Dynamic model and robust control for the PEM fuel cell systems

Abstract

In response to the escalating challenges posed by climate change, the global energy sector has witnessed a paradigm shift towards sustainable alternatives. The promising fuel cell technology known as the proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) has found widespread use in a variety of mobile and stationary applications. This paper presents a super-twisting sliding mode (STSM) control for maximum power point tracking (MPPT) on the proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) system incorporated floating interleaved boost converter (FIBC). This work aims to extract the maximum power from the PEMFC by means of robust control in conjunction with FIBC to improve current ripple. The proposed controller is designed for the PEMFC system by combining the STSM and MPPT methods. The designed MPPT control tracks down the maximum power point of the system, and the corresponding current values act as the reference values for the STSM controller. The results show that incorporating the PEMFC with the FIBC can result in current ripple reduction when compared with a traditional interleaved boost converter (IBC). The obtained results demonstrate the capability of the PEMFC closed-loop control system to maintain the system’s robustness under fuel cell parameter variations.