Experimental Evaluation of Supercapacitor-Fuel Cell Hybrid Power Source for HY-IEL Scooter

Abstract EN

This paper presents the results of development of a hybrid fuel cell supercapacitor power system for vehicular applications that was developed and investigated at the Energy Sources Research Section of the Wroclaw Division of Electrotechnical Institute (IEL/OW).

The hybrid power source consists of a polymer exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) stack and an energy-type supercapacitor that supports the system in time of peak power demands.

The developed system was installed in the HY-IEL electric scooter.

The vehicle was equipped with auxiliary components (e.g., air compressor, hydrogen tank, and electromagnetic valves) needed for proper operation of the fuel cell stack, as well as electronic control circuits and a data storage unit that enabled on-line recording of system and vehicle operation parameters.

Attention is focused on the system energy flow monitoring.

The experimental part includes field test results of a vehicle powered with the fuel cell-supercapacitor system.

Values of currents and voltages recorded for the system, as well as the vehicle’s velocity and hydrogen consumption rate, are presented versus time of the experiment.

Operation of the hybrid power system is discussed and analysed based on the results of measurements obtained.