Operating Temperature Systemic Management of a Fuel
Cell System Considering the Impact on the Power
Electronics Performances
Thang V. Do1, Pascal Messier1, João P. Trovão1,3, Loïc Boulon2
1
e-TESC Lab., University of Sherbrooke, Sherbrooke, QC, Canada
2
Dept. Ind. Eng., Univ. du Québec a Trois-Rivieres, Trois-Rivières, QC, Canada
3
IPC-ISEC and INESC Coimbra, 3030-199 Coimbra, Portugal
e-mail: {Thang.Do.Van.Thang, Pascal.Messier, Joao.Trovao}@usherbrooke.ca, Loic.Boulon@uqtr.ca
Abstract— For each fuel cell (FC) system design, a constant
operating temperature is frequently chosen to maximize its
efficiency. Nevertheless, the temperature variation leads to
changing the FC output at a given power. This adjustment in the
FC current and voltage impacts the power electronics
performance, thus influencing the performance of the fuel cell
hybrid electric vehicle (FC-HEV). Therefore, this paper
investigates the performance of coupling the FC and power
electronics to choose this operating temperature. Firstly, an
operating temperature adjustment model of the Proton Exchange
Membrane Fuel Cell (PEMFC) system is established. The
efficiency of the powertrain based on an embedded high-
performance active switched quasi-Z-Source inverter (HP-AS-
qZSI) at various FC operating voltages is secondly realized by
theoretical analysis. Opal-RT-based real-time simulation is then
performed to validate the performance of the FC-HEV system
against various temperatures in terms of efficiency and hydrogen
consumption. Simulation results indicate that increasing the FC
operating temperature from 𝟐𝟓𝒐 𝑪 to 𝟔𝟎𝒐 𝑪 and 𝟕𝟎𝒐 𝑪 results in an
improved FC-HEV efficiency by 1.09% and 1.14%, respectively.
Moreover, the average total hydrogen consumption of the FC
system is also decreased by 21.23% and 29.34%, respectively over
the lowest operating temperature under the studied Artemis
driving cycle.
Keywords—Fuel Cell Hybrid Electric Vehicle (FC-HEV), Fuel
Cell Operating Temperatures, High-Performance Active Switched
Quasi-Z-Source Inverter, Hydrogen Consumption.
I. INTRODUCTION
With the ever-growing interest in environmental and climate
issues, electric vehicles using renewable energy resources are
globally booming to minimize the effects of the transportation
sector. Among them, fuel-cell electric vehicle (FCEV) has
become the center of attention for decreasing the dependence on
fossil fuels and the global emissions of CO2 owing to their fast-
refueling time and zero emissions. However, the fuel cell (FC)
system possesses a slow dynamic response; exists the problems
of the air/fuel starvation phenomenon at rapid change loads. This
might have a severe impact on its lifetime [1]. A power
electronic converter-based hybrid energy storage system
(HESS) is an attractive solution for resolving problems with
regard to FCEVs. In this respect, a traditional two-stage inverter
constituted by a dc-dc converter and an inverter is generally
employed; however, this leads to low performance and an
increase in the control complexity, and the system cost and
volume for FC-HEVs.
To resolve the aforementioned drawbacks, the HESSs based
on classical Z-Source inverter (ZSI) and quasi-ZSI (qZSI)
topologies are lately investigated in HEV systems [2]–[4].
Nonetheless, the adoption of these topologies in the FCEVs is
still under restrictions. While the ZSI suffers from discontinuous
input/high inrush currents, the practical boost factor of the qZSI
is regularly limited. In [5], an active switched quasi-Z-source
inverter (AS-qZSI) is proposed with an improved boost factor
and decreased voltage stresses leading to the decreased size and
volume of EV-based power electronics systems. This converter
enables to overcome the limitations of the classical ones by
integrating one more diode/switching device into the qZSI;
however, it might work under the discontinuous conduction
mode, leading to the problems of the distorted/uncontrollable
dc-link voltage at light loads or low power factors [6]. To tackle
these issues, we proposed a novel high-performance active
switched quasi-Z-Source inverter (HP-AS-qZSI) for the FC-
HEVs by adding a power switching device into the Z-Source
network (ZSN) of the original AS-qZSI.
To promote the FC application to the FC-HEV system,
understanding the influence of the FC operating conditions on
the HESS power electronics systems is one of the major issues
allowing its further development. In this regard, considering the
effects of the FC operating temperature on the FC-HEV system
efficiency is extremely critical. A higher FC operating
temperature brings about better FC efficiency, and this
temperature must be especially selected for each FC system.
Moreover, changes in the FC temperature result in different
values of FC voltages and currents. This might have a strong
impact on the performance of the FC-HEVs, in which the
switching and conduction losses of power electronics systems
are determined by their operating currents and voltages.
Currently, many researchers have investigated the relationship
between FC operating temperatures and the PEMFC
characteristics. The electrochemical PEMFC model is presented
by Amphlett et al. [7], which can illustrate the relationship
between the PEMFC output power and the FC operating
temperature. The selection of the optimal operating temperature VLIC
of the PEMFC is performed by considering the FC efficiency in
[8]. The PEMFC operating temperature range is determined
based on its FC performance, CO tolerance and degradation in D0 L1
C2
D1 L2
[9].
VEV
S7 S1 S3 S5 Ftr
In the above studies, choosing the FC operating temperature D8 Te
S8
is considered one of the primary factors influencing the VFC
wr T
efficiency of the FC system. However, a lack of studies deals C1
S2 S4 S6

with the FC operating temperature management considering the

effect on the efficiency of the power electronics. To fill this gap,
this paper evaluates the system performance of the proposed Fig. 1. The proposed HESS HP-AS-qZSI for the e-TESC-3W platform.
HESS FC/LiC (lithium-ion capacitor) HP-AS-qZSI-based FC-
HEV to choose the suitable FC operating temperature. TABLE I. EV PARAMETERS
Furthermore, the real-time simulation is also employed to Parameters Symbols Values
simulate more precisely for this assessment due to its extremely Vehicles (e-TESC-3W platform)
high security and repeatability, where its computing time is Vehicle mass meq 350 kg
faster than the time-step of the real system. In this regard, a Typical rolling resistance coefficient fr 0.02
recreational 3-wheel FC-HEV is employed as a case study, in Vehicle front area Aaero 1.25 m2
which it has more requirements of the performance, and the cost Belt transmission drive ratio Ggb 5.033 (30:151)
Wheel radius r 0.305 m
and space over the conventional vehicles [10]. Thus, selecting
Belt transmission drive efficiency gb 95%
the suitable FC operating temperatures can result in enhancing
PMSM parameters
its performance and decreasing its system weight and volume. Phase inductance Ld,Lq 62-110 H
The primary contributions of the paper are as follows: Rotor inertia J 0.096 kg. m2
• It improves the limitations of the regular selection of the Internal phase resistance Rs 0.0027 
FC operating temperature by considering the system Number of pole pairs  5
performance of coupling the FC and power electronics. Rated power Pr 13 kW
• It helps to realize the suitable FC operating temperatures to HP-AS-qZSI parameters
Inductance L1,2 0.2 mH
enhance the efficiency of the FC-HEV.
Capacitance C1,2 2.2mF
To verify the performed analysis, Opal-RT-based a real-time Switching frequency fs 10 kHz
simulation is employed to evaluate the performance of the HESS On resistance of the switch devices rk0 9 m
Threshold voltage vk0 1.3 V
HP-AS-qZSI under various FC operating temperatures.
Fuel cell parameters
The paper is organized as follows. Section II provides the Number of cell stacks NFC 75
studied 3-wheel FC-HEV configuration with the HESS FC/LiC Rated power PPF 14.4 kW
HP-AS-qZSI, model of the PEMFC system, and the control Lithium-Ion Capacitor parameters
algorithm. The efficiency analysis of the proposed HP-AS-qZSI Operating voltage range VLiCs 2.2V-3.8V
and real-time simulation validations are given in Section III, Capacitance CLiC 3300 F
followed by the conclusion section. Equivalent series resistance RESR 1 m
Number of serial cells NS 6
II. MODELING VEHICLE AND POWERTRAIN Number of parallel cells NP 6

This section shows the specifications of the 3-wheel FC-
HEV, the FC system model and the control algorithm of the
HESS FC/LiC HP-AS-qZSI for this vehicle.
A. Specifications of Three-Wheel Electric Vehicle
The studied three-wheel EV (e-TESC-3W platform) in Fig.
1 is utilized for this work from the University of Sherbrooke. In
[11], a classical two-stage inverter is applied in this vehicle. To
enhance its performance and lower down its system size and
volume, a novel HESS FC/LiC HP-AS-qZSI is proposed for the
electrical traction system to control a 13kW-100V permanent
magnet synchronous motor (PMSM) in Fig. 1.
By integrating LiCs into the ZSI, there is no extra dc-dc
converter used to couple LiCs with the HP-AS-qZSI. The FC
stack provides the average power, whereas the LiC bank
supplies/absorbs high-frequency power instantly in
acceleration/braking operations. The essential parameters of the
vehicle are shown in TABLE I.
B. Embedded FC/LiC High-Performance Active Switched
Quasi-Z Source Inverter
The configuration of the proposed HESS FC/LiC HP-AS-
qZSI for the 3-wheel FC-HEV is given in Fig. 1. It is realized
by coupling LiCs in parallel connection with the capacitor 𝐶2 ,
and inserting one power switching device (𝑆8 ) to the diode 𝐷8
of the conventional AS-qZSI. In the following sub-section, its
operating principle in continuous conduction mode (CCM) will
be presented.
Its equivalent circuits in both the non-shoot-through (NST)
state and the shoot-through (ST) state are provided in Fig. 2a,
Fig. 2b, respectively.
 VLIC VLIC
ILiC ILiC concentration (𝑉con ). Assuming the number of cell stacks (𝑁FC )
IC2 IC2 obtain the same behavior. The 𝑉FC (V) is determined by (4) to
L1
C2
L2 L1
C2
L2
(8):
IL1 IL2 IL1 IL2
Iload Iload 𝑉𝐹𝐶 = 𝑁𝐹𝐶 (𝐸𝑁𝑒𝑟𝑛 + 𝑉𝑎𝑐𝑡 + 𝑉𝑜ℎ𝑚 + 𝑉𝑐𝑜𝑛 ) (4)
IC1 IC1
VDC
VFC C1 VFC C1
VDC = 0
𝐸𝑁𝑒𝑟𝑛 = 1.229 − 0.85 × 10−3 (𝑇𝐹𝐶 − 298.15)
+ 4.3085 × 10−5 𝑇𝐹𝐶 [ln(𝑝𝐻2 ) + 0.5ln(𝑝𝑂2 )]
(5)

𝑉𝑎𝑐𝑡 = 𝜉1 + 𝜉2 𝑇𝐹𝐶 + 𝜉3 𝑇𝐹𝐶 𝑙𝑛(𝐶𝑂2 ) + 𝜉4 𝑇𝐹𝐶 𝑙𝑛(𝑖𝐹𝐶 )

(a) (b)
Fig. 2. The equivalent circuits of HESS LiCs/FC HP-AS-qZSI in CCM with { 𝑃𝑂2 (6)
𝐶𝑂2 =
two states. (a) NST state, (b) ST state. 5.08 × 106 exp(− 498⁄𝑇𝐹𝐶 )
In Fig. 2a, this topology operates at the NST state, where the 𝑉𝑜ℎ𝑚 = −𝑖𝐹𝐶 𝑅𝑖𝑛 = −𝑖𝐹𝐶 (𝜁1 + 𝜁2 𝑇𝐹𝐶 + 𝜁3 𝑖𝐹𝐶 ) (7)
diodes (𝐷1 , 𝐷8 ) are forward biased, while the switching device
𝑖𝐹𝐶
𝑆7 is switched off. The two inductors (𝐿1 , 𝐿2 ) deliver their 𝑉𝑐𝑜𝑛 = 𝑙𝑛(1 − ) (8)
𝑖𝐹𝐶,𝑚𝑎𝑥
stored energies to the two capacitors (𝐶1 , 𝐶2 ) and the load.
Thus, the dynamic equations are given by: where 𝑇𝐹𝐶 is the temperature of the FC stack (𝐾), 𝑝𝐻2 is the
𝑑𝑖𝐹𝐶 partial input pressure of hydrogen (𝑃𝑎), 𝑝𝑂2 is the partial input
𝐿1 = 𝑣𝐹𝐶 + 𝑣𝐶2 − 𝑣𝑐1 pressure of oxygen (𝑃𝑎), 𝜉1,2,3,4 are empirical coefficients, 𝐶𝑂2
𝑑𝑡
𝑑𝑖𝐿2 is the concentration of the oxygen ( 𝑚𝑜𝑙/𝑐𝑚3 ) , 𝑅𝑖𝑛 is the
𝐿2 = −𝑣𝑐2 internal resistor ( ) , 𝑖𝐹𝐶 and 𝑖𝐹𝐶,𝑚𝑎𝑥 are the FC operating
𝑑𝑡 (1)
𝑑𝑢𝐶1 current and the maximum FC current respectively (𝐴),  is the
𝐶1 = 𝑖𝐹𝐶 − 𝑖𝑙𝑜𝑎𝑑 semi-empirical parameter regarding the diffusion mechanism
𝑑𝑡
𝑑𝑢𝐶2 (0.3 ≤  ≤ 1.8).
{𝐶2 𝑑𝑡 = 𝑖𝐿2 − 𝑖𝑙𝑜𝑎𝑑 − 𝑖𝐿𝑖𝐶 This FC model is considered air-breathing, thus the 𝑝𝑂2 is
During the ST state in Fig. 2b, the dc-link side is shorted by set to 21% of the cathode pressure similar to the oxygen content
the top/bottom power switching devices of the phase legs of the air, while 𝑝𝐻2 is set to 99% of the anode pressure. The
inverter. The two diodes (𝐷1 , 𝐷8 ) are in blocked state, and the empirical parameters of the PEMFC model are obtained from
𝑆7 is turned on. The two inductors (𝐿1 , 𝐿2 ) are charged, while the experimental dataset presented in [10]. Moreover, the
the two capacitors (𝐶1 ,𝐶2 ) deliver their energies. The dynamic cathode pressure (𝑝𝑐𝑎 ) is determined by an empirical equation
equations are shown as follows: related to the FC current, in which the air flow primarily depends
𝑑𝑖𝐹𝐶 as (9):
𝐿1 = 𝑣𝐹𝐶 + 𝑣𝑐2
𝑑𝑡 −6.085𝑒 + 12.1 + 0.1527𝐼𝐹𝐶
𝑑𝑖𝐿2 𝑝𝑐𝑎 = 1000 ( 2 3 ) (9)
+0.002767𝐼𝐹𝐶 + 0.06𝐼𝐹𝐶
𝐿2 = 𝑣𝑐1
𝑑𝑡 (2)
𝑑𝑢𝐶1 In order to make the FC system operate, the continuous
𝐶1 = −𝑖𝐿2 hydrogen consumption (𝑊𝐻2 ) is required, and it can be
𝑑𝑡
𝑑𝑢𝐶2 calculated by a linear function related to the number of cells and
{𝐶2 𝑑𝑡 = −𝑖𝐹𝐶 − 𝑖𝐿𝑖𝐶 the FC current as follows [10]:
By employing the principle of the voltage/ampere-second 𝑊𝐻2 (𝑡) = 0.00696𝑁𝐹𝐶 𝐼𝐹𝐶 (10)
balance to the two inductors (𝐿1 , 𝐿2 ) and the two capacitors
Fig. 3 shows the simulation results of the FC voltage at three
(𝐶1 , 𝐶2 ) over one switching period, the FC and LiC currents are
different FC temperatures from the established model. Higher
deduced as (3):
FC operating temperatures lead to increased FC voltages. This
𝐼𝐹𝐶 − 𝐼𝑙𝑜𝑎𝑑
𝐼𝐿𝑖𝐶 = − 2𝐼𝐹𝐶 + 𝐼𝑙𝑜𝑎𝑑 can be simply explained through (6), where the value of the
𝐷𝑠𝑡
𝑉act is significantly raised by the increased temperatures.
𝐷𝑠𝑡
𝑉𝐿𝑖𝐶 = 𝑉𝐶2 = 2 𝑣𝐹𝐶
1 − 3𝐷𝑠𝑡 + 𝐷𝑠𝑡 (3)
1 − 𝐷𝑠𝑡
𝐵 = 𝑉𝐶1 = 2 𝑣𝐹𝐶
1 − 3𝐷𝑠𝑡 + 𝐷𝑠𝑡
{ 𝐼𝐿𝑖𝐶 = 𝐼𝐿2 − 𝐼𝐹𝐶
where 𝐷𝑠𝑡 , B are the shoot-through duty cycle, the boost factor,
respectively.
C. Fuel Cell Temperature Control Model Fig. 3. Simulation results of the FC voltage under the three different FC
operating temperatures.
The FC output voltage (𝑉𝐹𝐶 ) is constituted by the reversible
potential 𝐸Nern and the irreversible voltage losses (𝑉𝑖𝑟𝑟 ). The
𝐸Nern is considered as the maximum FC voltage, while the 𝑉𝑖𝑟𝑟
is composed of activation ( 𝑉act ) , ohmic (𝑉ohm ) and
D. Control algorithm Inverter power losses: the duty cycle of the switching
The proposed control algorithm for the HESS HP-AS-qZSI device (𝑑𝑁𝑆𝑇 ) in NST state is expressed by:
is presented in Fig. 4. In this respect, the FOC is applied to drive 1 𝐷𝑠𝑡 (11)
the PMSM motor following the studied driving cycle, while the 𝑑𝑁𝑆𝑇 = (1 + 𝑚𝑠𝑖𝑛(𝜔𝑡 + 𝜑)) −
2 2
demanded FC power is provided by a straightforward EMS
based on the demanded load, the LiC SOC, and the speed of the where 𝑚 is the modulation index and 𝐷𝑠𝑡 is the ST duty cycle
EV. The six states-based EMS is employed to figure out the of the HP-AS-qZSI.
amount of the provided FC power and then transfer it to the FC The conduction loss of the IGBTs-based inverter part in the
current controller to adjust the fuel flow rate. To deal with this NST state is calculated by:
EMS, three levels of the LiC SOC are used, namely low SOC of 𝑃𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑑_𝑉𝑆𝐼_𝑁𝑆𝑇 = 6(𝑣𝑘0 𝐼𝐴𝑉𝐺𝑁𝑆𝑇 + 𝑟𝑘0 𝐼2 𝑅𝑀𝑆𝑁𝑆𝑇 ) (12)
the LiC (< 30%), normal SOC of the LiC (30%–90%), and high
SOC of the LiC (> 90%). The EMS can be performed as follows: 1 
where 𝐼𝐴𝑉𝐺_𝑁𝑆𝑇 = ∫ 𝑑𝑁𝑆𝑇 𝑖𝑜 𝑑(𝑤𝑡) , 𝐼𝑅𝑀𝑆_𝑁𝑆𝑇 =
2 0
State 1: Low SOC of the LiC and speed = 0: The FC provides 1 
√ ∫0 𝑑𝑁𝑆𝑇 𝑖𝑜 2 𝑑(𝑤𝑡) are the average and RMS currents in NST
the minimum required power to the PMSM and the maximum 2
charge power to the LiC. state, respectively, and 𝑖𝑜 = 𝐼𝑝 sin(𝜔𝑡) is the inverter output
State 2: Low SOC of the LiC and speed > 0: During this state, current of the phase A.
the FC transfers both the demanded power to the PMSM and an Regarding the ST state, the IGBT peak current can be
additional one to charge the LiC. estimated by:
2 𝐼𝑝 (13)
State 3: Normal SOC of the LiC and 𝑃𝑙𝑜𝑎𝑑 ≥ 𝑃𝐹𝐶,𝑚𝑎𝑥 : The 𝑖𝑆𝑇 = 𝐼𝐿 + 𝑠𝑖𝑛(𝜔𝑡)
FC provides at its maximum power and the remainder one is 3 2
given by the LiC. The conduction losses of the inverter part in the ST state are
determined by (14):
State 4: Normal SOC of the LiC and 𝑃𝑙𝑜𝑎𝑑 ≤ 𝑃𝐹𝐶,𝑚𝑎𝑥 : The
𝑃𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑑_𝑉𝑆𝐼_𝑆𝑇 = 6(𝑣𝑘0 𝐼𝐴𝑉𝐺_𝑆𝑇 + 𝑟𝑘0 𝐼2 𝑅𝑀𝑆_𝑆𝑇 ) (14)
FC delivers the minimum power requested, while the LiC still
discharges its power in the acceleration mode or the rest power. 1 
where 𝐼𝐴𝑉𝐺_𝑆𝑇 = ∫ 𝐷 𝑖 𝑑(𝑤𝑡) , 𝐼𝑅𝑀𝑆_𝑆𝑇 =
2 0 𝑆𝑇 𝑆𝑇
State 5: High SOC of the LiC and 𝑃𝑙𝑜𝑎𝑑 ≤ 𝑃𝐹𝐶,𝑚𝑎𝑥 : The LiC 1 
√ ∫0 𝐷𝑆𝑇 𝑖𝑆𝑇 2 𝑑(𝑤𝑡) are the average and RMS currents of the
will support a large amount of energy to the PMSM, thus the 2

SOC of the LiC can be decreased. switches in ST state.

The free-wheeling diodes (FWDs) of the inverter part-based
State 6: High SOC of the LiC and 𝑃𝑙𝑜𝑎𝑑 ≥ 𝑃𝐹𝐶,𝑚𝑎𝑥 : The LiC IGBTs implement the current in the zero-states and are blocked
provides its maximum energy to the PMSM, whereas the in the ST states. Thus, their duty cycle (𝑑𝐷 ) can be calculated
remainder one is implemented by the FC.
by:
VLIC
C2
𝑑𝐷 = 1 − 𝑑𝑁𝑆𝑇 − 𝐷𝑆𝑇 (15)
D0 L1 D1 L2
FWDs conduction losses of the inverter parts are determined
VEV
D8
S1 S3 S5
Isa Te
Ftr by:
VFC S7 S8 Isb 𝑃𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑑_𝑉𝑆𝐼_𝐷 = 6(𝑣𝐹 𝐼𝐴𝑉𝐺_𝐷 + 𝑟𝐹 𝐼𝑅𝑀𝑆_𝐷 ) (16)
Isc wr T
S2 S4 S6
C1
q 1  1 
Id dq Isa
Isb
where 𝐼𝐴𝑉𝐺_𝐷 = 2 ∫0 (𝑑𝐷 𝑖𝑜 𝑑(𝑤𝑡), 𝐼𝑅𝑀𝑆_𝐷 = √2 ∫0 𝑑𝐷 𝑖𝑜 2 𝑑(𝑤𝑡) are
Iq abc Isc
FC S7 S8
FC
Load power
power Lookup current Fuel cell
PWM Iq_ref
+ -
the average and RMS currents of the FWD diodes, respectively.
LiC SOC EMS
Speed table current abc PI - PI +
controller
dq
Iq wr_ref
+ Id_ref
The switching losses of the IGBT inverter include the
PI
-
q Id
switching losses in both the NST and ST states, which are given
as follows:
Fig. 4. Control algorithm for the HESS FC/LiCs HP-AS-qZSI.
𝑣𝑑𝑐 1 𝑖𝑝 2𝑖𝐿 (17)
𝑃𝑆𝑊,𝑉𝑆𝐼_𝐼𝐺𝐵𝑇 = 6𝑓𝑠 (𝐸𝑜𝑛 + 𝐸𝑜𝑓𝑓 ) · ·( · + )
III. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION 𝑣𝑟𝑒𝑓  𝑖𝑟𝑒𝑓 3𝑖𝑟𝑒𝑓
Comparison of the system efficiency and real-time where 𝑣𝑟𝑒𝑓 and 𝑖𝑟𝑒𝑓 are reference voltage and current,
simulation results based on Opal-RT for the proposed topology respectively, and 𝐸𝑜𝑛 and 𝐸𝑜𝑓𝑓 are IGBT switch ON and OFF
under different FC operating temperatures will be given in this
energies. These values are provided in the IGBT datasheets.
section.
FWDs switching losses of the inverter part are determined
A. Efficiency Analysis of the proposed HP-AS-qZSI. by:
6 𝑣𝑑𝑐 𝑖𝑝 (18)
The power losses of HP-AS-qZSI is constituted by the power 𝑃𝑆𝑊,𝑉𝑆𝐼_𝐷 = · 𝑓𝑠 · 𝐸𝑟𝑒𝑐 · ·
losses in both NST state and ST state based on the simple boost  𝑣𝑟𝑒𝑓 𝑖𝑟𝑒𝑓
control (SBC) method, determined as follows. where 𝐸𝑟𝑒𝑐 is the energy of the FWD.
 Z-source network power losses: the inductor power loss B. Results of Real-time Simulation
constitutes the copper and core losses as (19): The OP4510-based real-time simulation from Opal-RT is
𝐼𝐿2 (19) conducted to verify the system performance of the proposed
𝑃𝐿 = 𝑃𝐶𝑢 + 𝑃𝐹𝑒 = (𝐼𝐿2 + ) · 𝑟𝐿 + 𝐶𝑚 𝑣𝑜𝑙 𝑓1.41 𝐵̂2.24 HESS FC/LiC HP-AS-qZSI against different FC operating
12
where 𝐶𝑚 is the loss coefficient, 𝑣𝑜𝑙 is the core volume, and 𝐵̂ temperatures with the parameters in TABLE I. In this respect,
is the half of the flux swing for the Molybdenum Permalloy the HESS HP-AS-qZSI utilizes LiC packs of 6s6p (s-series and
p-parallel). This converter is firstly executed on the OP4510
Powder (MPP) core 55167.
FPGA-based Electric Hardware Solver, while the control
Capacitor loss is derived by the capacitor current in both the
algorithm in Fig. 4 is then performed on the OP4510 CPU. The
ST and NST states as follows: system is simulated at various FC temperatures, covering the
2 2 average range of the low temperature-based PEMFC type. Real-
𝑃𝐶 = (𝐼𝑐_𝑆𝑇 𝐷𝑠𝑡 + 𝐼𝑐_𝑁𝑆𝑇 · (1 − 𝐷𝑠𝑡 )) · 𝑟𝑐 (20)
time simulation results are illustrated in Fig. 6 to Fig. 10. As it
where 𝐼𝑐_𝑆𝑇 and 𝐼𝑐_𝑁𝑆𝑇 are the current of the capacitor in the ST is noticed, the 3W FCEV-based PMSM is precisely controlled
and NST states, respectively. with various FC temperatures under the studied driving cycle.
The 𝑆7 power losses can be determined by their average and
RMS currents in both ST and NST states as follows: Fig. 7 shows the FC and LiC current waveforms obtained
from the real-time simulation. It can be observed that raising FC
𝑃𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑑_𝑆7 = 𝑣𝑘0 𝐼𝐴𝑉𝐺_𝑆7 + 𝑟𝑘0 𝐼2 𝑅𝑀𝑆_𝑆7 (21) temperatures decreases the FC current, which requires reduced
𝑣𝑆7 𝐼𝐴𝑉𝐺_𝑆7 (22) shoot-through duty cycles. Moreover, it also results in higher
𝑃𝑆𝑊_𝑆7 = 𝑓𝑠 · (𝐸𝑜𝑛 + 𝐸𝑜𝑓𝑓 ) · · LiC discharging currents, mainly because of the inverse
𝑣𝑟𝑒𝑓 𝑖𝑟𝑒𝑓
relationship between the shoot-through duty cycle and the LiC
𝑃𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑑_𝐹𝑊𝐷7 = 𝑣𝐹 𝐼𝐴𝑉𝐺_𝐹𝑊𝐷7 + 𝑟𝐹 𝐼2 𝑅𝑀𝑆_𝐹𝑊𝐷7 (23) current in (3). As a result, the LiC SOC at the temperature of
𝑣𝐹𝑊𝐷7 𝐼𝐴𝑉𝐺_𝐹𝑊𝐷7
70𝑜 𝐶 is higher than others in Fig. 8.
(24)
𝑃𝑆𝑊_𝐹𝑊𝐷7 = 𝑓𝑠 · 𝐸𝑟𝑒𝑐 · ·
𝑣𝑟𝑒𝑓 𝑖𝑟𝑒𝑓
1 𝑇𝑠𝑤
where 𝐼𝐴𝑉𝐺 = ∫ 𝑖𝑆_𝐹𝑊𝐷 𝑑(𝑤𝑡) , 𝐼𝑅𝑀𝑆 =
𝑇𝑠𝑤 0
1 𝑇𝑠𝑤
√𝑇 ∫0 𝑖𝑆_𝐹𝑊𝐷 2 𝑑(𝑤𝑡) illustrate the average and RMS currents
𝑠𝑤

of the switch or the FWD diode, respectively.

The 𝑆8 of the HP-AS-qZSI is operated as a diode in the
CCM, so its power losses could be simply determined based on
the power losses of its 𝐷8 FWD diode. The input 𝐷0 and the 𝐷8
power losses are expressed by:
𝑃𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑑_𝐷0_𝐷8 = 𝑣𝐹 𝐼𝐴𝑉𝐺_𝐷 + 𝑟𝐹 𝐼𝑅𝑀𝑆_𝐷 (25)
𝑣𝐷 𝐼𝐴𝑉𝐺_𝐷 (26)
𝑃𝑆𝑊,𝐷0_𝐷8 = 𝑓𝑠 · 𝐸𝑟𝑒𝑐 · ·
𝑣𝑟𝑒𝑓 𝑖𝑟𝑒𝑓
where 𝐼𝐴𝑉𝐺_𝐷 and 𝐼𝑅𝑀𝑆_𝐷 show the average and RMS values of
the 𝐷0 or 𝐷8 diode, respectively.
Fig. 5Fig. 4 gives the attained theoretical results regarding Fig. 6. Real-time simulation results of the PMSM speed and torque.
the average efficiency of the HP-AS-qZSI. As is seen, the HP-
AS-qZSI achieves the highest average efficiency with the FC
voltage of 72V, followed by two FC voltages of 70V and 60V
respectively. This is mainly because higher FC voltage results
in lower shoot-through duty cycles and lower operating currents
in the ZSN, thus reducing the conduction and switching losses
of the ZSN.
(a)

(b)
Fig. 7. Simulation results of FC and LiC currents. (a) FC currents, (b) LiC
Fig. 5. Calculated efficiency of the HP-AS-qZSI under the studied driving currents.
cycle with three different FC voltages.

Fig. 8. Simulation results of LiC SOCs.
Fig. 9. Simulation results of efficiencies of the HESS FC/LiC HP-AS-qZSI.
Fig. 10. Simulation results of the average total hydrogen consumption.
From Fig. 9 and Fig. 10, the FC-HEV system efficiency is
notably enhanced by 1.09% and 1.14%, while the average total
hydrogen consumption is also reduced by 21.23% and 29.34%
when the FC operating temperature increases from 25𝑜 𝐶 to
60𝑜 𝐶 and 70𝑜 𝐶 , respectively. Regarding the total hydrogen
consumption, these results are driven by (10), where the
hydrogen consumption is proportional to the FC current. From
these results, it can be concluded that the system performance
for the e-TESC-3W EV based on the HESS FC/LiC HP-AS-
qZSI can be improved with the FC temperature range from
25𝑜 𝐶 to 70𝑜 𝐶. Moreover, the proposed selection method helps
to tackle the issues presented in [8], [9], where choosing the
operating temperature range of the PEMFC is implemented
without considering the power electronics system.
IV. CONCLUSION
This paper considers the system performance of the three-
wheel FC-HEV using a HESS FC/LiC HP-AS-qZSI to select the
suitable FC operating temperature. In this respect, the
performance assessment is implemented in terms of the
efficiency and hydrogen consumption under three different FC
operating temperatures of 25𝑜 𝐶 , 60𝑜 𝐶 and 70𝑜 𝐶 . By
establishing an operating temperature adjustment model of the
PEMFC, the effects of the FC temperature on the FC voltage are
firstly realized. The efficiency analysis is secondly presented to
figure out the efficiency of the HP-AS-qZSI under various FC
operating voltages. The Opal-RT-based real-time simulation is
then performed to validate the theoretical analysis under the
studied driving cycle.
Regarding the efficiency analysis results, the efficiency of
the HP-AS-qZSI can be significantly enhanced by using higher
FC voltages since they lead to lower conduction and switching
losses in the Z-source network. The simulation results of the
proposed HESS FC/LiC HP-AS-qZSI have illustrated that the
HESS HP-AS-qZSI showed an improved average efficiency for
the studied FC-HEV system at 60𝑜 𝐶 and 70𝑜 𝐶. Furthermore, it
also demonstrated lower total hydrogen consumption, compared
to the temperatures of 25𝑜 𝐶 . These results verify that the
selection of the suitable FC operating temperatures will bring
about an increase in the system performance for the FC-HEV.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
This work was supported by the Canada Research Chairs
Program (grant 950-230672 and grant 950-230863), in part by
the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of
Canada (RGPIN-2017-05924 and RGPIN-2018-06527), Réseau
Québécois sur l’Énergie Intelligente (3rd cycle scholarship) and
by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT
- Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia) under project
UID/MULTI/00308/2020.
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