HIL Validation of Power Electronics Architectures and Control Strategies for Multi-Stack PEM Fuel Cell Hybrid Systems for Heavy-Duty Mobility (M/F)

Job Description

Missions

Scientific Context
The research work carried out during this postdoctoral appointment is part of the project entitled “Optimization of Hybrid Energy Systems for Multi-Stack PEM Fuel Cell Systems Dedicated to Heavy-Duty Transport” (HYSYSPEM project: https://www.pepr-hydrogene.fr/projets/hysyspem/), funded by the French Hydrogen Priority Research Programme and Equipment (PEPR Hydrogen / PEPR H2: https://www.pepr-hydrogene.fr/). The HYSYSPEM project aims to optimize multi-stack PEM fuel cell hybrid systems for heavy-duty mobility applications, including maritime and land transport. More broadly, the project seeks to jointly improve electrical and fluidic architectures, energy management, fuel-cell lifetime, system availability, and power scaling through a multi-stack approach.

In this context, the implemented power architectures play a central role, together with their associated control algorithms. Both ensure energy conversion and adaptation between the PEM fuel cell stacks, the DC bus, electrical storage, and the load, while providing advanced control, diagnosis, post-fault reconfiguration, and degraded-mode operation functions. Work Package 4 (WP4) of HYSYSPEM focuses more specifically on fault-tolerant operation of single- and multi-stack hybrid fuel cell systems, while Work Package 5 (WP5) addresses the development of X-in-the-Loop (XiL) test and simulation platforms and the validation of concepts, mainly those developed in WP4.

The WP5 scientific program explicitly includes the development of a digital twin of the hybrid system, incorporating the fuel cell architectures and power electronics, for XiL validation.

This postdoctoral project therefore lies at the interface between WP4 and WP5. Its main objective is to build, implement, and validate a Hardware-in-the-Loop validation chain based on Controller Hardware-in-the-Loop (C-HIL), and potentially Power Hardware-in-the-Loop (PHIL), for DC/DC architectures associated with multi-stack PEM fuel cell hybrid systems intended for heavy-duty mobility.

Activity

General Objective
The objective of the postdoctoral project is to develop a complete real-time validation methodology, based on Model-in-the-Loop (MIL), Software-in-the-Loop (SIL), and Hardware-in-the-Loop (HIL), for power electronics architectures associated with single- and multi-stack PEM fuel cell hybrid systems. The work will focus particularly on implementing real-time models of DC/DC converters, fuel cells, storage systems, and loads, and on validating their control systems under both healthy and faulty operating conditions.

The main experimental platforms considered are OPAL-RT OP4512, Typhoon HIL 402/602, and MicroLabBox, the latter potentially acting as an FPGA-based external controller in a C-HIL configuration. The detailed WP5 description explicitly refers to XiL validation of a multi-stack system composed of two fuel cell stacks, power converters (TLBC/MTL2BC type), and a load, operating in closed loop on OPAL-RT and Typhoon HIL targets, with a MicroLabBox used to implement the control algorithms.

Scientific Challenges
The work carried out during the postdoctoral appointment will address several major scientific challenges.

The first challenge concerns real-time modelling of power electronics architectures. Detailed switching models are required to analyse electrical stresses, current ripple, semiconductor faults, and control strategies. However, their real-time execution may be complex and require very small simulation time steps. Model optimization is therefore necessary.

The second challenge concerns multi-scale coupling between the converter, fuel cell, storage system, load, and Energy Management System (EMS). HYSYSPEM deliverable D5.1 has shown that 0D models and reduced-order models (ROMs) are essential to make PEM fuel cell hybrid systems compatible with real-time constraints and HIL prototyping.

The third challenge concerns validation of control strategies in the presence of faults. The work must cover not only healthy operation, but also power-component failures and converter reconfiguration strategies, thereby maintaining continuity of service or an acceptable degraded operating mode.

The fourth challenge concerns consistency between MIL, SIL, and HIL prototyping approaches. Deliverable D5.1 emphasizes that the XiL methodology relies on a progressive MIL → SIL → HIL workflow, with model adaptation, order reduction, selection of fixed-step solvers, and verification of code generation.

Detailed Scientific Objectives
The successful candidate will have the following main responsibilities:
- Formalize HIL use cases for the DC/DC architectures developed in HYSYSPEM: single-stack, two-stack, and multi-stack systems, representative heavy-duty mobility loads, and healthy and degraded operating modes.
- Develop or adapt real-time models of the DC/DC converters selected in the project, including TLBC, MTL2BC, or parallel-cascade architectures depending on the targeted application (land or inland-waterway transport), following the HYSYSPEM nomenclature, with several fidelity levels: averaged model, switching model, fault model, and C-HIL-compatible model.
- Integrate the fuel cell, battery, DC bus, and load models from the HYSYSPEM digital twin developed in Task 5.1, ensuring real-time compatibility with OPAL-RT and Typhoon HIL.
- Implement the associated control laws: fuel-cell current regulation, DC-bus voltage regulation, phase-current balancing, possible floating-voltage balancing, dynamic limitation of fuel-cell stresses, and coordination with the EMS.
- Validate fault diagnosis and fault-tolerant control strategies: detection, isolation, reconfiguration, power redistribution between phases or stacks, post-fault operation, and analysis of residual performance.
- Build a reproducible HIL validation methodology, including test scenarios, performance indicators, stability criteria, real-time constraints, robustness to load variations, and MIL/SIL/HIL comparison procedures.
- Publish the research results in an international peer-reviewed journal with an impact factor.
- Contribute to the preparation of the WP5 project deliverable.



Expected Outcomes
At the end of the postdoctoral appointment, the expected outcomes are:
- an operational HIL platform for DC/DC architectures associated with PEM fuel cell hybrid systems;
- closed-loop validation of converter control strategies under healthy operating conditions;
- HIL validation of fault and reconfiguration scenarios;
- a MIL/SIL/HIL methodology transferable to different project architectures;
- a direct contribution to demonstrating the robustness, availability, and continuity of service of multi-stack PEM fuel cell systems for heavy-duty mobility;
- an experimental and methodological basis for future PHIL validation or reduced-power test benches.

Your Profil

Skills

The candidate must hold a PhD in electrical engineering, power electronics, automatic control, embedded systems, or electrical energy systems.
Expected skills and knowledge:

- DC/DC power electronics;
- Converter modelling and control;
- Real-time simulation;
- MATLAB/Simulink;
- OPAL-RT, Typhoon HIL, or Speedgoat;
- Real-time implementation on DSP, FPGA, or MicroLabBox;
- Robust control or fault-tolerant control;
- Knowledge of PEM fuel cell systems would be appreciated;
- Ability to work within a national collaborative research project.

Your Work Environment

The postdoctoral research will be carried out within a close collaboration between IJL and FEMTO-ST, two of the eight laboratory partners involved in HYSYSPEM. The work will also be conducted in connection with the other project partners (CEA, IFPEN, LEMTA, AMPERE, IREENA).
The research will be conducted mainly in Nancy at IJL, with research visits to FEMTO-ST in Belfort. The timing and duration of these visits will be planned according to the experimental prototyping needs and the hardware platforms available at FEMTO-ST.

About Institut Jean Lamour :
The Institute Jean Lamour (IJL) is a joint research unit of CNRS and Université de Lorraine. Focused on materials and processes science and engineering, it covers: materials, metallurgy, plasmas, surfaces, nanomaterials and electronics.
By 2026, IJL has 243 permanent staff (34 researchers, 131 teacher-researchers, 78 IT-BIATSS) and 389 non-permanent staff (146 doctoral students, 43 post-doctoral students / contractual researchers and more than 200 trainees), from some seventy different nationalities.
Partnerships exist with 150 companies and our research groups collaborate with more than 30 countries throughout the world.
Its exceptional instrumental platforms are spread over 4 sites ; the main one is located on Artem campus in Nancy.

About Femto-st :
The FEMTO-ST Institute (Franche-Comté Electronics Mechanics Thermal Science and Optics – Sciences and Technologies) is a multidisciplinary public research laboratory in engineering and information sciences. It is a joint research unit (UMR 6174) under the supervision of the CNRS, Université Marie et Louis Pasteur (UMLP), SUPMICROTECH, and the Université de Technologie de Belfort-Montbéliard (UTBM). The Institute brings together more than 700 members and conducts both fundamental and applied research in a broad range of fields, including automatic control, computer science, energy, mechanics, micro- and nanosciences, optics, and time-frequency technologies. Its research activities address major scientific, technological and societal challenges, including energy and sustainable development, health technologies, micro- and nanotechnologies, digital sciences and artificial intelligence, and quantum technologies. Research at FEMTO-ST ranges from fundamental modelling and scientific investigation to experimental validation, technological development and transfer to industry. The Institute is located across several sites in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region, notably in Besançon, Belfort, Montbéliard and Sevenans.

Constraints and risks

The successful candidate will work with power systems and will therefore be required to comply with the applicable electrical safety rules and procedures.

Compensation and benefits

Compensation

3.072,00 € gross monthly

Annual leave and RTT

44 jours

Remote Working practice and compensation

Pratique et indemnisation du TT

Transport

Prise en charge à 75% du coût et forfait mobilité durable jusqu’à 300€

About the offer

About the CNRS

The CNRS is a major player in fundamental research on a global scale. The CNRS is the only French organization active in all scientific fields. Its unique position as a multi-specialist allows it to bring together different disciplines to address the most important challenges of the contemporary world, in connection with the actors of change.

CNRS

The research professions