This study aims to reveal the mechanism of variable fan speed control in Open cathode PEM fuel cell (OC-PEMFC) by the experiments, which analyze the effects of variable fan speed on the operating parameters under different fuel cell loads. The operating parameters are cell temperature, stack voltage, voltage uniformity, and parasitic power. The results reveal that the fan speed has strong effects on the operating parameters: (1) it affects the temperature distribution and overheats the middle cells of fuel cell stack, especially, when it operates at high power; (2) it affects the variation trend of the voltage under different loads; (3) it affects the voltage uniformity, which can be improved via forced convection; (4) it affects the system efficiency due to the parasitic load consumed by the fan. Considering the varying effects of these operating parameters on performance, durability and system efficiency under different fuel cell loads, the variable fan speed control should adapt the variation of fuel cell loads and weigh multiple operating parameters. (C) 2019 Hydrogen Energy Publications LLC. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.