A method and apparatus for comparing fuel sources to assess the suitability of a fuel for use in a fuel cell. The apparatus comprising an electrochemical sensor comprising a fuel flow channel configured to receive a plurality of input fuels at a plurality of locations along the fuel flow channel. The fuel flow channel configured to supply the plurality of input fuels to an anode of the electrochemical sensor and an electrolyte configured to transmit ionised input fuels from the anode to a cathode of the electrochemical sensor. A control system connected to the electrochemical sensor where the anode and/or the cathode is divided into a plurality of segments and the control system is configured to measure the current in each of the plurality of segments and determine the current density of each of the plurality of segments.

Provided are method and device for predicting service life and remaining life of a fuel cell. The method includes: activating the fuel cell, obtaining an initial polarization curve of the fuel cell, and selecting a first point having a first current in the initial polarization curve; determining a life end point of the fuel cell according to the initial polarization curve and a decay ratio; obtaining a current polarization curve, and determining a second point having a second current and a same voltage as the first point in the current polarization curve; and determining the service life of the fuel cell according to the first current, the second current, a current relationship between two polarization curves and a service life algorithm of the fuel cell, and obtaining the remaining life of the fuel cell according to the service life and a time of the current polarization curve.

A fuel cell vehicle according to the present disclosure includes: a fuel cell; a multiphase converter configured to control an output current of the fuel cell; a current sensor provided in each phase of the multiphase converter; an electric load configured to receive power supplied from the fuel cell; and a control unit. The control unit performs, when it detects an excess or a deficiency of electric energy of the electric load, replacement of phases driven by the multiphase converter while the output current of the fuel cell is kept constant, and determines, when the excess or the deficiency of the electric energy of the electric load is eliminated after the replacement of the phases, that an offset failure has occurred in the current sensor provided in the phase that has been driven before the replacement.

A fuel cell system includes a first fuel cell, second fuel cell, first voltage detector, second voltage detector, and controller. The first voltage detector detects voltage of first unit cells of the first fuel cell for every “N” unit cells on average, and the second voltage detector detects voltage of the second fuel cell as a whole, or detects voltage of second unit cells of the second fuel cell for every “M” unit cells on average, where “M” is larger than “N”. The controller determines whether any of the second unit cells is in a fuel deficiency state, based on the detection result of the first voltage detector, when a predetermined condition under which states of the first fuel cell and the second fuel cell are regarded as being close to each other is satisfied.

A fuel cell system that supplies fuel gas and oxidant gas to a fuel cell stack and causes the fuel cell stack to generate power includes a tank that stores aqueous solution containing oxygen-containing fuel, and a reformer that reforms mixed gas obtained as the aqueous solution is vaporized, and generates the fuel gas. The fuel cell system also includes an actuator that supplies the mixed gas to the reformer, a heating device that heats the reformer, a detecting unit that estimates or detects a concentration of the oxygen-containing fuel in the mixed gas that is supplied to the reformer, and a controller programmed to control operations of the actuator and the heating device so that the fuel cell generates power. The controller is programmed to increase a thermal dose to the reformer from the heating device or reduces a supply amount of the mixed gas to the reformer by the actuator when the concentration of the oxygen-containing fuel is high, compared to when the concentration is low.

Disclosed are a gas sampling system and a gas sampling method for a fuel cell, a current density distribution estimation method for the fuel cell, a calibration method and a calibration device for an internal state model for the fuel cell, and a computer equipment. The gas sampling method for a fuel cell includes arranging a plurality of sampling pipelines and a plurality of sampling points, the plurality of sampling points being arranged at a cathode inlet, an anode outlet, an anode inlet, a cathode outlet, and in an anode flow channel, and a cathode flow channel of the fuel cell, the sampling points arranged in the anode flow channel and the cathode flow channel being located in central regions of cross sections of the flow channels, and the sampling pipelines being connected to the plurality of sampling points, respectively, and configured to guide gas inside the fuel cell out.

A fuel cell system includes: a fuel cell; a supply device; and a control unit configured to lower output voltage of the fuel cell to a target value so as to execute recovery processing to recover power generation performance of the fuel cell. In a case of having an execution request of the recovery processing, the control unit restarts power generation of the fuel cell when open circuit voltage of the fuel cell is lowered to or smaller than a threshold value higher than the target value by controlling a flow rate of a cathode gas while the power generation of the fuel cell is paused, and the control unit executes the recovery processing while controlling an output current value of the fuel cell to be smaller than an idle current value that is an output current value of the fuel cell in an idle operation state.

A method for diagnosing degradation of a fuel cell stack, including: S10, qualitatively determining a degradation type of the fuel cell stack according to a voltage-current curve of the fuel cell stack; S20, quantitatively measuring parameter values of each of individual cells of the fuel cell stack according to the degradation type, and quantitatively determining a degradation degree of each of the individual cells according to the parameter values; S30, determining a uniformity degradation degree among the individual cells of the fuel cell stack according to a non-uniformity degree of a voltage distribution of the individual cells. By qualitatively determining the degradation type of the fuel cell stack, the degradation condition of the entire fuel cell stack may be obtained.

A battery control system and method of a fuel cell vehicle includes a battery, a fuel cell, and a controller. The battery provides driving energy of a vehicle. The fuel cell provides the driving energy of the vehicle or charging the battery. The controller estimates a degree of deterioration of the fuel cell, derive a change rate in an SOC value of the battery based on the degree of deterioration of the fuel cell, and change a charge control factor or a discharge control factor of the battery according to the derived change rate in the SOC value of the battery.

A method of cleaning power cells in an array of power cells, comprising coupling at least one first power cell to second power cells in an array of power cells and causing the second power cells to drive the at least one first power cell with a voltage to clean catalyst on the at least one first power cell.