Direct Active Fuzzy Non-Linear Controller for Pressure Regulation in PEM Fuel Cell

Abstract

In this paper, a control-oriented MIMO dynamic state space model with Direct Active Fuzzy Non-linear Controller (DAFNLC) is designed to control the partial pressure of the reactants in Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cell (PEMFC). State feedback controller with integral controller is employed as a non-linear Controller. The gain value of state feedback controller and integral controller are selected by fuzzy logic technique. In fact, the performance of PEMFC is deteriorated by the depleted supply of reactants on both sides. Moreover, the deviation in partial pressure of the reactants across the Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM) damages the membrane on more pressure side and also reduces the life of the PEMFC. Hence, the selection of proper controller plays a major role to enhance the performance and longevity of PEMFC. The main objective of this work is to analyze the performance of the PEMFC under static and dynamic load changing condition to maintain the partial pressure of reactants at set point 3atm. The proposed DAFNLC controls the partial pressure of hydrogen at anode chamber and the partial pressure of the oxygen at cathode chamber by regulating the mass flow rate of hydrogen and oxygen respectively. The simulation test results reveal that the proposed DAFNLC exhibits better performance than the conventional PI controllers and Non-linear Controllers reported in literature.