Designing Hydrogen and Oxygen Flow Rate Control on a Solid Oxide Fuel Cell Simulator Using the Fuzzy Logic Control Method

Abstract

A solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) is an electrochemical cell that converts chemical energy into electrical energy by oxidizing fuel. SOFC has high efficiency and cleans oxidation residues. Research has shown the importance of SOFC control. Voltage output control is needed because of nonlinearity, slow dynamics, and proper SOFC operating restrictions. This study aims to design an SOFC simulator with output voltage control to optimize the flow rate of fuel (hydrogen) and air (oxygen). This SOFC simulator is designed based on a microcontroller model. The controller is designed using the fuzzy logic method. Tests show that the output voltage can approach the set point with an average of 340.6 volts. The pressure difference (∆Pressure) between the two gases averaged 4428 Pa, and the fuel/gas flow rate was in the range of 0.7 mol/s. The controller can correct both the output voltage of the SOFC simulator and the difference in gas pressure under 8106 Pa (0.08 atm).