Development of a fuel cell power conditioner system

摘要

The fuel cell is an alternative power generation method which isenvisaged to be environmentally friendly and efficient. It can be anattractive solution for various “clean power” applicationssuch as an electric vehicle. It can also be suitably used as a standalone power generator. The fuel cell converts chemical energy intoelectrical energy by means of an electrochemical reaction; the output isin the form of direct voltage and current. This paper describes thedevelopment of a fuel cell power conditioner unit (PCU). The aim is toconvert the DC output from the fuel cell into a 3-phase sinusoidal ACvoltage and current which is suitable for domestic and industrial use.The main feature of the PCU is its global control strategy which enablesthe system to be configured by a single stage converter. A laboratory 5kW 3-phase prototype PCU is developed and some typical test results arepresented