Hybrid control strategy for electric fuel pumps considering nonlinearity and model uncertainty

Flow regulation characteristics of an electric fuel pump have crucial influence on the control of a more electric engine. As a strongly nonlinear coupling system, electric fuel pump is facing big challenges in accurate flow control due to uncertainties and external disturbances. To enhance the regulation performance of electric fuel pumps, a hybrid control strategy integrating feed-forward compensation based on differential pressure with active disturbance rejection sliding mode control (FFC-ADRSMC) is proposed. A complete mathematical model of the electric fuel pump is established and validated by experiments. Additionally, simulations of the machine with the proposed FFC-ADRSMC are conducted under typical operations and are compared between the proposed strategy and other typical control methods. The proposed hybrid control strategy significantly reduces the delivery response time by 0.15 s and decreases the steady-state error by 4.5%. It is particularly effective for small-flow and high-pressure conditions, extending the regulation range by 10.7%. The hybrid control strategy enhances the performance and reliability of electric fuel pumps, making them more effective in mitigating the impact of delivery pressure fluctuations and improving overall flow rate control in more electric engines.