Renewable/Fuel Cell Hybrid Power System Operation Using Two Search Controllers of the Optimal Power Needed on the DC Bus

Nicu Bizon, Mircea Raceanu, Emmanouel Koudoumas, Adriana Marinoiu, Emmanuel Karapidakis and Elena Carcadea
Additional contact information
Nicu Bizon: Faculty of Electronics, Communication and Computers, University of Pitesti, 110040 Pitesti, Romania
Mircea Raceanu: ICSI Energy, National Research and Development Institute for Cryogenic and Isotopic Technologies, 240050 Ramnicu Valcea, Romania
Emmanouel Koudoumas: Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Hellenic Mediterranean University, GR-71004 Heraklion, Greece
Adriana Marinoiu: ICSI Energy, National Research and Development Institute for Cryogenic and Isotopic Technologies, 240050 Ramnicu Valcea, Romania
Emmanuel Karapidakis: Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Hellenic Mediterranean University, GR-71004 Heraklion, Greece
Elena Carcadea: ICSI Energy, National Research and Development Institute for Cryogenic and Isotopic Technologies, 240050 Ramnicu Valcea, Romania

Energies, 2020, vol. 13, issue 22, 1-26

Abstract: In this paper, the optimal and safe operation of a hybrid power system based on a fuel cell system and renewable energy sources is analyzed. The needed DC power resulting from the power flow balance on the DC bus is ensured by the FC system via the air regulator or the fuel regulator controlled by the power-tracking control reference or both regulators using a switched mode of the above-mentioned reference. The optimal operation of a fuel cell system is ensured by a search for the maximum of multicriteria-based optimization functions focused on fuel economy under perturbation, such as variable renewable energy and dynamic load on the DC bus. Two search controllers based on the global extremum seeking scheme are involved in this search via the remaining fueling regulator and the boost DC–DC converter. Thus, the fuel economy strategies based on the control of the air regulator and the fuel regulator, respectively, on the control of both fueling regulators are analyzed in this study. The fuel savings compared to fuel consumed using the static feed-forward control are 6.63%, 4.36% and 13.72%, respectively, under dynamic load but without renewable power. With renewable power, the needed fuel cell power on the DC bus is lower, so the fuel cell system operates more efficiently. These percentages are increased to 7.28%, 4.94% and 14.97%.

Keywords: proton-exchange membrane fuel cell; fuel-saving; optimization; safe and healthy strategy; electrical energy efficiency (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

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