Dynamic fuel cell models and their application in hardware in the loop simulation

Currently, fuel cell technology plays an important role in the development of alternative energy converters for mobile, portable and stationary applications. With the help of physical based models of fuel cell systems and appropriate test benches it is possible to design different applications and investigate their stationary and dynamic behaviour. The polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) fuel cell system model includes gas humidifier, air and hydrogen supply, current converter and a detailed stack model incorporating the physical characteristics of the different layers. In particular, the use of these models together with hardware in the loop (HIL) capable test stands helps to decrease the costs and accelerate the development of fuel cell systems. The interface program provides fast data exchange between the test bench and the physical model of the fuel cell or any other systems in real time. So the flexibility and efficiency of the test bench increase fundamentally, because it is possible to replace real components with their mathematical models. (c) 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.