Component sizing based on multi-objective optimization for a fuel cell hybrid vehicle

Fuel Cell Hybrid Electric Vehicles (FCHEVs) have the potential for providing a solution for clean transportation. For FCHEVs to be successful, it is important to improve their fuel economy and acceleration performance. One of the important systems to be worked on to achieve these goals is the vehicle's powertrain. This research work aims at providing a systematic procedure for multi-objective optimum sizing of a FCHEV powertrain, with the objectives of minimizing the fuel consumption and maximizing the acceleration performance. The work was carried out for a fuel cell-battery hybrid heavy road vehicle for Indian driving cycle. The design variables in the component sizing process were chosen to be speed ratio (x) of the traction motor and degree of hybridization (H) of the power sources. The values of objective functions and constraints were evaluated using ADVISOR software for a sample set of design variables. Surrogate modelling technique was adopted for constructing models for objective functions and constraints. Then, the optimization was carried out using multi-objective genetic algorithm approach to find the Pareto optimal solutions for the problem. This study provides a framework for component sizing of FCHEV that considers x and H as design variables.