Adaptive Control of Hydrogen Production in On-Board Dimethyl Ether Autothermal Steam Reforming Systems

Fuel cells have become a critical area of development in the energy sector, primarily due to their high energy density and environmentally friendly characteristics. Currently, the hydrogen supply remains one of the bottlenecks hindering the widespread deployment of fuel cell vehicles. Dimethyl ether autothermal reforming (DME ATR), a hydrogen production technology that generates hydrogen efficiently without the need for additional heating, is considered a potential solution. However, precisely regulating the hydrogen production to meet the demands of fuel cell systems continues to present a significant challenge. In this study, a system model for producing hydrogen from DME ATR is established, and its accuracy is validated through self-designed experiments. The impacts of reaction parameters of operation on hydrogen yield and system thermal efficiency are analyzed to improve the performance of the reforming system. To address the challenge of regulating the hydrogen production rate within the reformer, a fuzzy proportional-integral-derivative (PID) adaptive control strategy based on particle swarm optimization is employed. This strategy was analyzed and found to be able to accurately and quickly regulate the hydrogen production to meet the hydrogen demand. The output characteristics of the integrated fuel cell power system with a reformer are analyzed under driving cycle conditions. The results indicate that the DME ATR reformer can promptly adapt to variations in fuel cell power demand and supply enough hydrogen to the fuel cell while maintaining high hydrogen yield and thermal efficiency.