FURI | Spring 2020

Electrolyzer Application of a Load-Managing PV System

The purpose of this research was to determine the effectiveness of electrolyzers implemented within a load-managing PV system. The electrolyzers replace the initial system’s test resistors, which have shown power efficiency of up to 99%, and create a real application by generating sustainable hydrogen gas. The electrical model of the electrolyzer shows that using load management for electrolyzers is effective for approximating the maximum power for daily irradiances. Four stacks of 15 electrolytic cells are being physically modeled by an assortment of diodes with the load-managing control algorithm and solar panel to confirm the viability of the electrolyzer application.