Development of a Fuel Cell-based System for Refrigerated Transport

Benchmark refrigerated systems in the road transportation sector are powered by diesel, having operation costs of up to 6,000 €/y. This paper presents the development of an alternative refrigeration system based on fuel cells, with higher efficiency, reduced costs and independent of diesel price fluctuations. Energy load profiles have been analyzed and the fuel cell stack and auxiliaries are being modeled in order to dimension and design a balance of plant and control algorithms that ensure a safe and easy utilization. Additionally, a prototype shall be tested under different load profiles to validate the control strategies and to characterize the performance of the system.