal facility to promote Kawasaki Port, is a designated emergency evacuation area. In times of disaster, the installed system will be able to provide an estimated 300 evacuees with electricity and hot water for about one week.

Kawasaki City and Toshiba entered into agreements on collaboration and cooperation in October 2013, to work toward the achievement of a “Smart Community”. Using Toshiba’s Smart Community Center next to Kawasaki Station as a base of operations, the two parties have so far promoted measures that include energy management for buildings around the station area, commercial revitalization, and electric bus operation.