Fuel cell, protection method and device thereof and cell controller

Abstract

The embodiment of the invention provides a fuel cell, a protection method and device thereof and a cell controller, and relates to the technical field of cells. The fuel cell comprises an electric pile, an air compressor and a cell controller, wherein the electric pile consists of a plurality of single cells; the method comprises the following steps: when a galvanic pile is in a low-power operation interval or in a load shedding working condition, acquiring a plurality of operation parameters, including galvanic pile current, galvanic pile current change rate and galvanic pile life attenuation rate, of the galvanic pile at the current moment; taking the plurality of operation parameters as the input of the state space model, and obtaining a predicted maximum monomer voltage predicted value of the electric pile; under the condition that the highest monomer voltage predicted value is greater than or equal to a preset safety voltage threshold value, determining accessory energy consumption based on the highest monomer voltage predicted value; and restraining the highest monomer voltage of the galvanic pile within a preset safety voltage threshold value based on the accessory energy consumption. Therefore, the high potential of the fuel cell can be predicted in advance, protection is actively intervened, and the service life of the fuel cell is prolonged.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The embodiments described in this specification relate to the field of battery technology, specifically to a fuel cell and its protection method, device, and battery controller. Background Technology

[0002] A fuel cell is a chemical device that directly converts the chemical energy of fuel into electrical energy. Also known as an electrochemical generator, it has shown broad application prospects in fields such as automotive power and stationary power generation.

[0003] In the actual operation of fuel cell engines, the voltage of a single fuel cell often reaches a high potential. Continuous or frequent high potentials can cause serious and irreversible damage to the fuel cell stack. For example, it can accelerate the oxidation and dissolution of the catalyst, leading to a reduction in the active area; induce the chemical degradation of the proton exchange membrane, causing it to become thinner and perforated; and exacerbate the corrosion of the carbon support, resulting in catalyst loss. These damages may collectively lead to the permanent degradation of the stack's performance and shorten its service life.

[0004] In related technologies, remedial measures are usually taken only after the harmful state of high potential occurs, which cannot prevent problems before they occur. Furthermore, protection schemes that rely on external loads may bring new problems such as increased system complexity and limited application scenarios.

[0005] Therefore, there is an urgent need in this field for a high-potential protection technology that can predict and proactively intervene in advance, fundamentally avoiding the occurrence of high-potential phenomena without introducing additional hardware complexity, thereby effectively extending the service life of fuel cell stacks.

[0006] Therefore, there is an urgent need to provide a protection method for fuel cells, which can predict high potentials in fuel cells in advance and proactively intervene to protect them, thereby improving the service life of fuel cells. Summary of the Invention

[0007] In view of this, this specification provides several embodiments of a fuel cell and its protection method, device, and battery controller, which can predict high potentials in the fuel cell in advance and proactively intervene to protect it, thereby improving the service life of the fuel cell.

[0008] This specification provides a protection method for a fuel cell, the fuel cell comprising a stack of multiple cells, an air compressor for supplying high-pressure air to the stack to maintain a chemical reaction, and a battery controller. The protection method is applied to the battery controller and includes: when the fuel cell is in a low-power operating range or under reduced load conditions, acquiring multiple operating parameters of the fuel cell at the current moment; wherein the multiple operating parameters include at least the stack current, the rate of change of the stack current, and the stack lifetime decay rate; using the multiple operating parameters as input to a pre-trained state-space model to obtain a predicted value of the highest single-cell voltage of the fuel cell at the next moment; if the predicted value of the highest single-cell voltage is greater than or equal to a preset safe voltage threshold, determining the accessory energy consumption based on the predicted value of the highest single-cell voltage; and suppressing the highest single-cell voltage of the fuel cell within the preset safe voltage threshold based on the accessory energy consumption to achieve high-potential protection of the single-cell voltage within the fuel cell.

[0009] In some embodiments, the fuel cell further includes an air compressor controller and a bypass valve for controlling airflow, the battery controller being connected to the air compressor controller; the step of suppressing the highest single-cell voltage of the fuel cell stack within the preset safe voltage threshold based on the accessory energy consumption includes: sending an energy consumption request carrying accessory energy consumption information to the air compressor controller to instruct the air compressor controller to control the air compressor to respond to a target energy consumption; wherein the accessory energy consumption information is used to describe the accessory energy consumption, and the target energy consumption is the sum of the accessory energy consumption and the current demand energy consumption of the air compressor; obtaining the actual energy consumption of the air compressor after responding to the target energy consumption; determining the required airflow demand based on the cathode metering ratio of the fuel cell stack, and obtaining the actual airflow of the air compressor based on the actual energy consumption by looking up a table; determining the bypass airflow based on the airflow demand and the actual airflow; and controlling the opening of the bypass valve based on the bypass airflow to suppress the highest single-cell voltage of the fuel cell stack within the preset safe voltage threshold.

[0010] In some implementations, the state-space model is configured with state parameters; the state parameters include at least: the actual value of the highest single-cell voltage of the stack at the current moment and the rate of change of the highest single-cell voltage.

[0011] In some implementations, the state parameters are obtained by optimal estimation based on the extended Kalman filter algorithm.

[0012] In some implementations, the preset safety voltage threshold is between 0.5V and 1V.

[0013] In some implementations, determining accessory energy consumption based on the highest predicted single-cell voltage includes: determining the amount of change in stack current required to reduce the voltage difference based on the voltage difference between the highest predicted single-cell voltage and the preset safe voltage threshold, and the polarization characteristics of the stack; and determining the accessory energy consumption based on the change in stack current and the average single-cell voltage of the stack.

[0014] This specification provides a protection device for a fuel cell, the fuel cell comprising a stack of multiple cells, an air compressor for supplying high-pressure air to the stack to maintain the chemical reaction, and a battery controller; the protection method is applied to the battery controller, and the protection device includes: a data acquisition module for acquiring multiple operating parameters of the stack at the current moment when the stack is in a low-power operating range or under reduced load conditions; wherein the multiple operating parameters include at least stack current, stack current change rate, and stack lifetime decay rate; a voltage prediction module for using the multiple operating parameters as input to a pre-trained state-space model to obtain a predicted value of the highest single-cell voltage of the stack at the next moment; an energy consumption determination module for determining accessory energy consumption based on the predicted value of the highest single-cell voltage when the predicted value of the highest single-cell voltage is greater than or equal to a preset safe voltage threshold; and a potential protection module for suppressing the highest single-cell voltage of the stack within the preset safe voltage threshold based on the accessory energy consumption, thereby achieving high-potential protection of the single-cell voltage within the stack.

[0015] In some embodiments, the fuel cell further includes an air compressor controller and a bypass valve for controlling air flow, the battery controller being connected to the air compressor controller; the potential protection module further includes: an energy consumption request sending module, used to send an energy consumption request carrying accessory energy consumption information to the air compressor controller to instruct the air compressor controller to control the air compressor to respond to a target energy consumption; wherein, the accessory energy consumption information is used to describe the accessory energy consumption, and the target energy consumption is the sum of the accessory energy consumption and the current demand energy consumption of the air compressor; an actual energy consumption acquisition module, used to acquire the actual energy consumption of the air compressor after responding to the target energy consumption; a flow demand determination module, used to determine the required air flow demand based on the cathode metering ratio of the fuel cell stack, and to obtain the actual air flow of the air compressor based on the actual energy consumption by looking up a table; a bypass flow determination module, used to determine the bypass air flow based on the air flow demand and the actual air flow; and an opening control module, used to control the opening of the bypass valve based on the bypass air flow to suppress the highest single-cell voltage of the fuel cell stack within the preset safe voltage threshold.

[0016] This specification provides a battery controller, including a memory and a processor. The memory stores a computer program, and the processor executes the computer program to implement the protection method described in any of the above embodiments.

[0017] This specification provides a fuel cell that includes the battery controller described in any of the above embodiments.

[0018] In several embodiments provided in this specification, the fuel cell includes a stack composed of multiple individual cells, an air compressor for supplying high-pressure air to the stack to maintain the chemical reaction, and a battery controller. These embodiments acquire multiple operating parameters of the stack, such as the stack current, the rate of change of the stack current, and the stack lifetime decay rate, when the stack is in a low-power operating range or under reduced load conditions. These operating parameters are then used as input to a pre-trained state-space model to obtain a predicted value for the highest individual cell voltage of the stack at the next moment. Next, if the predicted highest individual cell voltage is greater than or equal to a preset safe voltage threshold, the accessory energy consumption is determined based on the predicted highest individual cell voltage. Then, based on the accessory energy consumption, the highest individual cell voltage of the stack is suppressed within the preset safe voltage threshold to achieve high-potential protection of the individual cell voltages within the stack. In this way, high potentials in the fuel cell can be predicted in advance and proactively protected, thereby improving the service life of the fuel cell. Attached Figure Description

[0019] Figure 1 A schematic flowchart illustrating a protection method for a fuel cell provided in an embodiment of this specification; Figure 2 This is yet another schematic flowchart illustrating the protection method for a fuel cell provided in the embodiments of this specification. Figure 3 A schematic diagram of a protective device for a fuel cell provided in an embodiment of this specification; Figure 4 A schematic diagram of a battery controller provided for an embodiment of this specification. Detailed Implementation

[0020] To enable those skilled in the art to better understand the solutions described in this specification, the technical solutions in the embodiments of this specification will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only a part of the embodiments of this specification, and not all of them. Based on the embodiments in this specification, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative effort are within the scope of protection of this specification.

[0021] This specification provides an embodiment of a fuel cell. The fuel cell may include a stack of multiple individual cells, an air compressor for supplying high-pressure air to the stack to maintain the chemical reaction, and a battery controller.

[0022] For example, the fuel cell also includes an air compressor controller and a bypass valve for controlling airflow, with the battery controller connected to the air compressor controller. The air compressor controller can be a standalone or integrated electronic control unit within the battery controller, responsible for driving and controlling the operating status of the air compressor, such as adjusting its speed or power. A data exchange link can be established between the battery controller and the air compressor controller via a CAN bus, hardwired signals, or other communication protocols, enabling the battery controller to send control commands or request commands to the air compressor controller and receive feedback information.

[0023] For example, the fuel cell also includes a bypass valve for controlling air flow, which can be installed in the air supply line to direct a portion of the compressed air flowing through the air compressor directly to the exhaust system or the atmosphere, rather than all of it entering the fuel cell stack.

[0024] This specification provides a protection method for a fuel cell. Please refer to [link / reference]. Figure 1 , Figure 1 This is a flowchart illustrating a protection method for a fuel cell provided in this embodiment. This embodiment provides the method operation steps shown in the flowchart, but based on conventional or non-inventive labor, more or fewer operation steps may be included. The order of steps listed in the embodiment is merely one possible execution order among many, and does not represent the only possible execution order. In actual system or server products, the method can be executed sequentially as shown in the embodiment or in parallel (e.g., in a parallel processor or multi-threaded processing environment). This protection method can be applied to the battery controller in a fuel cell, specifically as follows... Figure 1 As shown, the protection method may include the following steps.

[0025] Step S110: When the fuel cell stack is in a low-power operating range or under a reduced load condition, obtain multiple operating parameters of the fuel cell stack at the current moment; wherein, the multiple operating parameters include at least the fuel cell stack current, the fuel cell stack current change rate, and the fuel cell stack lifetime decay rate.

[0026] In some cases, during the actual operation of fuel cell stacks, such as in low-power operating ranges or under reduced load conditions, the current required by the stack is relatively low. However, due to factors such as inertia, the air supply from the air compressor in the fuel cell cannot instantly keep up with the rapid decrease in current, leading to a relatively high or excessive concentration of reactant gases such as oxygen on the cathode side of the stack. Under such gas excess conditions, the voltage of the fuel cell cells will increase significantly, forming a high potential. Sustained or frequent high potentials can cause serious and irreversible damage to the stack. Therefore, active high-potential protection based on multiple operating parameters of the fuel cell can be considered.

[0027] The fuel cell stack lifetime decay rate can be obtained by comparing the current performance of the fuel cell stack with its initial performance and updating it iteratively.

[0028] For example, a low-power operating range can refer to a stable operating state where the fuel cell's output power is below a specified percentage of its rated power. For instance, this specified percentage could be 30% of the rated power. A load shedding condition can refer to the dynamic process of the fuel cell's output power decreasing from a higher power level to a lower power level. For example, this higher power level could be above 70% of the rated power.

[0029] For example, the stack current can refer to the total current flowing through the entire stack. The stack current change rate can refer to the amount of change in the stack current per unit time, reflecting the drastic degree of load change in the stack. The stack lifetime degradation rate can characterize the long-term changes in the stack's health status.

[0030] Step S120: Use multiple operating parameters as input to a pre-trained state-space model to obtain the predicted value of the highest single-unit voltage of the stack at the next moment.

[0031] For example, a state-space model can be a mathematical model that describes the relationship between the internal state parameters of a dynamic system and its external inputs and outputs.

[0032] Step S130: If the predicted value of the highest single-cell voltage is greater than or equal to the preset safe voltage threshold, determine the energy consumption of the accessory based on the predicted value of the highest single-cell voltage.

[0033] For example, the preset safe voltage threshold can be a critical voltage determined based on extensive experiments, capable of preventing severe degradation of the catalyst and proton exchange membrane. If the predicted maximum monomer voltage is greater than or equal to the preset safe voltage threshold, it indicates a high potential risk requiring intervention.

[0034] When intervention is deemed necessary, the additional energy consumption required for accessories can be determined based on the highest predicted unit voltage and a preset safe voltage threshold. Accessory energy consumption refers to the determined electrical power consumed by the air compressor.

[0035] Step S140: Based on the energy consumption of the attachment, suppress the highest individual voltage of the fuel cell stack within a preset safe voltage threshold to achieve high potential protection against high voltage of individual cells within the fuel cell stack.

[0036] For example, based on the energy consumption of the accessories, the air compressor can operate at a higher power consumption. By increasing the power consumption of the air compressor, the overall current level of the fuel cell stack is increased. According to the polarization characteristics of the fuel cell, the increase in current will directly lead to a decrease in the voltage of the individual cells, thereby suppressing the high potential within the preset safe voltage threshold before it occurs. This avoids high potential damage to the individual cells caused by excess gas, without the need to add additional hardware load. While saving costs and space, it also broadens the application scenarios of fuel cells and enables proactive, smooth, and efficient high potential protection.

[0037] In some implementations, please refer to Figure 2 To suppress the highest individual voltage of the fuel cell stack within a preset safe voltage threshold based on the energy consumption of the attachment, the following steps S210-S250 may be included.

[0038] Step S210: Send an energy consumption request carrying accessory energy consumption information to the air compressor controller to instruct the air compressor controller to control the air compressor to respond to the target energy consumption; wherein, the accessory energy consumption information is used to describe the accessory energy consumption, and the target energy consumption is the sum of the accessory energy consumption and the current demand energy consumption of the air compressor.

[0039] For example, an energy consumption request is a control command or request command. Attached energy consumption information can be a data field used to quantitatively describe the attached energy consumption, such as a floating-point number representing a power value.

[0040] An air compressor controller can control or drive the air compressor to achieve the target energy consumption level based on energy consumption requests.

[0041] Step S220: Obtain the actual energy consumption of the air compressor after responding to the target energy consumption.

[0042] For example, after issuing a control command requesting energy consumption to the air compressor controller, a state feedback loop can be entered. During the state feedback adjustment process, feedback data can be read from the air compressor controller via the communication bus, or the actual electrical power consumed by the air compressor after executing the energy consumption request can be measured by an independent power sensor, i.e., the actual energy consumption of the air compressor can be obtained. In this way, closed-loop control can be realized. By monitoring the actual energy consumption of the air compressor, accurate and reliable input parameters can be provided for subsequent precise control, thereby improving control accuracy and robustness.

[0043] Step S230: Determine the required air flow rate based on the cathode metering ratio of the fuel cell stack, and obtain the actual air flow rate of the air compressor by looking up a table based on the actual energy consumption.

[0044] For example, the cathode metering ratio can refer to the ratio of the actual air flow rate supplied to the cathode of the fuel cell stack to the theoretical air flow rate consumed by the fuel cell stack for electrochemical reactions under the current current. Based on the cathode metering ratio, the air flow rate requirement for normal operation of the fuel cell stack can be obtained by calculation or by looking up a table.

[0045] For example, the battery controller may contain a mapping table between the air compressor and its output airflow at different speeds or power consumptions. This mapping table can be pre-calibrated through bench testing. By querying this mapping table, the actual airflow of the air compressor can be obtained.

[0046] Step S240: Determine the bypass airflow based on the airflow demand and the actual airflow.

[0047] For example, bypass airflow refers to the volumetric airflow that needs to be directed away from the cathode inlet of the fuel cell stack. In this way, quantifying the excess air that needs to be removed transforms the electrochemical protection problem into a fluid control problem, making the control objective clear and specific.

[0048] Step S250: Control the opening of the bypass valve based on the bypass air flow to suppress the highest single-cell voltage of the fuel cell stack within a preset safe voltage threshold.

[0049] For example, the opening degree of the bypass valve can refer to adjusting the valve position to form a specific flow cross-section, thereby precisely releasing the bypass air flow. In this way, excess air can be bypassed, forcing the air compressor to operate at higher power consumption to compensate for this flow loss. This is equivalent to increasing the internal load of the fuel cell, raising the stack current. According to the polarization characteristics of the fuel cell, the increased current will force a decrease in the cell voltage, thus actively suppressing potential high-potential events within a preset safe voltage threshold. No external load is required; high-potential protection can be achieved using only existing hardware.

[0050] In some implementations, the state-space model is configured with state parameters; the state parameters include at least the actual value of the highest single-cell voltage of the stack at the current moment and the rate of change of the highest single-cell voltage.

[0051] In some implementations, the state parameters are obtained by optimal estimation based on the extended Kalman filter algorithm.

[0052] In some implementations, the preset safety voltage threshold is between 0.5V and 1V. For example, the preset safety voltage threshold can be any value among 0.5V, 0.55V, 0.6V, 0.65V, 0.7V, 0.75V, 0.8V, 0.85V, 0.9V, 0.95V, and 1V.

[0053] In some implementations, accessory energy consumption is determined based on the highest predicted cell voltage, including: Based on the voltage difference between the highest predicted single-cell voltage and the preset safe voltage threshold, and the polarization characteristics of the fuel cell stack, the amount of change in the fuel cell stack current required to reduce the voltage difference is determined. The energy consumption of the accessories is determined based on the change in the current of the fuel cell stack and the average voltage of each individual unit of the fuel cell stack.

[0054] This specification provides a protective device for a fuel cell, which can be applied to the battery controller in a fuel cell. Please refer to... Figure 3 The protective device may include a data acquisition module 310, a voltage prediction module 320, an energy consumption determination module 330, and a potential protection module 340.

[0055] The data acquisition module 310 is used to acquire multiple operating parameters of the fuel cell stack at the current moment when the fuel cell stack is in a low-power operating range or in a load reduction condition; wherein, the multiple operating parameters include at least the fuel cell stack current, the fuel cell stack current change rate, and the fuel cell stack lifetime decay rate. The voltage prediction module 320 is used to take multiple operating parameters as input to a pre-trained state-space model to obtain the predicted value of the highest single-unit voltage of the stack at the next moment. The energy consumption determination module 330 is used to determine the energy consumption of the accessory based on the predicted value of the highest single-cell voltage when the predicted value of the highest single-cell voltage is greater than or equal to a preset safe voltage threshold. The potential protection module 340 is used to suppress the highest individual voltage of the fuel cell stack within a preset safe voltage threshold based on the accessory energy consumption, so as to achieve high potential protection of the individual voltage within the fuel cell stack.

[0056] In some implementations, the potential protection module 340 further includes an energy consumption request issuing module, an actual energy consumption acquisition module, a flow demand determination module, a bypass flow determination module, and an opening degree control module.

[0057] The energy consumption request sending module is used to send an energy consumption request carrying accessory energy consumption information to the air compressor controller, so as to instruct the air compressor controller to control the air compressor to respond to the target energy consumption; wherein, the accessory energy consumption information is used to describe the accessory energy consumption, and the target energy consumption is the sum of the accessory energy consumption and the current demand energy consumption of the air compressor; The actual energy consumption acquisition module is used to acquire the actual energy consumption of the air compressor after responding to the target energy consumption. The flow demand determination module is used to determine the required air flow demand based on the cathode metering ratio of the fuel cell stack, and to obtain the actual air flow of the air compressor by looking up a table based on the actual energy consumption. The bypass flow determination module is used to determine the bypass air flow based on the air flow demand and the actual air flow. The opening control module is used to control the opening of the bypass valve based on the bypass air flow to suppress the highest single-cell voltage of the fuel cell stack within a preset safe voltage threshold.

[0058] The specific functions and effects of the protective device can be explained by referring to other embodiments in this manual, and will not be repeated here. Each module in the protective device can be implemented entirely or partially through software, hardware, or a combination thereof. Each module can be embedded in hardware or independently of the processor in the battery controller, or stored in software in the memory of the battery controller, so that the processor can call and execute the operations corresponding to each module.

[0059] This specification also provides a computer-readable storage medium having a computer program stored thereon, which, when executed by a computer, implements the protection method in any of the above embodiments.

[0060] This specification also provides a computer program product containing instructions that, when executed by a computer, cause the computer to implement the protection method in any of the above embodiments.

[0061] This specification also provides a battery controller, including a memory and a processor. The memory stores a computer program, which, when executed by the processor, implements the protection method in any of the above embodiments.

[0062] This specification also provides a vehicle that includes the fuel cell described in any of the above embodiments.

[0063] In some implementations, please refer to Figure 4 The battery controller can be a terminal, and its internal structure diagram can be as follows: Figure 4As shown, the battery controller includes a processor, memory, and communication interface connected via a system bus. The processor provides computational and control capabilities. The memory includes a non-volatile storage medium and internal memory. The non-volatile storage medium stores the operating system and computer programs. The internal memory provides an environment for the operation of the operating system and computer programs in the non-volatile storage medium. The communication interface is used for wired or wireless communication with external terminals; wireless communication can be achieved through Wi-Fi, carrier networks, NFC (Near Field Communication), or other technologies. When the computer program is executed by the processor, it implements a protection method for the fuel cell.

[0064] It is understood that the specific examples in this document are only intended to help those skilled in the art better understand the embodiments described herein, and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention.

[0065] It is understood that in the various embodiments described in this specification, the sequence number of each process does not imply the order of execution. The execution order of each process should be determined by its function and internal logic, and should not constitute any limitation on the implementation process of the embodiments described in this specification.

[0066] It is understood that the various implementation methods described in this specification can be implemented individually or in combination, and the implementation methods in this specification are not limited in this respect.

[0067] Unless otherwise stated, all technical and scientific terms used in the embodiments of this specification have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art. The terminology used in this specification is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to limit the scope of this specification. The term "and / or" as used in this specification includes any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items. The singular forms "a," "the," and "the" as used in the embodiments of this specification and the appended claims are also intended to include the plural forms unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.

[0068] It is understood that the processor in the embodiments of this specification can be an integrated circuit chip with signal processing capabilities. In implementation, each step of the above method embodiments can be completed by integrated logic circuits in the processor's hardware or by instructions in software form. The processor can be a general-purpose processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), or other programmable logic devices, discrete gate or transistor logic devices, or discrete hardware components. It can implement or execute the methods, steps, and logic block diagrams disclosed in the embodiments of this specification. The general-purpose processor can be a microprocessor or any conventional processor. The steps of the methods disclosed in the embodiments of this specification can be directly implemented by a hardware decoding processor, or by a combination of hardware and software modules in the decoding processor. The software modules can reside in random access memory, flash memory, read-only memory, programmable read-only memory, electrically erasable programmable memory, registers, or other mature storage media in the art. This storage medium is located in memory; the processor reads information from the memory and, in conjunction with its hardware, completes the steps of the above methods.

[0069] It is understood that the memory in the embodiments of this specification may be volatile memory or non-volatile memory, or may include both volatile and non-volatile memory. Non-volatile memory may be read-only memory (ROM), programmable read-only memory (PROM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), or flash memory. Volatile memory may be random access memory (RAM). It should be noted that the memory in the systems and methods described herein is intended to include, but is not limited to, these and any other suitable types of memory.

[0070] Those skilled in the art will recognize that the units and algorithm steps of the various examples described in conjunction with the embodiments disclosed herein can be implemented in electronic hardware, or a combination of computer software and electronic hardware. Whether these functions are implemented in hardware or software depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution. Those skilled in the art can use different methods to implement the described functions for each specific application, but such implementation should not be considered beyond the scope of this specification.

[0071] Those skilled in the art will clearly understand that, for the sake of convenience and brevity, the specific working processes of the systems, devices, and units described above can be referred to the corresponding processes in the aforementioned method implementations, and will not be repeated here.

[0072] The above description is merely a specific embodiment of this specification, but the scope of protection of this invention is not limited thereto. Any variations or substitutions that can be easily conceived by those skilled in the art within the technical scope disclosed in this specification should be included within the scope of protection of this specification. Therefore, the scope of protection of this invention should be determined by the scope of the claims.

Claims

1. A protection method for a fuel cell, characterized in that, The fuel cell includes a stack of multiple individual cells, an air compressor for supplying high-pressure air to the stack to maintain the chemical reaction, and a battery controller; the protection method is applied to the battery controller, and the method includes: When the fuel cell stack is in a low-power operating range or under reduced load conditions, multiple operating parameters of the fuel cell stack at the current moment are obtained; wherein, the multiple operating parameters include at least the fuel cell stack current, the fuel cell stack current change rate, and the fuel cell stack lifetime decay rate; By using the multiple operating parameters as input to a pre-trained state-space model, the predicted value of the highest single-unit voltage of the stack at the next moment is obtained. If the predicted value of the highest single-cell voltage is greater than or equal to a preset safe voltage threshold, the energy consumption of the accessory is determined based on the predicted value of the highest single-cell voltage. Based on the energy consumption of the accessory, the highest individual voltage of the fuel cell stack is suppressed within the preset safe voltage threshold to achieve high potential protection of the individual voltage within the fuel cell stack.

2. The protection method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The fuel cell also includes an air compressor controller and a bypass valve for controlling air flow, the battery controller being connected to the air compressor controller; The step of suppressing the highest individual voltage of the fuel cell stack within the preset safe voltage threshold based on the energy consumption of the accessory includes: An energy consumption request carrying the accessory energy consumption information is sent to the air compressor controller to instruct the air compressor controller to control the air compressor to respond to a target energy consumption; wherein, the accessory energy consumption information is used to describe the accessory energy consumption, and the target energy consumption is the sum of the accessory energy consumption and the current energy consumption requirement of the air compressor; Obtain the actual energy consumption of the air compressor after responding to the target energy consumption; Based on the cathode metering ratio of the fuel cell stack, the required airflow is determined, and the actual airflow of the air compressor is obtained by looking up a table based on the actual energy consumption. Determine the bypass airflow rate based on the airflow demand and the actual airflow rate; The opening degree of the bypass valve is controlled based on the bypass air flow to suppress the highest single-cell voltage of the fuel cell stack within the preset safe voltage threshold.

3. The protection method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The state-space model is configured with state parameters; the state parameters include at least: the actual value of the highest single-cell voltage of the stack at the current moment and the rate of change of the highest single-cell voltage.

4. The protection method according to claim 3, characterized in that, The state parameters are obtained by optimal estimation based on the extended Kalman filter algorithm.

5. The protection method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The preset safety voltage threshold is between 0.5V and 1V.

6. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The determination of accessory energy consumption based on the highest single-cell voltage prediction value includes: Based on the voltage difference between the highest single-cell voltage prediction value and the preset safe voltage threshold, and the polarization characteristics of the fuel cell stack, the amount of change in fuel cell stack current required to reduce the voltage difference is determined. The energy consumption of the accessory is determined based on the change in the current of the fuel cell stack and the average individual voltage of the fuel cell stack.

7. A protective device for a fuel cell, characterized in that, The fuel cell includes a stack of multiple individual cells, an air compressor for supplying high-pressure air to the stack to maintain the chemical reaction, and a battery controller; the protection method is applied to the battery controller, and the device includes: The data acquisition module is used to acquire multiple operating parameters of the fuel cell stack at the current moment when the fuel cell stack is in a low-power operating range or in a load reduction condition; wherein, the multiple operating parameters include at least the fuel cell stack current, the fuel cell stack current change rate, and the fuel cell stack lifetime decay rate. The voltage prediction module is used to take the multiple operating parameters as input to a pre-trained state-space model to obtain the predicted value of the highest single-unit voltage of the stack at the next time step. The energy consumption determination module is used to determine the energy consumption of the accessory based on the predicted value of the highest single-cell voltage when the predicted value of the highest single-cell voltage is greater than or equal to a preset safe voltage threshold. The potential protection module is used to suppress the highest individual voltage of the fuel cell stack within the preset safe voltage threshold based on the energy consumption of the accessory, so as to achieve high potential protection of the individual voltage of the fuel cell stack.

8. The protective device according to claim 7, characterized in that, The fuel cell further includes an air compressor controller and a bypass valve for controlling air flow, the fuel cell controller being connected to the air compressor controller; the potential protection module further includes: An energy consumption request sending module is used to send an energy consumption request carrying the accessory energy consumption information to the air compressor controller, so as to instruct the air compressor controller to control the air compressor to respond to the target energy consumption; wherein, the accessory energy consumption information is used to describe the accessory energy consumption, and the target energy consumption is the sum of the accessory energy consumption and the current energy consumption requirement of the air compressor; The actual energy consumption acquisition module is used to acquire the actual energy consumption of the air compressor after responding to the target energy consumption. The flow demand determination module is used to determine the required air flow demand based on the cathode metering ratio of the fuel cell stack, and to obtain the actual air flow of the air compressor by looking up a table based on the actual energy consumption. The bypass flow rate determination module is used to determine the bypass air flow rate based on the air flow rate requirement and the actual air flow rate; An opening control module is used to control the opening of the bypass valve based on the bypass air flow to suppress the highest single-cell voltage of the fuel cell stack within the preset safe voltage threshold.

9. A battery controller, comprising a memory and a processor, wherein the memory stores a computer program, characterized in that, When the processor executes the computer program, it implements the protection method according to any one of claims 1 to 6.

10. A fuel cell comprising the battery controller of claim 9.

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