Improving Hydrogen Utilization Factor of Fuel Cell Stack Using Perturb and Observe Algorithm

This paper describes a novel approach of optimizing hydrogen fuel flow rate in a fuel cell, in delivering required power output. For controlling this power source (hydrogen) of fuel cell system, Perturb and observe algorithm has been used. In this paper, DC/DC voltage boost converter is used to condition the fuel cell generated power before feeding the DC motor which is used as load for electric vehicle operation. The converter harmonizes the generated electricity with the precise requisites of the designated application. The voltage and current controller have been designed using the Artificial Bee Colony (ABC) algorithm. The system has been tested for delivering controlled power with the optimized rate of hydrogen into the fuel cell. This improves the utilization factor of hydrogen of the fuel cell. This proposed system has been modelled in MATLAB Simulink which proves to be a versatile tool enabling model-based design, simulation, and analysis across diverse engineering disciplines. Its graphical interface, comprehensive library, and capability for automatic code generation are key contributors to its extensive adoption in this paper.