Energy-Source-Sizing Methodology for Hybrid Fuel Cell Vehicles Based on Statistical Description of Driving Cycles

This paper describes a new methodology based on the statistical description of driving cycles to size the energy source of a hybrid vehicle. This methodology is applied to a fuel-cell-based collection truck for very specific driving patterns. Based on experimental data, random driving cycles are then generated, allowing the distribution of the average powers and energies to be computed. The analysis proves that a 20-kW fuel cell stack is sufficient for a 13 000-kg truck. The results show that the fuel cell system could be downsized, compared with classical solutions, where much larger fuel cells are required.