CoacHyfied: Evaluation of advanced thermal management strategies for hydrogen fuel cell coaches

Authors

O. Curnick, C. Wang, E. Gkanas, S. Shepherd - Coventry University, E. Özgül, E. Gözen, Ö. F. Akyünci - Ford Otosan, J. Ogrzewallal - FEV Europe GmbH

Summary

Whilst there are now hundreds of buses powered by hydrogen fuel cells in operation in Europe and further afield, long-distance hydrogen fuel cell coaches are only recently beginning to receive attention. In the CoacHyfied project funded by the European Fuel Cells and Hydrogen Joint Undertaking (FCH-JU), 14 partners work together to demonstrate regional and long-distance hydrogen fuel cell coaches for the first time in Europe. One key technical challenge is the thermal management of powertrain components. In this study, a 1D GT-SUITE model was built for simulating the thermal management system of a 100 kW PEM fuel cell. Advanced thermal management concepts were explored, including phase-changing materials (PCMs), thermally driven solid state hydrogen storage via metal hydrides, and roof-cooling. The main objective is to decrease the time and energy for cold start and improve the cooling efficiency during normal operating conditions, especially during fuel cell stack peak operation. The ultimate target is to reduce the hydrogen consumption and to further extend the driving range. The preliminary results demonstrated the feasibility of reducing cold start time by up to 14.1% by recovering heat stored in PCMs. The metal hydride system presents a marginal benefit in assisting cold start. The roof cooling system was capable of dissipating up to 35 kW of heat at the cost of 1.4 bar increased back pressure.