New approach for PEMFC diagnostics based on quantitative description of quasi-periodic oscillations

•PEMFC diagnostics based on quantitative description of quasi-periodic oscillations is proposed.•The original method of data treatment based on generalized Prony's spectrum analysis is proposed.•This proposed approach allows to describe the quasi-periodic processes with a high accuracy.•The suggested method allows to estimate PEMFC technical state.

One of the main disadvantages of the modern fuel cells (FC) is their relatively short non-failure operating time, and prediction of its technical condition is one of the most promising ways to solve this problem. Therefore, the development of effective methods applied to fuel cell diagnostics becomes extremely important. In this paper new approach for FC diagnostics based on the Prony's spectral analysis of the quasi-periodic (QP) processes is proposed. The results of FC voltage (current) signals analysis are presented. It is shown that the proposed approach is able to evaluate the FC technical state. The proposed method allows to increase the accuracy of the fluctuating processes description and can be considered as a reliable diagnostic tool for PEMFC.