Technical and Economical Evaluation of Proton Exchange Merobrane (PEM) Fuel Cell for Commercial Applications

The green energy sources are the utmost needs of today’s world where the reserves of fossil fuel are depleting day by day. The Distributed Generation (DG) has become integral part of power system at commercial level. The most efficient among all DGs and Renewable Energy Sources (RES) is the Fuel Cell (FC) power generation. The fuel cell invariably converts chemical energy directly into electricity. The Fuel cells have normally 60 to 70% efficiency at working conditions. The polarization curve of fuel cell plays important role in improving its efficiency. This research presents the mathematical and Simulink modeling 6 kW, 45 V_dc of Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM) fuel cell. The input thermodynamic parameters of fuel cell are varied and their effects on the output electrical variable are observed. The DC/DC boost converter is used to step up the voltage of fuel cell to 100 V_dc at commercial usable level. A new mathematical equation is presented to improve the efficiency of fuel. The mathematical results are then varied through Simulink results.