An innovative hybrid system for electricity and freshwater cogeneration: Integrating high-temperature PEM fuel cells with hydrophilic modified tubular distillers

Synergizing high-temperature proton exchange membrane fuel cells (HT-PEMFCs) and hydrophilic modified tubular distillers (HMTDs) presents a promising solution to the challenges of electricity and freshwater scarcity, however, the system integration, performance features, and optimization strategies remain unknown. To address these issues, a system configuration for this concept is structured for the first time. Accordingly, a comprehensive mathematical model, grounded in thermodynamic and electrochemical principles, is developed to predict the performance by incorporating key irreversible losses. Numerical simulations predict that, compared to a standalone HT-PEMFC operating at 453 K, the cogeneration system increases maximum power density by 115.77 % and improves energy and exergy efficiencies by 60.73 % and 36.44 %, respectively, demonstrating the significant potential of this technology. Parametric studies are conducted to understand how the system's performance depends on various structural and operational parameters, including leakage current density, phosphoric acid doping, relative humidity, operating temperature, membrane thickness, unlocking avenues for performance optimization. Local sensitivity analysis further prioritizes these parameters for performance regulation, identifying phosphoric acid doping level as the most sensitive parameter while leakage current density as the least sensitive, providing useful strategies for performance regulation. These findings provide valuable insights for designing and operating high-performance hybrid systems.