As part of its technology portfolio, Intelligent Energy has developed a proprietary fuel cell stack, cooled via evaporation rather than by use of separate cooling channels. This paper documents the development status of the Intelligent Energy Evaporatively Cooled (EC) Hydrogen Fuel Cell. As a case study, the application as a range extender in a conventional London Taxi black cab is discussed.
The fuel cell black cab has undergone considerable development since its first exposure to the public in 2010 and is now available for public use, via a fleet of five vehicles in London. The paper documents a number of those improvements, the development process and particular experience during the road trials to date.
To complement the hardware development and enable rapid development, a fuel cell system and vehicle model has been developed. Development of this tool along with correlation to the actual vehicle hardware is described.
The paper introduces the developmental roadmap for the evaporative cooled fuel cell stack and in particular, the transition from etched to pressed metallic bipolar plates.