Search Results

A fuel-cell-powered vehicle requires a plentiful supply of hydrogen to achieve good performance. This can be produced from methanol via an on-board reformer and gas clean-up unit. Since the reformer can take several minutes to reach its operating temperature, it is initially necessary to provide an alternative power source, such as a battery or ultra-capacitor, in order to drive the vehicle. This paper describes the use of a fuel cell vehicle simulation to predict behavior over a drive cycle from a cold start and to evaluate different warm-up control strategies in terms of performance and fuel efficiency.

Vehicle energy consumption and emissions can be predicted via drive cycle simulation. The complexity of existing and future vehicles necessitates the use of a simulation tool to aid in this work. A library of modules has been written that represents elements of powertrains found in conventional, electric and hybrid vehicles. The library makes use of the SIMULINK simulation environment. It allows users to quickly and easily develop complex models. These simulation models can be used to predict a vehicle's performance, fuel consumption, electrical consumption and emissions.