Simulation of a PEM Fuel Cell Electric Vehicle

This paper presents the utilization of a supercapacitor (SC) as an auxiliary power source in an electric vehicle (EV), composed of a proton electrolyte membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) as the main energy source. The main weak point of PEMFC is slow dynamics because one must limit the fuel cell current slope in order to prevent fuel starvation problems, to improve its performance and lifetime. The very fast power response and high specific power of a supercapacitor can complement the slower power output of the main source to produce the compatibility and performance characteristics needed in a propulsion system. In fact, the paper reviews the model description of the vehicle with a focus on architecture and modeling of the driving chain which includes fuel cell system, a supercapacitor and the PM synchronous motor. This motor can achieve high performance than induction motor like high speed, high torque and high efficiency. A hybrid power train configuration based on a PEM fuel cell is designed and simulated by using a matlab/simulink.