Energy Efficiency Analysis and Decoupling Control Design of Air Supply for Vehicle Fuel Cell System

Abstract

The reliability and efficiency of proton exchange membrane fuel cells largely depend on the performance of the air supply system, making high-control accuracy essential. First, the impact of control accuracy on the energy consumption and efficiency of the air compressor is analyzed. Subsequently, a fuel cell system model is established based on experimental data to enable rapid verification of control strategies. Finally, three decoupling control algorithms (feedforward decoupling, feedback decoupling, and diagonal matrix decoupling) are compared in detail. The results show that the diagonal matrix decoupling algorithm has higher stability and minimizes the coupling between pressure and flow. Experimental verification on the fuel cell system test bench further shows that the diagonal matrix decoupling algorithm can limit the flow and pressure fluctuations to less than 0.5 g/s and 0.5 kPa, respectively, and effectively prevent compressor surge during startup. This method provides theoretical guidance for achieving high-precision control of the air supply system of fuel cell vehicles.