Abstract:
This paper presents the development of a
proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) and battery
hybrid uninterruptible power system (UPS) for backup and
emergency power applications. A sixty-cell PEMFC stack is
employed as the main power source at normal load and a 3-
cell lead-acid battery is employed as the auxiliary power of
the UPS at overload or during the PEMFC startup. The
PEMFC consists of two valves for the hydrogen input and
output respectively, a mass flow controller to adjust the
hydrogen mass flow, and a pressure sensor to control the
hydrogen pressure, and their control units for the
management of the whole system. The design procedures of
the UPS hybrid system are discussed. Experimental setups
are presented and the experimental results verify the
performances of the PEMFC/battery hybrid power source
and the UPS system under the condition of computer load.
The developed UPS system proves to be a cost-effective
solution for backup and emergency power applications.
