Optimal Hydrogen Production from Direct Coupled Variable Speed Wind Generator with a Stacked Interleaved Buck converter

A power management strategy for a proton exchange membrane (PEM) electrolyzer connected to a wind turbine conversion system (WTCS) is proposed in this paper. It is based on the characterization of the wind turbine and the electrolyzer as well. With the aim to interface the WCTS and the PEM electrolyzer, a stacked interleaved DC-DC buck converter has been chosen due to its benefits for this application from output current ripple and reliability point of view. This converter is controlled so that it can have a dynamic faster than the wind turbine avoiding overvoltage during transients, which could damage the PEM electrolyzer. In order to assess the performance of the power management strategy, experimental tests have been carried out. The reported results demonstrate the correct behavior of the system during transient operation.