Device and method for controlling fuel cell system

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12451501-B2
Application number	US-202217963610-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 11, 2022
Priority date	Nov 4, 2021
Publication date	Oct 21, 2025
Grant date	Oct 21, 2025

Abstract

Disclosed are a device and a method for controlling a fuel cell system, in which during operation of the fuel cell system, the device and method determine a minimum motoring current limit value applied to a motor for driving a fuel cell vehicle by varying an output current limit threshold value of the fuel cell stack by determining an available output current of the stack and by varying an available voltage lower limit threshold value of the stack by determining an available operating voltage of the stack, thereby preventing the fuel cell vehicle from rattling due to excessive limitation of output current of the stack. They also control the pressures of an anode and a cathode of the stack by monitoring whether the performance of the stack is degraded as limitation of output current of the stack is suppressed, thereby suppressing degradation of the performance of the stack.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A device for controlling a fuel cell system, the device comprising:
a stack current determination and current limit determination unit configured to determine an output current limit value of a fuel cell stack to be a value decreased to a predetermined level or a value increased to a predetermined level;
a bus line voltage detection unit configured to detect a present voltage of a high voltage bus line;
a stack voltage determination and voltage limit determination unit configured to determine a voltage limit value of the stack to be a value increased to a predetermined level or a value decreased to a predetermined level; and
a motoring current limitation unit configured to limit a motoring current on the basis of a smallest value among the output current limit value of the stack determined by the stack current determination and current limit determination unit, the voltage limit value of the stack determined by the stack voltage determination and voltage limit determination unit, and the present voltage of the high voltage bus line detected by the bus line voltage detection unit.

2. The device of claim 1 , wherein when a present stack current is larger than a value obtained by multiplying a preset initial stack available current and a current margin rate, and a cell voltage rate of the stack is equal to or larger than a normal threshold value, the stack current determination and current limit determination unit determines that operating performance of the stack is good and determines the output current limit value of the stack to be the value decreased to the predetermined level.

3. The device of claim 1 , wherein when a present stack current is less than a value obtained by multiplying a preset initial stack available current and a current margin rate, and a cell voltage rate of the stack is less than an abnormal threshold value, the stack current determination and current limit determination unit determines that operating performance of the stack is poor, and determines the output current limit value of the stack to be the value increased to the predetermined level.

4. The device of claim 1 , wherein when a present stack voltage is larger than a value obtained by adding a preset initial stack available voltage and a voltage margin, a present stack current is larger than a value obtained by multiplying a preset initial stack available current and a current margin rate, and a cell voltage rate of the stack is equal to or larger than a normal threshold value, the stack voltage determination and voltage limit determination unit determines that operating performance of the stack is good, and determines the voltage limit value of the stack to be the value increased to the predetermined level.

5. The device of claim 1 , wherein when a present stack voltage is less than a value obtained by adding a preset initial stack available voltage and a voltage margin preset, and a cell voltage rate of the stack is equal to or larger than a normal threshold value, the stack voltage determination and voltage limit determination unit determines that operating performance of the stack is degraded, and determines the current limit value of the stack to be the value decreased to the predetermined level.

6. The device of claim 1 , further comprising:
a bus line voltage limitation unit configured to determine a preset initial stack available voltage to be a lower limit voltage value of the high voltage bus line, and limit a voltage of the high voltage bus line on the basis of the determined lower limit voltage value;
a stack performance degradation determination unit configured to determine whether performance of the stack is degraded on the basis of a stack available current and a stack available voltage; and
a stack operating pressure increase determination unit configured to increase operating pressures of an anode and a cathode of the stack to improve the performance of the stack when the stack performance deterioration determination unit determines that the performance of the stack is degraded.

7. The device of claim 6 , wherein the stack performance degradation determination unit determines that the performance of the stack is degraded when a stack performance degradation rate, which is a value obtained by dividing a present stack voltage by the preset initial stack available voltage, is decreased to a predetermined level during operation of the stack.

8. A method of controlling a fuel cell system, the method comprising:
determining an output current limit value of a fuel cell stack to be a value decreased to a predetermined level or a value increased to a predetermined level;
detecting a present voltage of a high voltage bus line;
determining a voltage limit value of the fuel cell stack to be a value increased to a predetermined level or a value decreased to a predetermined level; and
limiting a motoring current on the basis of a smallest value among the output current limit value determined in the determining of the output current limit value of the fuel cell stack, the voltage limit value determined in the determining of the voltage limit value of the fuel cell stack, and the detected present voltage of the high voltage bus line.

9. The method of claim 8 , wherein in the step of determining the output current limit value of the fuel cell stack, when a present stack current is larger than a value obtained by multiplying a preset initial stack available current and a current margin rate, and a cell voltage rate of the stack is equal to or larger than a normal threshold value, operating performance of the stack is determined to be good, and the output current limit value of the stack is determined to be the value decreased to the predetermined level.

10. The method of claim 8 , wherein in the step of determining the output current limit value of the fuel cell stack, when a present stack current is less than a value obtained by multiplying a preset initial stack available current and a current margin rate, and a cell voltage rate of the stack is less than an abnormal threshold value, operating performance of the stack is determined to be poor, and the output current limit value of the stack is determined to be the value increased to the predetermined level.

11. The method of claim 8 , wherein in the step of determining of the voltage limit value of the fuel cell stack, when a present stack voltage is larger than a value obtained by adding a preset initial stack available voltage and a voltage margin, a present stack current is larger than a value obtained by multiplying a preset initial stack available current and a current margin rate, and a cell voltage rate of the stack is equal to or larger than a normal threshold value, operating performance of the stack is determined to be good, and the voltage limit value of the stack is determined to be the value increased to the predetermined level.

12. The method of claim 8 , wherein in the step of determining of the voltage limit value of the fuel cell stack, when a present stack voltage is less than a value obtained by adding a preset initial stack available voltage and a voltage margin, and a cell voltage rate of the stack is equal to or larger than a normal threshold value, operating performance of the stack is determined to be poor, and the voltage limit value of the stack is determined to be the value decreased to the predetermined level.

13. The method of claim 8 , further comprising:
determining a preset initial stack available voltage to be a lower limit voltage value of the high voltage bus line, and limiting a voltage of the high voltage bus line on the basis of the determined lower limit voltage value;

Assignees

• Hyundai Motor Co Ltd
• Kia Corp

Inventors

• Park Jun Young
• Jeong Seong Cheol
• Kim Dae Jong
• Jung Jae Won

Classifications

• H01M8/0491 Primary

  of fuel cell stacks · CPC title

• H01M8/0488

  of fuel cell stacks · CPC title

• H01M8/04753

  of fuel cell reactants · CPC title

• H01M8/04679

  of fuel cell stacks · CPC title

• H01M8/04917

  of auxiliary devices, e.g. batteries, capacitors · CPC title