Experimental Study and Simplified Modelling of 1 kW Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cell for Mobile and Stationary Hybrid Systems Optimization

Abstract

The conversion of hydrogen into electricity is a subject of intense interest. Various technologies are available at laboratory level, but in industrial applications, the most established of them is the proton exchange membrane-based fuel cell. This increased interest, combined with the maturity of the technology, has led to attempts to integrate fuel cells into hybrid systems with renewable energy sources. Such hybrid systems are subject to numerous studies, most of which are aimed at optimizing installed capacity in order to reduce the cost of energy production, of investment, etc. This article aims to provide an experiment-based approach for a simple yet accurate model linking electrical power with hydrogen consumption that can be used in the design and optimization procedures for hybrid systems. For this purpose, an experimental setup with a 1 kW fuel cell was built at the Technical University of Sofia, where experimental studies were conducted to enable the development of the model. Although the proposed model does not reflect the influence of certain technological factors on the operation of the fuel cell, it provides sufficient accuracy to determine the hydrogen consumption for a given electrical power when used in operation simulations of the hybrid system.