This standard provides background information and a hydrogen fuel quality standard for commercial proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cell vehicles. This report also provides background information on how this standard was developed by the Hydrogen Quality Task Force (HQTF) of the Interface Working Group (IWG) of the SAE Fuel Cell Standards Committee.

Fuel Cell Standards Committee

Mixed Wettability Influence on Water Droplet Behaviour in a PEM Fuel Cell Channel

2024-32-003704/18/2025

The utilization of hydrogen in low-temperature Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells (PEMFCs) stands out as a compelling prospect for driving a widespread shift towards green industry practices. Despite significant advancements, a comprehensive understanding of water behaviour and dynamics within PEMFCs remains crucial for their extensive integration in propulsion applications. Striking a delicate balance between flooding and drying conditions poses a challenge for achieving stable and efficient PEMFC operation. In this study, a preliminary experimental investigation was conducted focusing on carbon-paper Gas Diffusion Layer (GDL) and gas channel walls. The static, advancing and receding contact angles were measured and utilized as boundary conditions for simulations. The influence of membrane humidity was also examined during the experimental campaign. 3D CFD simulations were performed on a straight portion of a PEMFC channel with a selected domain length of 5 mm and a section of 1x1 mm

Merola, S. S., Antetomaso, C., Irimescu, A., Vaglieco, B. M., Jannelli, E.

Fuel Cell Experimental Data Anomaly Detection and Polarization Curve Fitting Method

2024-01-289604/09/2024

In recent years, fuel cell vehicles have gained widespread attention due to their environmental benefits. How to quickly predict the lifespan of fuel cells has become a research focus in both academia and industry. The polarization curve, described typically by semi-empirical formula, is an important tool for describing the fundamental characteristics of fuel cells. By studying and analyzing the polarization curves of fuel cells throughout their lifespan, we can gain insights into their performance under different operating conditions, providing valuable insight for the design and optimization of fuel cells. Parameters in semi-empirical equations are typically fitted using raw experimental data, but outlier points can severely impact the results of data analysis. Therefore, the rapid and effective automatic identification and removal of these outliers is a crucial step in the fitting process of polarization curve parameters. This article explores the use of data cleansing methods based

Qin, Jiahang, Hou, Yongping, Ma, Liying

Multiphysics Simulation Supporting Systems Engineering for Fuel Cell Vehicles

2024-26-024401/16/2024

Legislative challenges, changing customer needs and the opportunities opened-up by electrification are the major driving forces in today’s automotive industry. Fuel cell electric vehicles offer the potential for CO2 emission free mobility, especially attractive for heavy duty long-haul range application. The development of the key components of fuel cell electric vehicles, namely the fuel cell stack itself as well as the related hydrogen/air supply and thermal management sub-systems, goes hand in hand with a number of challenges with regards to performance, lifetime and safety. For fuel cell electric vehicles, the proper layout and sizing of the stack and the related fuel and air supply system components, as well as the suitable dimensioning of the cooling system, are decisive for the overall system efficiency and achievable lifetime. Finally, the different components and sub-systems need to be integrated into the overall powertrain and vehicle configuration together with the related

Tatschl, Reinhard, Poetsch, Christoph, Reiter, Anton, Ritzberger, Daniel

Optimal operation of purge valve to reduce the H2 wastage in the fuel cell

2024-26-016601/16/2024

A Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cell requires the input of Oxygen from Cathode and Hydrogen from Anode. As atmospheric air is fed into the system for power generation, nitrogen molecules enter the fuel cell along with oxygen molecules. Over time, there is accumulation of nitrogen inside the fuel cell leading to increase in the effective impedance which in turn leads to increase in losses inside fuel cell hence reducing the fuel cell efficiency. In order to reduce the losses, most of the PEM fuel cells have a purge valve at anode. This purge valve is operated frequently as the impedance increases to let out the nitrogen molecules. During the purging operation, some amount of hydrogen is let out along with nitrogen, which cannot be recovered. In other words, loss of hydrogen could also be considered in terms of reduction in system efficiency. Conventionally, nitrogen-purging operation in fuel cell takes place reactively as voltage/ power drop across the electrode increases above a

SHAH, SAURABH, Bhat, Adithya, Munirajappa, Chandrashekara, Prasad P, Shilpa, Choubey, Ayush

Effect Analysis of Form Factor on Thermo-Electric Generator Performance

2024-26-038601/16/2024

One of the major contributor for the climate change and global warming is the residual thermal energy generated from automobiles as exhaust gases in IC engine powered vehicles and batteries and fuel cell heating in green vehicles. This waste heat or the thermal energy can be converted into useful electric energy using the thermos-electric generator (TEG). TEGs are devices that can generate electricity directly from temperature difference between two surfaces. They are manufactured using semiconductor materials that exhibit Seebeck effect, generating voltage due to temperature gradient across it terminals. These devices are compact, stable and more reliable electric power generators. The main setback of TEG is its low efficiency compared to other power generators. In this paper, form factor of TEG is studied in detail with its effect on figure of merit, for commercial vehicle applications. In addition, bottlenecks in implementing these TEGs in series production is discussed.

Bali, Gaurav, Mutagi, Megha Dharnendra, PONANGI, BABU RAO

Design and Development of E-axle as a retro and OE fitment solution for Light Commercial Vehicles ranging from 1.5 to 5 Ton GVW

2024-26-011901/16/2024

The Light commercial vehicle (LCV) is primarily used for the last mile delivery and it holds the volume share of around 61% in the commercial vehicle segment. The last mile delivery services have seen a massive surge after the CoVID-19 pandemic resulting is the increase sale of LCV in last few years and is expected to grow further by 8-11% in the coming years. However, city logistic is also responsible for most pollution and noise in the city. Hence, policymakers are aiming to reduce carbon footprint by promoting the use of Electric vehicle by providing incentive to automakers though schemes like FAME-I and FAME-II. In order to effectively reduce the carbon footprint within city it is important to increase the use of new electric vehicle and convert the old polluting vehicles to electric. Hence, a retro fitment solution for converting used LCV to electric can help in reducing emission as well as noise pollution. Later the same solution can be offered as OE fitment solution. Though

VAIBHAV, KUMAR, Mulik, Rakesh Vilasrao, Shrikrishna Ramdasi, Sushil

Design and Optimization of Air intake and Cooling System for Commercial Fuel Cell Electric Vehicles

2024-26-017801/16/2024

There is need of the hour to reduce greenhouse gases and become carbon neutral. Global warming and the increase in pollution are big threats to humankind. The Paris Agreement is a major step towards reducing pollution and greenhouse gases. To improve the situation, hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicle is a promising technology that enables zero emissions, zero greenhouse gas generation and high efficiency with superior performance for long-range applications as compared to other green technologies. Although it is a promising and beneficial technology, there is limited information available in the public domain about fuel cell technology and its accessories. Air intake and cooling system’s proper functioning is very important for proper fuel cell functioning. Incoming air to the fuel cell stack needs to be processed by cleaning, humidifying, cooling or heating. If the incoming air isn't clean, it will deteriorate the fuel cell's performance; it may get blocked, or even damaged. Similarly

Gawhade, Ravikant, Gadve, Dhananjay, Patil, NIKHIL, Adsul, Aniket, Amancharla, Naga Chaithanya

Twin Motor System for Electric Vehicle Propulsion by Means of Two Energy Sources

2024-26-011301/16/2024

The transport sector in all domains like personal vehicles, public transport and logistics has seen a tremendous growth over the past decade, more so in the last 5 years. The main reasons for this rapid growth is the development of new energy storage systems in battery technology ( Lithium ion ,sodium ion ,aluminum air etc.), hydrogen fuel cells, super capacitors etc. On the other hand there has been tremendous development in the motor drive technology with the availability of brushless dc motors (BLDC Motors), induction motors, Permanent magnet synchronous motors (PMSM,IPMSM). Each motor having its own special characteristics and usage suited for a very specific application in terms of torque and load bearing capacities. In this paper we describe a unique platform with twin motor drive system electric vehicle which is powered by an artificial intelligence (AI) enabled electronic module DuoPackR. The basic platform is described with the help of a bicycle which has two BLDC motors on

PRATIWADIBHAYANKARAM, Ashwini Kumar Krishnaswamy, K A, Rakesh, Sangam, Manjunath

Modular Fuel Cell Control Software for Commercial Vehicle Applications

2024-26-016901/16/2024

Compliance with the future CO2 emission limits for the fleet of vehicles sold presents a major challenge for the automotive industry. To comply with these stringent limits, one solution is mobility using hydrogen as an energy carrier. In this context, the development of Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM) fuel cells for commercial vehicle applications, both on-and off-road, is of significant interest due to the non-existent CO2 emissions. However, performance of these devices is closely related to the control concepts that are used to ensure high efficiency, good transient performance, high reliability & durability as well as safe operation. To address these challenges, this paper presents a modular Fuel Cell Control Software which offers the potential to be used for different P&ID (Piping & Instrumentation Diagram) configurations of fuel cell systems. The presented software controls and monitors the stack and the Balance of Plant (BOP) components and communicates with the main vehicle

Srivastava, Vivek, Wendler, Artem, Schaub, Joschka, Walters, Marius, Thodupunoori, Shravan, Mulukutla, Kiran

Performance Simulation of 100kW Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cell for Heavy Commercial Vehicle Applications

2024-26-029301/16/2024

As the sustainable fuel of the future, hydrogen will significantly reduce dependence on fossil energy sources and the amount of exhaust gases emitted by vehicles. Accordingly, the development of commercial vehicles with fuel cell technology using hydrogen as a fuel will play a key role in commercialization. Today, there are an abundance of fuel cell types on the market for a wide range of applications, including transportation, stationary power, portable power, and emergency backup power. Among these fuel cells, the proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) has potential for automotive applications due to its low operating temperature and high power density. Although the concept of a fuel cell system is a global technology, it cannot be directly implemented in the Indian CV (utility vehicle) market. A certain level of technology can only be transferred. Considering the aforementioned scenario, FC system technology selection should be carefully considered along with BOP design

Sankar, M.Gopi, Subramanian, Karthikeyan

Fuel Cell Electric Train Concept – Zero Emission Rail Transport Solution for India

2024-26-017901/16/2024

Indian cities are among the most polluted in the world. The transportation sector is one of the major source of gaseous pollutants. In recent years, also the effects of climate change and global warming have been felt across the globe. India has therefore committed at the CoP26 summit to reduce its CO2 emissions 45% by 2030. The Indian automotive sector is already addressing the problem with implementation of stricter BS VI, CAFÉ & Stage V standards and pursuing rapid electrification with application of zero emission vehicles. India also has the largest rail network of Asia, and a significant proportion of greenhouse gases also comes from this sector. Deployment of zero emission fuel cell trains would be one of the solutions to meet India's emission reduction targets. Indian Railways has already started its journey towards zero emissions and has set a target to launch hydrogen fuel cell trains on some routes by 2023 as part of the "Hydrogen for Heritage" initiative. In this study, the

Emran, Ashraf, Mertes, Simon, Garg, Shivam, Wick, Maximilian, Gautam, Anirudh, Schmidt, Marvin, Wagh, Sachin, Sharma, Vijay, Walters, Marius

Development of an efficient vehicle energy management system for fuel cell electric vehicles.

2024-26-017301/16/2024

Fuel cell electric vehicles generally have two power sources – the fuel cell power system and a high voltage battery pack - to power the vehicle operations. The fuel cell power system is the main source of power for the vehicle and its operations are supported by the battery pack. The battery pack helps to tackle the dynamic power demands from the vehicle such as during acceleration, to which the response of the fuel cell might be slower. The battery is also used to recover the energy from regeneration during braking and can also be used to extend the range of the vehicle in case the storage tanks runs out of hydrogen. In order to maximize the fuel efficiency of the fuel cell power system it is critical that these two power sources are used in conjunction with each other in an optimal manner. The two power sources must operate such that the power demand from the vehicle is met at all times without over exerting either of these two sources as this can lead to drop in life and health of

Jacob, Joe, Brahmbhatt, Smitan, Adsul, Aniket, PRASAD, PULUGURTHA

A Comparative Analysis and Novel Powertrain Topology for FCEVs, Integrating Ultracapacitor and Batteries.

2024-26-016801/16/2024

This paper proposes a comparative analysis and novel topology for a fuel cell electric vehicle bus (FCEV-Bus) that combines the advantages of fuel cells, ultra-capacitors, and batteries. The integration of these three energy storage devices aims to enhance the overall performance, efficiency, and reliability of the FCEV while addressing the challenges associated with traditional fuel cell systems. The proposed topology utilizes a FC stack as the primary power source, which provides a steady and efficient supply of electricity. To overcome the limitations of fuel cells in responding to sudden power demands, ultra-capacitors are incorporated into the system. Ultra-capacitors can rapidly discharge and absorb high power, making them suitable for capturing regenerative braking energy and delivering power during acceleration or other high-power events. Moreover, to address the issue of slow-response and transient power variations, a battery-system is integrated into the topology. In which

Bhardwaj, Rohit, Saurabh, Saurabh, Gadve, Dhananjay, Amancharla, Naga Chaithanya

Optimization of Microporous Layer Composition at Varying Humidities for High-Performance Polymer Exchange Membrane Fuel Cell

2023-01-701610/30/2023

Proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) is a promising energy supply device. Its improvement on output performance has always been a main subject. Microporous layer (MPL) is the water management center of PEMFC, which has an important influence on the mass transfer process and performance of PEMFC under high current density. In this paper, the performance of GDL based on Toray-H-060 with different carbon powder and C:PTFE of MPL were tested and optimized. SEM and static contact Angle was used to investigate Characterization of GDLs. The polarization curve was used to select the best performance, and EIS was used to explore the internal optimization mechanism. The output performance increases with humidity from 25%RH to 75%RH for all four samples. The MPL sample formulated with C: PTFE = 8:2 and XC-72 powder is the best under wide humidity region, and the best performance is achieved at 75%RH. The maximum power density reaches 0.949W/cm2 at 1.8A/cm2. At 100%RH, because of dense

Lou, Mingyu, Lin, Rui, Chen, Liang

Experimental Study on Transient Response Characteristics of Commercial-Size PEMFC under Varying Load

2023-01-700910/30/2023

Proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) is a promising next-generation energy conversion device. The response characteristics of mass transfer and electrochemical reactions during a transient process affect the cell performance and still require further investigation. Experiment is conducted to measure current density distribution under varying load and reactant flow rate in a commercial-size single cell. Local current density around cathode inlet is higher in normal operating conditions due to higher local oxygen concentration. Such area performs a better transient response when a step change of load current is demanded leading to much larger current density at cathode inlet and lower at outlet. The redistribution of reactant gas concentration in a commercial-size fuel cell happens after the load change and takes a few seconds. After the redistribution a balance is reached and current density distribution tends to get more homogeneous with lower performance at cathode inlet and

Ma, Yunyang, Lin, Rui

Study on Transient Tolerance Concentration of Cathode Ammonia in Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells

2023-01-701010/30/2023

The performance and lifetime of proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFC) are affected by impurities in the gas stream. The concentration of ammonia in the air can exceed 1ppm in a specific area, which is a potential factor in the degradation of PEMFC performance and lifetime. Investigating the mechanism and concentration threshold of cathode ammonia poisoning PEMFC is the prerequisite for preventing catalyst ammonia poisoning. In this work, the effect of 250ppb~5ppm transient contamination on PEMFC performance and impedance is studied. The results show that the attenuation performance caused by ammonia is attributed to the increase of impedance, which is mainly reflected in the mass transmission resistance, followed by the cathode activation resistance, and has little effect on the charge transfer resistance. The performance is somewhat recovered after the polarization curve testing, which is related to the voltage change and the increase in water generated during the high current

Jing, Yuan, Lin, Rui

Improving Dynamic Response of PEMFC Anode Pressure in Droped Load Scenarios through Split Range Control

2023-01-702610/30/2023

The dynamic response of proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cells’ anode pressure and the pressure difference between the cathode and anode significantly influence the performance and durability of fuel cells. To address the slow dynamic response of the anode pressure during rapid load drops, this study proposes a split range control strategy by introducing the hydrogen purge valve into the anode pressure control. By rational planning the split range block, the hydrogen purge valve is opened at appropriate times during load drops. To validate the effectiveness of the split range control, simulations are conducted under load drop conditions using an 80 kW fuel cell hydrogen and air supply subsystem model. The simulation results demonstrate that the split range control reduces the setting time of the anode pressure during load drops by half, with the most significant improvement observed at 67% load to idle condition, where the setting time is reduced from 2.6 s to 1.1 s. Furthermore

Zhang, Junyu, Chen, Fengxiang, Pei, Fenglai, Li, Tao, Xu, Shuo

A Novel Hybrid Method Based on the Sliding Window Method for the Estimation of the State of Health of the Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cell

2023-01-700110/30/2023

To study the state of health (SOH) of the proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC), a novel hybrid method combining the advantages of both the model-based and data-driven methods is proposed. Firstly, the model-based method is proposed based on the voltage degradation model to estimate the variation trend, and three parameters reflecting the performance degradation are selected. Secondly, the data-driven (long short-term memory (LSTM)) method is presented to estimate the variation fluctuation. Moreover, the core step of the hybrid method is returning the results of the LSTM method to the power degradation model as the “observation” and modifying related parameters to improve the estimation accuracy. Finally, the sliding window method is applied to solve the problem of the data increase with the increase of the operating time. The results show that the power estimation is better than the current estimation for the SOH estimation. The estimation accuracy of the hybrid method dependent

Fan, Lei, Zhou, Su, Zhao, Peng, Gao, Jianhua

HVAC Noise

2025-01-005705/05/2023

Within automobiles, the HVAC is a critical system to regulate the occupants’ thermal comfort. However, at its high operating speeds, it can contribute significantly to the overall sound levels perceived by the cabin occupants, impacting their experience. This is especially true in the case of electric vehicles due to their overall quieter operation. This work has the intention to validate HVAC noise predictions using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations. In addition, CFD simulations provide detailed flow field insights which are essential to identify and rank the main noise sources, and it ultimately allows a better understanding of the physical mechanisms of noise generation on similar systems. These insights are very difficult, if not impossible, to obtain with physical testing and are key to designing a quiet and efficient HVAC system. Sound levels were measured experimentally at eight different locations inside of a Class-8 Nikola TRE hydrogen fuel cell electric semi

Ihi, Rafael, Fougere, Nicolas, Passador, Stephen, Woo, Sangbeom, Kim, James, Desouky, Mohamed

Simulation of Pass-by Fan Noise Emissions and Advancing Test Regulations for Heavy-Duty Electric Vehicles

2025-01-008605/05/2023

The rapid adoption of electric vehicles (EVs) necessitates updates to the automotive testing standards, particularly for noise emission. This paper examines the vehicle-level noise emission testing of a Nikola Class 8 hydrogen fuel cell electric semi-truck and the component-level noise emission testing needed to create a predictive simulation model using Wave6 software. The physical, component-level noise emission testing focused on individual cooling fans in a semi-anechoic chamber to assess their isolated noise contributions. With this data, an initial model was developed using spatial gradient statistical energy analysis, which successfully predicted pass-by noise levels based on varying fan locations and speeds. Real-world pass-by testing confirmed the model's accuracy across different cooling fan speeds. By leveraging advanced simulation techniques, engineers aim to enhance the accuracy and reliability of pass-by noise predictions through cost-effective studies of architectural

Passador, Stephen, Woo, Sangbeom, Liu, Ting-Wei, De La Vega Alonso, Gerardo, Kim, James

A Methodology to Design the Flow Field of PEM Fuel Cells

2023-01-0495

04/11/2023

Proton Exchange Fuel Cells (PEMFCs) are considered one of the most prominent technologies to decarbonize the transportation sector, with emphasis on long-haul/long-range trucks, off-highway, maritime and railway. The flow field of reactants is dictated by the layout of machined channels in the bipolar plates, and several established designs (e.g., parallel channels, single/multi-pass serpentine) coexist both in research and industry. In this context, the flow behavior at cathode embodies multiple complexities, namely an accurate control of the inlet/outlet humidity for optimal membrane hydration, pressure losses, water removal at high current density, and the limitation of laminar regime. However, a robust methodology is missing to compare and quantify such aspects among the candidate designs, resulting in a variety of configurations in use with no justification of the specific choice. This contrasts with the large operational differences, especially regarding the pressure loss

Corda, Giuseppe, Cucurachi, Antonio, Diana, Martino, Fontanesi, Stefano, D'Adamo, Alessandro