Design and Construction of a LT-PEM Fuel Cell System for Aviation Application

Abstract

Fuel cell technology has gained considerable attention as an alternative power source for mobility applications. Fuel cell systems are already integrated in ground applications like trucks, cars, and busses. One reason is, that they have the potential to provide an environmentally friendly power supply solution compared to traditional combustion engines. Moreover, fuel cell drive trains offer several potential benefits, such as improved energy efficiency, noise reduction and no local emissions and even zero CO2 emission if they are fueled with green hydrogen. On the other hand, there are several key challenges associated with the integration of fuel cell technology into mobility applications, such as safety, durability, weight, and cost. These challenges become even more difficult when flight applications are considered, due to the higher .We present our research of a fuel cell system design, which is constructed to power a one seat airplane, the Antares E2. This system will utilize compressed Hydrogen as fuel to power up to six electronic motors via an electric bus. The airplane needs 90 kW of power mainly for its electric propulsion and can be operated up to a ceiling altitude of 6500 m (21,300 ft). For redundancy and safety, it is necessary to split the power output to at least two systems. Therefore, each system must have a power output of 45 kW. The fuel cell system's design takes various factors into account, such as lightweight and compact components as well as safety analysis to ensure the operation in flight. To reach aviation standards a full FMEA analysis is conducted, to calculate the risks of operating the systems on an airplane. The goal is to have a fuel cell system which is eligible for operating an aircraft. We want to present first results of our research, consisting of first design to ground operation and include some simulations for flight conditions.A successful development and certification of this fuel cell system would represent a significant milestone in the pursuit of sustainable aviation technologies, since it would be one of the first system which features approved airworthiness. This technology has the potential to reduce emissions and noise pollution associated with traditional combustion engines. Further research and development efforts are required to optimize the performance and reduce the cost of this fuel cell system.This work is funded by the Federal Ministry for Digital and Transport (BMDV) in the project “H2GA” under the grant 03B10707. The authors declare that the opinions expressed in this submission are their own and are based on a thorough review of existing scientific literature.