Transient response modeling of reactant concentration in polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells during load change

ABSTRACT

This paper outlines a semi-empirical model to account for the transient response of Polymer Electrolyte Membrane Fuel Cells (PEMFC) during load changes. In this work, we investigated the voltage undershoots of the PEMFC system with a current step-up given as the input. The dynamic response of PEMFC during stepwise load changes is a vital factor that indicates cell performance. We present a model based on mass balance equations, various transport phenomena, and experimental conditions for these voltage undershoots. This model’s response highlights the impact of reactant starvation inside the fuel cell stack during step increase in current. A single fuel cell is divided into two domains to analyze the availability of reactant gases. The model can anticipate the impact of different operating conditions on the magnitude of voltage undershoots. Validation of the model with experimental data resulted in a maximum relative error of 4.59%, with the goodness of fit in the range of 0.96 to 0.99, making the model statistically significant.

GRAPHICAL ABSTRACT

KEYWORDS:

• Load changes
• modeling
• polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell (PEMFC)
• transient response

Acknowledgments

The authors express their gratitude to Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, for providing the geometrical details of the plant. This research did not receive any financial support or grant from funding agencies.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Kavya Vanaja Raghunath

Kavya Vanaja Raghunath completed her B Tech in Applied Electronics and Instrumentation from College of Engineering Trivandrum, and M Tech in Chemical Process Control from Government Engineering College, Thrissur. Currently, she is pursuing her Ph.D. from the National Institute of Technology, Calicut, India.  She is currently working on PEM Fuel cells. Her research interests also include mathematical modeling and control of chemical systems, system identification, nonlinear system analysis, and control.

Shaneeth Muliankeezhu

Dr. Shaneeth Muliankeezhu did his B Tech in Chemical Engineering from Government Engineering College, Thrissur, and MTech in Chemical Engineering from IIT Kanpur. He pursued his Ph.D. from the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi. He is working as a Scientist Engineer, at the Indian Space Research Organization since 1997. His areas of interest include Fuel cells science and engineering, Modeling and simulation of Chemical systems, Process Simulation, Batteries.

Aparna Kallingal

Dr. Aparna Kallingal did her B Tech and M Tech in Chemical Engineering from Government Engineering College Thrissur. She pursued her Ph.D. from the Indian Institute of Technology Madras. She is working as Associate Professor and Head of the Department of Chemical Engineering, at the National Institute of Technology Calicut, India. Her areas of interest include process simulation and control, heat transfer, biofuels.