West Virginia University Research Corporation (WVURC)

In 2013, centralized U.S. power plants had an average electricity generation efficiency of only 33%, wasting 67% of primary energy as heat and emitting 2 billion tons of CO2, about 38% of U.S. total emissions. Further, 6% of electricity is generally lost during transmission and distribution from the power plant to the customer. An alternative to centrally produced power is distributed generation, in which electricity is generated at the point of use. Residential combined heat and power (CHP) systems can burn natural gas to produce electricity for a home while also using the waste heat for space and water heating. The potential energy efficiency for CHP systems is more than 80% and significant adoption of such systems would enable dramatic reductions in primary energy use and concurrent CO2 emissions. However, usage of small CHP systems is not widespread because systems currently on the market are limited by high price, low efficiency, and short lifetime. The GENSETS program seeks to develop 1 kW (electric) CHP generators that have high fuel-to-electricity generation efficiency, long life, low cost, and low emissions.

West Virginia University Research Corporation (WVURC) and their partner, Infinia Technology Corporation, propose to demonstrate an advanced Stirling power generation system for residential CHP applications. A Stirling engine uses a working gas housed in a sealed environment, in this case the working gas is helium. When heated by the natural gas-fueled burner, the helium expands causing a piston to move and interact with a linear alternator to produce electricity. As the gas cools and contracts, the process resets before repeating again. Advanced Stirling engines endeavor to carefully manage heat inside the system to make the most efficient use of the natural gas energy. This project makes extensive use of additive manufacturing i.e. constructing components one layer at a time - similar to 3D printing. They propose using additive manufacturing because building the system as one piece minimizes interfacial heat losses and improves heat transfer, leading to increased efficiency.

If successful, WVURC’s project will facilitate development and commercialization of economical, efficient, and durable CHP systems for residential use. These advancements support progress toward ARPA-E’s overall goals as follows: