Review of Dynamic Electric Circuit Models for PEM Fuel Cells

Many studies have been conducted to understand the phenomena underlying the operation of fuel cells in order to enhance both the efficiency and the durability of these systems, by optimizing the cell’s operating conditions, structure and materials used in their manufacturing. Different characterization techniques have been exploited in order to establish comprehensive models that describe the complex electrochemical and thermodynamic behavior of the fuel cell. Since the output resulting from these chemical and physical processes is electric power, an equivalent circuit model is preferred in order to describe the electrical interaction of the fuel cell with the load and to facilitate the development of adequate power converter designs. Moreover, these models present a useful method for interpreting the characterizations results and provide sensible evaluation of the effects of the operating and the environmental conditions on the fuel cell performance. This paper presents the recent research efforts related to the modeling of the dynamic electric behavior of Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM) fuel cells using equivalent electric circuits. It also highlights the studies that use these circuit models to evaluate the effects of low and high current harmonics on the fuel cell’s efficiency and durability.