Fuzzy energy management for hybrid fuel cell/battery systems for more electric aircraft

Jenica-Ileana Corcau, Liviu Dinca, Teodor Lucian Grigorie, and Alexandru-Nicolae Tudosie

Citation: AIP Conference Proceedings 1836, 020056 (2017); doi: 10.1063/1.4981996

View online: http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.4981996
View Table of Contents: http://aip.scitation.org/toc/apc/1836/1
Published by the American Institute of Physics

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 Fuzzy Energy Management for Hybrid Fuel Cell/Battery
Systems for More Electric Aircraft

Jenica-Ileana Corcau1,a), Liviu Dinca1,b), Teodor Lucian Grigorie1,c)

and Alexandru-Nicolae Tudosie1,d)
1
Department of Electric, Energetic and Aerospace Engineering, Faculty of Electrical Engineering, University of
Craiova, 107 Decebal Street, 200440 Craiova, Dolj, Romania
a)
Corresponding author: jcorcau@elth.ucv.ro
b)
ldinca@elth.ucv.ro
c)
lgrigore@elth.ucv.ro
d)
atudosie@elth.ucv.ro

Abstract.In this paper is presented the simulation and analysis of a Fuzzy Energy Management for Hybrid Fuel
cell/Battery Systems used for More Electric Aircraft. The fuel cell hybrid system contains of fuel cell, lithium-ion
batteries along with associated dc to dc boost converters. In this configuration the battery has a dc to dc converter,
because it is an active in the system. The energy management scheme includes the rule based fuzzy logic strategy. This
scheme has a faster response to load change and is more robust to measurement imprecisions. Simulation will be
provided using Matlab/Simulink based models. Simulation results are given to show the overall system performance.

INTRODUCTION

The electrical power systems of aircrafts have made serious progress in latest years because the aircrafts depend
more and more on electricity. The concept behind More Electric Aircraft (MEA) is to replace the pneumatic and
hydraulic systems onboard aircraft with one that is fully based on electricity. The motivation for these stems from
the desire to simplify power distribution, reduce maintenance, and improve reliability and system adaptability.Power
generation and distribution in the aircraft system has changed significantly in order to reduce the weight and size of
the system. The dc power system was used at the beginning of aircraft design. The dc voltage changed from 14.25V
to 28Vdc in 20 years. Later, a 115/200Vac, 400Hz ac system was choose to have a lighter system and even 270 Vdc
depending on electrical architecture [1]-[5].
Fuel cells have become increasingly important as alternative sources of power, offering the potential for
powerful reduction in emissions in particulate matter (PM), nitrogen oxides (NOx) and CO2. In addition, they offer
noise reduction, highly efficient use of the fuel energy and high energy storage density compared to batteries. In
recent years, the manufacturers of commercial aircrafts have realized that fuel cells can offer them several
advantages (especially Boeing and Airbus) [7]-[16].
A hybrid power supply uses two or more sources that work together to deliver or store power to act as a single
power delivery unit. One advantage that hybrid power supplies have over regular power supplies is that hybrid
power supplies can store excess energy in one of its sources such as a battery or ultra capacitor [6]. Another benefit
is that hybrid power supplies can also coupled one source that has a slow dynamic response and one that has a fast
dynamic response time in their power output.
The system studied in this paper contains a fuel cell/battery hybrid power supply with two dc to dc boost
converters.

Applied Mathematics and Computer Science

AIP Conf. Proc. 1836, 020056-1–020056-8; doi: 10.1063/1.4981996
Published by AIP Publishing. 978-0-7354-1506-5/$30.00

020056-1
 Fuel cell is an energy conversion device that uses an electrochemical process to convert hydrogen into
electricity. As long as fuel is supplied the fuel cell will continue to generate power. The most commonly used fuel is
hydrogen and oxygen. Fuel cells are similar to batteries but a battery does not have chemical fuel continuously
injected to supply its electrical power output.
In literature are presented six categories defined as follow [12]-[14]: Polymer Electrolyte Fuel Cell (PEFC), also
called Proton Exchange Membrane PEM, operating temperature 60-120oC, used in transportation demonstrations
and small power applications, power 5-250kW; Alkaline Fuel Cell (AFC), operating temperature <100oC this used
in space applications since 1960s; Phosphoric Acid Fuel Cell (PAFC), operating temperature 160-220oC, widely
used in airports, hospitals and schools; Molten Carbonate Fuel Cell (MCFC), operating temperature 600-800oC, used
in applications at limited to large stationary power plant; Direct Methanol Fuel cell (DMFC), operating temperature
60-120oC, used in application at portable power sources; Solid Oxide Fuel Cell (SOFC), operating temperature 800-
1000oC, used in applications at APU on heavy duty vehicle or aircraft and high power applications.
For the past few years, fuel cells, especially PEMFC (Polymer Electrolyte Fuel Cell), have been focus as the
backup power source because of their advantages over batteries and generators.
Advantages of fuel cells are: will generate power as long as fuel is supplied, zero emissions, silence, no moving
part. Disadvantages of the fuel cells are long start-up time and slow dynamics. On the other hand advantages of
batteries are: dynamic response time on the order of milliseconds and charge and discharge for up to 1000 of cycles;
disadvantages of batteries are long recharge time, low specific energy compared to a fuel cell and limited discharge
time [12]-[13].

SYSTEM DESCRIPTION
As being previously mentioned the main advantage of fuel cell is a high energy density and disadvantage is slow
dynamic response. Batteries have a lower specific power and their power output has a fast dynamic response time.
In figure 1 is presented block diagram of power supply proposed in this study. This contains fuel cell/battery hybrid
power supply with a two dc to dc boost converters.

FIGURE 1. Block diagram of hybrid fuel cell/battery

A. Design and modeling of PEMFC

Fuel cells are electrochemical devices that convert chemical energy of a reaction directly into electrical energy.
Among the various types of fuel cells, PEMFC has drawn the most attention due to its simplicity, viability, quick
start-up, higher power density and operation on lower temperatures.
The main advantage of PEM fuel cell is its high power density, higher than any other fuel cell type, excepting
alkaline fuel cells. There are a number of benefits from the use of solid electrolyte; lower corrosion is associated
with the use of solid electrolyte, and no liquid management is required, as is the case for liquid electrolytes. The
solid electrolyte allows low operating temperatures (between 700C and 900C) of fuel-cell, that is beneficial in
applications where a quick start is required. PEM fuel cells are preferred, due to their long life characteristic, for
different application fields. The cell is fed with the fuel (hydrogen) and air at the anode and cathode respectively.
Hydrogen gas, with the help of a catalyst, separates into electrons and hydrogen ions. These ions flow to the cathode
through the electrolyte while the electrons flow through an external circuit. At the cathode, the hydrogen ions mix
with oxygen to form water [6].
A PEM fuel cell stack model from the Matlab/Simulink SimPowerSystems (SPS) Toolbox library was used. The
Matlab/Simulink model implements a generic hydrogen fuel cell stack. The model consists within two the options: a
simplified model and a detailed model. The user can switch between the models by selecting the level in the mask.

020056-2
The fuel cell stack block implements a generic model parameterized to represent most popullar types of fuel cell
stacks fed with hydrogen and air.
The simplified model represents a pparticular fuel cell stack operating at nominal conditionss of temperature and
pressure. In figure 2 is shown the stattic behavior of a PEMFC of a Matlab/SPS model. The stack is supplied by
liquid hydrogen and compressed air.
Stack voltage vs current
55

50
Voltage(V)

45
(250,41.15)
40 (320,39.2)

35
0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350
Current(A)
Stack power vs current
15

(12.544kW)
Power(kW)

10 (10.2875kW)

0
0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350
Current(A)

FIGURE 2. The dynamic behaviorr of a PEMFC FIGURE 3. The boost converter model in Simulink/SPS

B. Design and dynamic modeeling of dc to dc boost converter

Fuel cell present large output voltaage variations such as the supplied voltage can indeed vary up 50 per cent
between the maximal power point and the open circuit point. Thus, in order to obtain a controllled dc bus electrical
network, it is necessary to place a pow wer converter between the fuel cell stack and the dc buss. In literature many
different types of dc to dc power conveerters are proposed. It is possible to find insulated dc to dc converters and/or
soft switching structures. However, ddue to the aeronautical constraints the power converter structure has to be
reliable, lightweight and with high efficciency [6].
The purpose of dc to dc converter is to convert and stabilize the variable dc fuel power to o dc bus power at a
different constant voltage. The hybrid ppower supply consists of a fuel cell and the dc to dc convverter used to step up
the fuel cell voltage from about 52 Vdc to 270 Vdc.
In figure 3 is presented the dc to dc boost converter realized in Matlab/Simulink/SPS, the dutty cycle is controlled
with a simple P.I. (Proportional-Integraal) type controller.

C. Design and dynamic modeeling of batteries

In this case is used to simulate thee lithium-ion battery pack. This type has high energy deensity and efficiency
compared to other battery types (such as lead-acid, NiCd or NiMH). This makes them more attractive
a for aircraft
application.
The battery output voltage is given bby [14]
Q
Vbatt = E0 − K − R ⋅ i + A exp(− B ³ idt ), (1)
Q − ³ idt

where
Vbatt battery no load voltage [V]; E 0 b
battery constant voltage [V]; K polarization voltage [V]; Q battery capacity
[Ah];
-1
³ idt actual battery charge [Ah]; A exponential zone amplitude [V]; B exponential zone tiime constant inverse
[Ah] ; R internal resistance [ Ω ]; I batttery current [A].The battery chosen for the simulation haas the characteristics
in figure 4 obtained from the model. Thhe state-of-charge (SOC) of the battery is between 0 and 100%.
1
The SOC is calculated as

020056-3
 § Q ⋅1, 05 ·
SOC = 100 ¨ 1 − ¸, (2)
¨
© ³ ¸¹
i d t
Nominal Current Discharge Characteristic at 0.43478C (17.3913A)
60
Discharge curve
Nominal area

Voltage
50 Exponential area

40

0 10 20 30 40 50
Ampere-hour (Ah)
E0 = 52.0021, R = 0.012, K = 0.0067739, A = 4.078, B = 1.5265
60
20 A
55 80 A
Voltage

50

45

40
0 10 20 30 40 50
Ampere-hour (Ah)

FIGURE 4. The dynamic behavior of Lithium-ion battery type modeled in Matlab/SimPowerSystems

D. The rule based fuzzy logic strategy

The rule based fuzzy logic strategy is implemented in SPS using Simulink Fuzzy Logic Controller block from
Fuzzy Logic Toolbox. The design of this Fuzzy Logic Controller (FLC) is design with help of the Fuzzy Inference
Toolbox (FIS) Editor Graphical User Interface (GUI) tool of Matlab [6]. The fuel cell power is obtained based on
the Load power and SOC membership functions and the set of if-then rules. The inputs of FLC are: the load power
(Pload) and battery SOC (The state-of-charge) and the output of FLC is the fuel cell power (PFC). Membership
functions were considered trapezoidal, like in figures 5a, 5b and 5c.The design is made following an approach
similar to [6].
Linguistic terms for the input 1 (Pload )are: VL (Very Low), L (Low), M (Medium), H (High); input 2 (SOC) are:
L (Low), M (Medium), H (High) and for the output are: VL (Very Low), L (Low), M (Medium), H (High). The
fuzzy logic rules are:If (Pload is VL) and (SOC is H) then (PFC is VL); If (Pload is L) and (SOC is H) then (PFC is
L); If (Pload is M) and (SOC is H) then (PFC is M); If (Pload is H) and (SOC is H) then (PFC is H); If (Pload is VL)
and (SOC is M) then (PFC is VL); If (Pload is L) and (SOC is M) then (PFC is L); If (Pload is M) and (SOC is M)
then (PFC is M); If (Pload is H) and (SOC is M) then (PFC is H); If (Pload is VL) and (SOC is L) then (PFC is L); If
(Pload is L) and (SOC is L) then (PFC is M); If (Pload is M) and (SOC is L) then (PFCis H); If (Pload is M) and
(SOC is L) then (PFC is H);If (Pload is H) and (SOC is L) then (PFC is H). The Mamdani fuzzy inference approach is
used along with the centroid method for defuzzification.

020056-4
 VL L M H L M H
1 1

0.8 0.8

Degree of membership
Degree of membership

0.6 0.6

0.4
0.4

0.2
0.2

0
0
0 20 40 60 80 100
0 2000 4000 6000 8000 10000 SOC
Pload

(a) (b)

VL L M H
1

0.8
Degree of membership

0.6

0.4

0.2

0 2000 4000 6000 8000 10000

Pfc

(c)
FIGURE 5.(a) The membership functions for input 1, (b)The membership functions for input 2, (c)The membership
functions for output

8000

6000
Pfc

4000

2000

100
10000
8000
50 6000
4000
2000
SOC 0 0
Pload

FIGURE 6.The structure of FLC FIGURE 7.The load profile

020056-5
 SIMULATIONS RESULTS

Transport application mission power profiles are usually composed by permanent and transitory loads.
Permanent loads are the loads that consume the same amount of power during the whole mission, independently
from the pilot control actions. These types of loads in an aeronautical application are: aircraft pressure conditioning
systems, air-conditioning, electronics equipment power supply. On the other hand, transitory loads are the loads that
are due to the pilot control actions. Transitory power load duration will be only a few seconds. Thus, the mission
power profile will be formed by a permanent load and a succession of different transitory loads due to the pilot
maneuvers [7].
The power distribution between the energy devices is shown in figure 8, where the fuel cell power (W), battery
power W and load power (W) are referred to the 270 Vdc bus. Fuzzy Energy Management schemes are tested
through numerical simulation using a load profile (figure 7). In the next are presented figures the simulations results
for the load profile (figure 7). The two essential elements are the converters, that connect the battery pack and fuel
cell to the dc network of the aircraft. This connection is realized by a boost dc to dc converter. The dc to dc
converter creates a 270 Vdc bus, that is seen as a new standard in future aircraft [1]-[6].
Simulations results are presented in figures 9-14: dc bus voltage variation in time; dc bus current variation in
time; battery power variation in time; fuel cell power variation in time; fuel cell boost converter current variation in
time and battery boost converter current variation in time. Based on the responses depicted in figures 9 and 14, we
can conclude that the simulated system performs as desired.

FIGURE 8.The fuel cell hybrid power system model in Simulink

020056-6
 271 100

90

270.5
Vbus [V]

80

Ibus [A]
70
270

60

269.5 50
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 0 5 10 15 20 25 30
time [min] time [min]

FIGURE 9. Dc bus voltage variation in time FIGURE 10. Dc bus current variation in time

6000
5000

5000
4500

P fuel cell [W]

P battery [W]

4000
4000

3500 3000

3000 2000
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 0 5 10 15 20 25 30
time [min] time [min]
FIGURE 11. Battery power variation in time FIGURE 12.Fuel cell power variation in time
30
18
25
Iconv-fuel cell [A]

16 20
Iconv-battery [A]

15
14
10

12 5

0
10 0 5 10 15 20 25 30
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 time [min]
time [min]
FIGURE 13.Battery boost converter current variation in time FIGURE 14. Fuel cell boost converter current
variation in time

020056-7
 CONCLUSIONS
In the near future, aircraft with bigger electrical loads will become more common. The paper presented the
simulations and analysis Fuzzy Energy Management for hybrid fuel cell/battery systems. The system shown in this
paper, includes a fuel cell/battery supplies that can have two dc to dc converters, one convertor for battery and one
for the fuel cell. The fuel cells efficiency was presented and the battery fast dynamic response time are two most
exploited advantages of each device. The fuel cell power is obtained based on the Load power and SOC membership
functions and the set of if-then rules. The inputs of FLC are: the load power (Pload) and battery SOC (The state-of-
charge) and the output of FLC is the fuel cell power (PFC). Simulation are provided using Matlab/Simulink based
models. Simulation results are given to show the overall system performance. The power management control
scheme proposed in this paper ensures that the system operates with high efficiency.

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