Method for controlling fuel cell vehicle

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10703213-B2
Application number	US-201715818445-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 20, 2017
Priority date	Jul 17, 2017
Publication date	Jul 7, 2020
Grant date	Jul 7, 2020

Abstract

A method for controlling a fuel cell vehicle is provided. The method includes setting a target purge degree of an anode gas and a target opening degree of an air pressure control valve and determining whether a fuel cell stack is in a power generation stop state. When the fuel cell stack is in the power generation stop state, when the anode gas is purged from the anode based on the target purge degree and the target opening degree, whether hydrogen in the anode gas will flow backwards to a stack enclosure is determined. When the hydrogen flows backwards, at least one of the target purge degree and the target opening degree to a level at which the backflow of the hydrogen is prevented is modified, and the anode gas from the anode based on the modified target purge degree and the modified target opening degree is purged.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method for controlling a fuel cell vehicle including a purge valve installed in a purge line through which an anode gas circulating in an anode is transferred to an aft discharge line through which humid air discharged from a cathode is discharged to outside, and an air pressure control valve installed in the air discharge line, the method comprising:
setting, by a controller, a target purge degree of the anode gas of the purge valve and a target opening degree of the air pressure control valve; determining, by the controller, whether a fuel cell stack is in a power generation stop state;
in response to determining that the fuel cell stack is in the power generation stop state, when the anode gas is purged from the anode based on the target purge degree and the target opening degree, determining, by the controller, whether hydrogen included in the anode gas will flow backwards to a stack enclosure connected to an upstream side of the air discharge line; and
in response to determining that the hydrogen flows backwards, modifying, by the controller, at least one of the target purge degree and the target opening degree to a level at which the backflow of the hydrogen is prevented, and purging the anode gas from the anode based on the at least one of the modified target purge degree and the modified target opening degree.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the determination of whether hydrogen included in the anode gas will flow backwards to the stack enclosure is performed using a backflow diagram that indicates a correlation of the target purge degree, the target opening degree, and the backflow of the hydrogen.

3. The method of claim 2 , wherein when the anode gas is purged by a specific purge degree between a predetermined minimum purge degree and a predetermined maximum purge degree, a particular opening degree of the air pressure control valve, which corresponds to the minimum value at which the backflow of the hydrogen is prevented, is recorded at the specific purge degree in the backflow diagram, and when the target purge degree and the target opening degree are in a predetermined backflow area as a result of analyzing the target purge degree and the target opening degree using the backflow diagram, the hydrogen is determined to How backwards.

4. The method of claim 3 , wherein the at least one of the target purge degree and the target opening degree is modified to adjust the target purge degree and the target opening degree to be in a predetermined non-backflow area based on the backflow diagram.

5. The method of claim 4 , wherein the modification of the at least one of the target purge degree and the target opening degree includes:
determining, by the controller, whether the fuel cell vehicle is driven on a downhill road; in response to determining that the fuel cell vehicle is not driven on a downhill road, deriving, by the controller, the particular opening degree that corresponds to the target purge degree by inserting the target purge degree to the backflow diagram as the particular purge degree, and setting the derived specific opening degree as a modified target opening degree; and
purging the anode gas from the anode based on the at least one of the target purge degree and the modified target opening degree.

6. The method of claim 5 , further comprising:
in response to determining that the fuel cell vehicle is driven on a downhill road, deriving, by the controller, a particular purge degree that corresponds to the target opening degree by inserting the target opening degree to the backflow diagram as the particular opening degree, and setting the derived specific purge degree as a modified target purge degree; and
purging the anode gas from the anode by the modified target purge degree based on the at least one of the modified target purge degree and the target opening degree.

7. The method of claim 6 , further comprising:
after a predetermined reference time period elapses purging, by the controller, the anode gas from the anode again by a residual degree that corresponds to a difference between the target purge degree and the modified target purge degree.

Assignees

• Hyundai Motor Co Ltd
• Kia Motors Corp

Inventors

• Jeon Kang Sik
• Jang Jae Hun
• Shim Jae Young
• Yang Sung Ho
• Jin Young Pin

Classifications

• Y02E60/50

  Fuel cells · CPC title

• B60L58/30 Primary

  for monitoring or controlling fuel cells · CPC title

• Y02T90/40

  Application of hydrogen technology to transportation, e.g. using fuel cells · CPC title

• Y02T10/70

  Energy storage systems for electromobility, e.g. batteries · CPC title

• B60L50/70 Primary

  using power supplied by fuel cells (in combination with batteries B60L50/75) · CPC title