Fuel Cell Battery Research Articles

Modelling and multi-objective optimization of hybrid energy storage solution for photovoltaic powered off-grid net zero energy building

This paper investigates the modelling and multi-objective optimization (using Non-dominated Sorting Genetic Algorithm (NSGA-II)) of a photovoltaic-battery-hydrogen hybrid renewable energy system (HRES) for a net zero energy building (NZEB) that is a five-bedroom duplex detached residential house located in the heart of Lagos, Nigeria. Three battery technologies: lithium iron phosphate (LFP) battery, retired electric vehicle battery (REVB) and Ortsfest - stationary PanZerplatte - tubular plate Verschlossen - closed lead acid (OPzV) battery, were investigated for their economic viability. An in-house simplified degradation model was used to evaluate the capacity loss (as this can have significant impact on cost calculations if not done) of the batteries with cycling and calendar aging. This addresses the lack of implementation of battery degradation modelling by many authors optimizing for HRES due to inapplicability of the models in literature for different battery chemistries. Also, this work evaluated battery-fuel cell hybrid configurations on the three objectives: annualized cost of system (ACS), loss of power supply probability (LPSP) and potential energy waste probability (PEWP) and the results were contrasted with the battery only configurations to identify scenarios where hybrid energy storage system might be more economical. The results showed that LFP and REVB are the best battery options. LFP and REVB battery only configurations are better for LPSP constraints >1 % whereas for LPSP of 1 % and below LFP-hydrogen and REVB-hydrogen are more economical.

Model Predictive Direct Torque Control and Fuzzy Logic Energy Management for Multi Power Source Electric Vehicles.

This paper proposes a novel Fuzzy-MPDTC control applied to a fuel cell battery electric vehicle whose traction is ensured using a permanent magnet synchronous motor (PMSM). On the traction side, model predictive direct torque control (MPDTC) is used to control PMSM torque, and guarantee minimum torque and current ripples while ensuring satisfactory speed tracking. On the sources side, an energy management strategy (EMS) based on fuzzy logic is proposed, it aims to distribute power over energy sources rationally and satisfy the load power demand. To assess these techniques, a driving cycle under different operating modes, namely cruising, acceleration, idling and regenerative braking is proposed. Real-time simulation is developed using the RT LAB platform and the obtained results match those obtained in numerical simulation using MATLAB/Simulink. The results show a good performance of the whole system, where the proposed MPDTC minimized the torque and flux ripples with 54.54% and 77%, respectively, compared to the conventional DTC and reduced the THD of the PMSM current with 53.37%. Furthermore, the proposed EMS based on fuzzy logic shows good performance and keeps the battery SOC within safe limits under the proposed speed profile and international NYCC driving cycle. These aforementioned results confirm the robustness and effectiveness of the proposed control techniques.

CO2 Turned into a Nitrogen Doped Carbon Catalyst for the Fuel Cell and Metal-Air Battery Applications

Metal-free catalysts based on nitrogen-doped carbon are among the most promising replacements for Pt-based materials on polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) cathodes due to their inherent stability (lack of metal atoms bypasses most of the degradation mechanisms encountered in metal-based non-precious metal catalysts). However, the production of carbon nanostructures that have suitable oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) activities for fuel cell cathode use can create massive amounts of CO2 as a by-product, which counteracts the environmental friendliness of fuel cells. Here, we demonstrate a new method for creating ORR catalysts directly from CO2, which can produce a catalyst with a negative carbon footprint instead of a positive one. Via a fused Li-K carbonate eutectic mixture or pure Li2CO3, CO2 was split into gaseous oxygen and solid carbon, which was then doped with nitrogen using a pyrolysis process with the presence of dicyandiamide and polyvinylpyrrolidone. A thorough physico-chemical characterization of the catalyst materials is presented alongside their electrocatalytic properties for the ORR. The reasons for the properties of the resulting carbon depending on the electrolyte mixture for CO2 electrolysis and deposition temperature are explored. The best performing material had ORR activity nearing that of Pt/C, showing the potential that this method has for creating competitive catalysts while remaining environmentally benign [1]. References Ratso, S.; Walke, P. R.; Mikli, V.; Ločs, J.; Šmits, K.; Vītola, V.; Šutka, A.; Kruusenberg, I. CO2 Turned into a Nitrogen Doped Carbon Catalyst for Fuel Cells and Metal–Air Battery Applications. Green Chem. 2021, 23 (12), 4435–4445. https://doi.org/10.1039/D1GC00659B. Figure 1

Comparative study of energy management systems for a hybrid fuel cell electric vehicle - A novel mutative fuzzy logic controller to prolong fuel cell lifetime

Hybrid fuel cell battery electric vehicles require complex energy management systems (EMS) in order to operate effectively. Poor EMS can result in a hybrid system that has low efficiency and a high rate of degradation of the fuel cell and battery pack. Many different types of EMS have been reported in the literature, such as equivalent consumption minimisation strategy and fuzzy logic controllers, which typically focus on a single objective optimisations, such as minimisation of H2 usage. Different vehicle and system specifications make the comparison of EMSs difficult and can often lead to misleading claims about system performance. This paper aims to compare different EMSs, against a range of performance metrics such as charge sustaining ability and fuel cell degradation, using a common modelling framework developed in MATLAB/Simulink - the Electric Vehicle Simulation tool-Kit (EV-SimKit). A novel fuzzy logic controller is also presented which mutates the output membership function depending on fuel cell degradation to prolong fuel cell lifetime – the Mutative Fuzzy Logic Controller (MFLC). It was found that while certain EMSs may perform well at reducing H2 consumption, this may have a significant impact on fuel cell degradation, dramatically reducing the fuel cell lifetime. How the behaviour of common EMS results in fuel cell degradation is also explored. Finally, by mutating the fuzzy logic membership functions, the MFLC was predicted to extend fuel cell lifetime by up to 32.8%.

The Multi-Objective Optimization of Powertrain Design and Energy Management Strategy for Fuel Cell–Battery Electric Vehicle

Considering the limited driving range and inconvenient energy replenishment way of battery electric vehicle, fuel cell electric vehicles (FC EVs) are taken as a promising way to meet the requirements for long-distance low-carbon driving. However, due to the limitation of FC power ability, a battery is usually adopted as the supplement power source to fill the gap between the requirement of driving and the serviceability of FC. In consequence, energy management is essential and crucial to an efficient power flow to the wheel. In this paper, a self-optimizing power matching strategy is proposed, considering the energy efficiency and battery degradation, via implementing a deep deterministic policy gradient. Based on the proposed strategy, less energy consumption and longer FC and battery life can be expected in FC EV powertrain with optimal hybridization degree.

Reducing the fuel consumption and emissions with the use of an external fuel cell hybrid power unit for electric taxiing at airports

Airport ground operations have a great impact on the environment. Various innovative solutions have been proposed for aircraft to perform taxi movements by deactivating their main engines. Although these solutions are environmentally beneficial, onboard and external electric taxiing solutions that are actively used and planned to be used in airports are not completely carbon-free. The disadvantages of the existing solutions can be alleviated by using an external fuel cell hybrid power unit to meet the energy required for taxiing that does not put additional weight on the aircraft. To reveal the power and energy required by the system, Airbus A320-200, which is a narrow-body aircraft and frequently used in airports, has been considered in this study. To determine the physical requirements of the aircraft for taxiing, a total of 900 s taxi-out movement consisting of four different periods with different runway slope, headwind, and maximum speeds were examined. According to the determined physical requirements, the conceptual design of the proposed fuel cell battery system was created and the physical data of the system for each period were obtained using the Matlab Simulink environment. As a result of the simulation, it is seen that the system consumes approximately 1.96 g of hydrogen per second. In addition, it has been calculated that 578.34 kg of CO2 is emitted during the taxi-out movement. The results also show that as a result of using the proposed system, approximately 14.6 million tons of CO2 emission per year can be prevented.

Green Hydrogen in the UK: Progress and Prospects

Green hydrogen has been known in the UK since Robert Boyle described flammable air in 1671. This paper describes how green hydrogen has become a new priority for the UK in 2021, beginning to replace fossil hydrogen production exceeding 1 Mte in 2021 when the British Government started to inject significant funding into green hydrogen sources, though much less than the USA, Germany, Japan and China. Recent progress in the UK was initiated in 2008 when the first UK green hydrogen station opened in Birmingham University, refuelling 5 hydrogen fuel cell battery electric vehicles (HFCBEVs) for the 50 PhD chemical engineering students that arrived in 2009. Only 10 kg/day were required, in contrast to the first large, green ITM power station delivering almost 600 kg/day of green hydrogen that opened in the UK, in Tyseley, in July 2021. The first question asked in this paper is: ‘What do you mean, Green?’. Then, the Clean Air Zone (CAZ) in Birmingham is described, with the key innovations defined. Progress in UK green hydrogen and fuel cell introduction is then recounted. The remarks of Elon Musk about this ‘Fool Cell; Mind bogglingly stupid’ technology are analysed to show that he is incorrect. The immediate deployment of green hydrogen stations around the UK has been planned. Another century may be needed to make green hydrogen dominant across the country, yet we will be on the correct path, once a profitable supply chain is established in 2022.

REGULARITIES OF HYDROGEN GENERATION BY HYDROLYSIS OF SODIUM BOROHYDRIDE ON IMMOBILIZED PLATINUM CATALYSTS

Sodium borohydride hydrolysisis one of the most productive hydrogengeneration methods, which can be used, inparticular, to power fuel cells with a hydrogenanode. In alkaline solutions, the interaction of NaBH4 with water practically does not occur, which makes it possible to store such solutions for a longtime. However, in the presence of catalysts, the borohydride hydrolysis reaction actively proceeds at room temperature with the formation of hydrogenand sodium metaborate. More than 300 homogeneous and heterogeneous catalysts for the hydrolysis of sodium borohydride are known, among which the most active metal catalysts are nanodispersed rhodium, ruthenium, and platinum immobilized on various substrates. The activity of such catalysts depends on the conditions of the reduction and immobilization of metals, the nature of used precursors, the amount of active phase of the catalyst, and the type of substrate. In this work, platinum catalysts immobilized on several substrates are developed, and the regularities of hydrolysis of sodium borohydride in alkaline solution when using such catalysts in flowing flat and cylindrical reactors are investigated. Using various methods, platinum was deposited on carbon black and carbon cloth, onactivated granular carbon, on titanium crumb, and on synthetic cordierite of honey combstructure with surface, previously modified by alumina. It is shown that nanodisperse platinum catalysts immobilized on carbon black and carbon cloth and especially on synthetic cordierite of cellular structure with surface previously modified by Al2O3 layer are active and reliable. The average rate of hydrogen evolution during hydrolysis of NaBH4 on such catalysts increases with increasing flow rate of its solution through the reactor, but the degree of conversion of sodium borohydride decreases due to the reduced duration of contact of the solution with the catalyst. Nanodisperse platinum catalysts on surface-modified cordierite provide a highandstable rate of hydrogengeneration with moderate heating of NaBH4 solution (60±5°C). The use of hydrogen generators with such catalysts in combination with fuel cell batteries is promising for the creation of autonomous powers ources.

Modeling a Hybrid Reformed Methanol Fuel Cell–Battery System for Telecom Backup Applications

In this paper, a hybrid reformed methanol fuel cell–battery system for telecom backup applications was modeled in MATLAB Simulink. The modeling was performed to optimize the operating strategy of the hybrid system using an energy management system with a focus on a longer lifetime and higher fuel efficiency for the fuel cell, while also keeping the state-of-charge (SOC) of the battery within a reasonable range. A 5 kW reformed methanol fuel cell stack and a 6.5 kWh Li-ion battery were considered for the hybrid model. Moreover, to account for the effects of degradation, the model evaluated the performance of the fuel cell both in the beginning of life (BOL) and after 1000 h and 250 start–stop cycling tests (EOT). The energy management system (EMS) was characterized by 12 operating conditions that used the battery SOC, load requirements and the presence or absence of grid power as the inputs to optimize the operating strategy for the system. Additionally, the integration of a 400 W photovoltaic (PV) system was investigated and was able to supplement the battery SOC, thereby increasing the stability and reliability of the system. However, extensive power outages during the night could lead to low battery SOC and, therefore, critical operating conditions and the extended use of the fuel cell. The model also predicted the methanol consumption for different scenarios.

3D TM-N-C Electrocatalysts with Dense Active Sites for the Membraneless Direct Methanol Fuel Cell and Zn-Air Batteries.

Electrocatalysts with high cost-effectiveness for the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) are essential for fuel cells (FC) and Zn-Air batteries (ZAB), which need highly active sites and suitable carbon substrates to accelerate the charge transfer kinetics. Herein, a simple and extensible method using ball milling and space-confinement pyrolysis is reported to prepare a series of transition metals and N-C catalysts (M-NLPC), which possess three-dimensional porous carbon substrates and dense active sites for efficient ORR. M-NLPC catalysts (especially Fe-NLPC) exhibit outstanding ORR activity with a half-wave potential (E1/2, 0.88 V) in an alkaline medium, high stability, and strong methanol resistance. The M-N4 sites are proven to be the active centers in M-NLPC by theoretical calculation, and methanol molecules are more likely to desorb than react on the Fe-N4 sites, which is the origin of the inactivity for the methanol oxidation reaction (MOR). Furthermore, Fe-NLPC was applied to membraneless alkaline direct methanol FC (DMFC) in practice, exhibiting outstanding performance. Meanwhile, the Fe-NLPC-based ZAB also shows excellent electrochemical performance.

An Optimization-Based Energy Management Strategy for PEM Fuel Cell-Battery Hybrid Energy System for Locomotive Applications

An Optimization-Based Energy Management Strategy for PEM Fuel Cell-Battery Hybrid Energy System for Locomotive Applications

Energy Management System for Fuel Cell-Battery Vehicles Using Multi objective Online Optimization

An Energy Management system for fuel cell/battery vehicles manages and controls the fuel consumption and affects the lifetime of the powertrain system. This paper proposes a new Energy Management System that is based on a multi-objective online optimization technique. The proposed Energy Management System objective is to minimize a cost function that is composed of four terms: actual fuel consumption, two terms representing the stresses on the lifetimes of the powertrain system components (the fuel cell and the battery), and a fourth term representing a penalty on the deviation from a desired SOC of the battery. This minimization is performed with no need for prior knowledge of the driving cycle. The proposed Energy Management System couples fuel consumption minimization with a frequency-decoupling-based technique to split the power demand among available power sources to relieve the stresses on those sources. The proposed Energy Management System shows flexibility to address multiple objectives and can simply be deployed as a real-time strategy. An analytical derivation is given, and simulation results show the effectiveness of the proposed approach. A comparison is performed between the proposed Energy Management System and a Dynamic-Programming-based Energy Management System. The comparison shows that the proposed Energy Management System achieves a near-optimal solution without the need for prior knowledge of the driving cycle.

Research on energy management strategy of fuel cell–battery–supercapacitor passenger vehicle

The energy management strategy of passenger vehicles that adopts the hybrid energy form of the fuel cell, battery and supercapacitor was complicated. Traditional power following-logic threshold filtering strategy could better use the power directly output by fuel cell(FC) and reduce the loss of charge and discharge. In some power ranges, the energy produced by the fuel cell lagged behind the demand power. In response to this problem, the power following-logic threshold filtering strategy is optimized based on dynamic allocation. According to the parameters of the vehicle, Simulink/Powertrain was used to build a power system model to verify the effectiveness of the current strategy under urban dynamometer driving schedule (UDDS) and then compared with the traditional control strategy. The optimized energy management strategy decreases hydrogen consumption by 1.9%; the proportion of power above 10 kW is reduced by about 20%; the battery end state of charge (SOC) values under the control strategy before and after the improvement are 51.64 and 50.91, respectively.

The case for negotiated contracts under the transition to a green bus fleet

Bus operators in the public and private sector are increasingly subject to competitive tendering in many countries and a requirement to operate under a gross cost contract. This contract sets out in detail the requirements of the operator, including the levels of service as well as infrastructure required to deliver the contracted services. Buses acquired by operators in many jurisdictions have until very recently been essentially diesel fuelled and often available from a panel approved set of buses compliant with Euro 6 standards. The predictability of the cost profiles of vehicles and associated costs of maintenance and repairs is well known and used in tendered offers. With the growing requirement of switching to a green fleet with varying timetabled transition rates, the future costs of providing bus services are going to be subject to significant unknowns. These unknowns are associated not only with the fast changing vehicle technology associated with a range of fuel sources (notably standard battery and fuel cell battery (i.e., hydrogen)), but also the impact this will have of the top-to-bottom change in the operations of bus fleets affecting operating and capital expenditure including depot infrastructure, timetabling, maintenance, labour skills and access to efficient electricity charging or hydrogen facilities. With such great uncertainty, the challenge of how to structure future contracts to allow for such volatility in cost commitments becomes of paramount importance to both the regulator and the bus operator. In this paper, we promote way forward to ensure that the transition to a totally green fleet is achieved without throwing the industry into chaotic uncertainty.

Demonstration of a Novel Alternating Current Hybrid Concept for a Fuel Cell–Battery Hybrid Electric Aircraft

Hybrid electric aircraft offer the potential to decrease emissions from air travel. A new hybrid concept is proposed for a fuel cell-battery hybrid aircraft. In contrast to existing hybrids, the proposed concept puts a battery directly on the AC phases of the motor, which together with a suitable switching circuit superimposes the DC voltage from the battery on the AC voltage of the motor phase providing a voltage boost depending on the battery voltage, which can be used during a high-power demand flight phase. The system is also capable of recharging the battery during flight. The necessary switching architecture was developed and modeled in MATLAB/Simulink to verify the concept and an experimental setup was built for demonstrating the functionality. Simulation and experimental results showed a very good agreement which is very promising for the proposed new hybrid topology.

Design and Simulation of Hybrid Solar PV-Fuel-Cell-Battery System to supply in the Nit Kurukshetra Campus and its effect on the Environment using Homer Software

The main objective of this paper is to design a hybrid power system for continuous power supply in the institute campus nit Kurukshetra in an economical way to replace the external grid power system. In this paper solar photovoltaic Fuel cell battery hybrid system has been studied. Costing, sizing, optimization, and simulation were done using the software homer pro. The Levelized Cost of electricity (COE) is Rs. 11.12 per KW is obtained and the system is based on renewable energy sources so it sustainably generates electricity.

Are Electric Vehicles Really Better for the Environmenta?

Fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEVs) and battery electric vehicles (BEVs) are commonly regarded as more beneficial for the environment than vehicles powered by an internal combustion engine, but does this remain the case if the vehicle’s full life cycle is considered? HORIBA MIRA’s Adam Zucconi considers the debate in more detail.

Optimal voltage of direct current coupling for a fuel cell–battery hybrid energy storage system based on solar energy

A hybrid energy storage system based on a polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell and a battery is designed and applied using solar energy in this study. The fuel cell and batteries are connected using a direct coupling method. The optimal DC coupling voltage is examined by turning the fuel cell operation on and off. The voltage difference is first evaluated and it is found that a 2 V difference yields the optimal condition with the longest operating time and transition period without system failure. Various on–off couples are then determined. It is found that an on–off​ couple of 49–51 V presents the best transition period, indicating the good harmonized operation between the fuel cell and batteries. Therefore, an on–off couple at 49–51 V for fuel cell operation is the optimal and suitable DC coupling voltage according to this work system.

Traction electric drive based on fuel cell batteries and on-board inertial energy storage for multi unit train

The aim of the work is to study the possibility and features of the use of inertial storage devices in the traction electric drive of multi unit train with a power plant based on fuel cells. Methodology. The principle of power flow control in traction electric drives in the modes of acceleration and braking of rolling stock is proposed. The mathematical model of the traction electric drive in the form of the combination of three components: the train, the traction unit and the battery of fuel cells is developed. It was used to study the operation of a traction electric drive when solving a test traction task for rolling stock. Results. It is established that the use of inertial energy storage reduces hydrogen consumption by at least 25 %, which increases the mileage of rolling stock between equipment by more than 30 %. Originality. The traction electric drive on the basis of fuel elements and the inertial energy storage for the multi unit train is offered. The work of the proposed traction electric drive in solving the test traction problem for rolling stock is investigated. Practical significance. A mathematical model of the traction electric drive has been developed. The test traction problem for rolling stock is solved.

On the fuzzy logic controller development for a hybrid hydrogen vehicle

Introduction (problem statement and relevance).The ability to combine the advantages of hydrogen fuel cells and lithium batteries in a hybrid electric vehicle is a fundamental challenge in the development of highly efficient, environmentally friendly transportation. At the same time, the coordinated operation of onboard sources requires the creation of complex control algorithms for all involved power supply and power consumption systems.The purposeof the research was to study the practical applicability of fuzzy logic algorithms when creating a fuel cells battery controller.Methodology and research methods.The study used modern mathematical methods for processing the controller input signals of a hydrogen vehicle hybrid power unit and generating output control signals to provide the most optimal control modes for a fuel cells battery.Scientific novelty and results.The proposed approach, based on the use of fuzzy logic algorithms, has made it possible to control the fuel cell battery power ensuring its efficient operation as part of a vehicle hybrid electric drive. The analysis of the obtained results indicated the effectiveness of the method.Practical significance.The proposed algorithms make it possible to develop and implement advanced hydrogen power systems controllers for a vehicle.