Experimental Analysis of the Performances of Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cell Based Electric Vehicle

The aim of this paper is to analyse the performances of the fuel cell directly connected to a variable load. The hydrogen represents one of the main green energy of the future. The fuel cell is the engine responsible of converting hydrogen into electrical energy. Thanks to its higher efficiency, low operating temperature and its easy maintenance, the Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cell is used in transportation such as hybrid vehicles and Fuel Cell Electric Vehicles. Power converters are used in fuel cell systems to control the flow of the power and regulate the load voltage. In addition, power converters are designed to reduce the voltage and current ripple of the fuel cell. In aim to investigate the fuel cell performances in case of converter fault and direct connection to the load, this work is conducted. Experimental tests were performed using the Fuel Cell Nexa 1.26 kW system. The experiments are performed under diverse operating situations representing the load current profile of the New European Driving Cycle of the electrical vehicle whether static and dynamic ones. The experimental results show good performances of the fuel cell connected directly to the load to provide the required load current. However, the same results prove the need to the power converter to reduce the current ripples.