Energy Management for a Fuel Cell Hybrid Vehicle

In recent years, due to emission reduction policies, research focused on alternative powertrains among which electric vehicles powered by fuel cells are becoming an attractive solution. Especially, proton-exchange fuel cell has more and more applications in hybrid vehicle. The main issues of these vehicles are the energy management system and the utilization rate of the fuel. In order to optimize the performance of fuel cells and reduce fuel consumption, the best control solution is to power a vehicle with both fuel cell and battery. To model the hybrid powertrains behavior, a simulation program has been made and implemented in matlab/simulink. In particular, the fuel cell type is selected as proton-exchange fuel cell and the battery is lead-acid battery. The fuel cell provides the normal required power for electric vehicles running, whereas the battery model also accounts for the charge/discharge efficiency. The hybrid powertrains is equipped with an energy management system. During acceleration, power is provided by the storage battery discharging, while during deceleration the battery is recharged. The control strategies assume charge maintaining operation of the battery, and the fuel cell system has to work around its maximum efficiency. The feasibility for energy management is proved by simulation experiment.