Dynamic Model of a Load-Following Fuel Cell Vehicle: Impact of the Air System

• Main Authors: Badami, M, Caldera, C
• Format: Report
• Language: English
• ISSN: 0148-7191; 2688-3627
• DOI: 10.4271/2002-01-0100

Fuel cell vehicles promise to become, in near future, competitive with conventional cars in terms of performance, efficiency and compliance with emission reduction schedules. However, many steps still have to be done, and a series of fundamental choices, such as high vs. low air pressure system options remain unresolved. Modeling can be a powerful instrument to evaluate different components or plant layout, and to predict the dynamic behavior of a fuel cell system. The first part of this paper illustrates the implementation of a direct engineering dynamic model of a load-following fuel cell vehicle. The modeling techniques, assumptions and basic equations are explained for each subsystem, with special attention to the air supply system, whose dynamic simulation was one of the primary targets of this work. Some of the simulation results are presented in the second part. The performance of the vehicle was evaluated for the New European Driving Cycle (NEDC), showing the impact of the air system characteristics on the overall energy balance. The dynamic behavior of the components and their interaction through control strategies were also analyzed and other working conditions, such as acceleration runs and maximal velocity were tested.