Communications-Electronics Research , Development And Engineering Center Research Articles

Fuel Cells for Dismounted Warfighter Use

Communications-Electronics Research, Development, and Engineering Center (CERDEC) has been developing fuel cell power sources for the US military, including soldier borne applications in an austere environment with minimum access to resupply and vehicular transportation. These dismounted soldier applications require systems that are power and energy dense to minimize the load burden. A number of fuel cell products have been developed for these applications, and the performance of these systems are discussed. Significant advancements in power density and energy density have been made, resulting in increased relevance to users. Based on recent advances, it is anticipated that these fuel cells will be transitioned as a viable alternative to the incumbent power solutions upon successfully meeting cost, reliability and ergonomic targets.

Stark State wins Army funding to cut DOD fuel usage via SOFCs

The US Army Communications-Electronics Research, Development and Engineering Center (CERDEC) has awarded $1.7 million to Stark State College in Ohio, to further advance the commercialization of solid oxide fuel cell technology and develop a prototype system to reduce fuel consumption by the US Department of Defense.

Sense through the wall system development and design considerations

This paper presents system design challenges and issues with sensing through walls at different standoff distances and wall types. Efforts for developing sense through the wall (STTW) systems, such as those undertaken by the US Army Technology Objective (ATO) program, aim at providing the soldier with situational awareness information before breaching a building in a military operations in urban terrain (MOUT) environment. STTW capabilities also support law enforcement and search and rescue applications. Since 2002, extensive evaluations of STTW technologies, most notably those performed by the Communications Electronics, Research, Development and Engineering Center (CERDEC) Intelligence and Information Warfare Directorate (I2WD), have been made to determine which technology could be the most viable solution. After conducting comprehensive studies, I2WD initiated several Phase I efforts and Phase II efforts. The purpose behind both efforts was to develop various STTW technology demonstrators under a 5 year ATO. Many lessons learned during the development of Phase I systems were incorporated into the considerations for Phase II developments. This paper discusses design challenges and issues with sensing through walls at different standoff distances and wall types through lessons learned and results from modeling and simulations performed by the Army Research Laboratory.

Portable fuel cell systems for America’s army: technology transition to the field

The US Army Communications, Electronics Research Development and Engineering Center (CERDEC) envisions three thrust areas for portable fuel cell systems for military applications. These areas include soldier power (<500 W), sensor power (0–100 W), and auxiliary power units or APUs (0.5–10 kW). Soldier and sensor fuel cell systems may be man-portable/backpackable while APUs could be employed as squad battery chargers or as ‘Silent Watch’ APUs where low signature (acoustic, thermal, etc.) operation is a requirement. The Army’s research and development efforts are focusing on methods of either storing or generating hydrogen on the battlefield. Hydrogen storage technology is considered critical to small military and/or commercial fuel cell systems, and is being pursued in a host of commercial and government programs. CERDEC, in a joint effort with the Army Research Office (ARO) and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), is developing several promising hydrogen generating technologies. The goal of this program is a safe, reliable hydrogen source that can provide rates up to 100 W with an energy density of greater than 1000 Wh/kg. For larger fuel cell units (>500 W), it is imperative that the fuel cell power units be able to operate on fuels within the military logistics chain [DOD 4140.25-M, DOD Directive 4140.25 (1993)]. CERDEC is currently conducting research on catalysts and microchannel fuel reformers that offer great promise for the reforming of diesel and JP-8 fuels into hydrogen. In addition to research work on PEM fuel cells and enabling technologies, the Army is also conducting research on direct methanol and solid oxide fuel cells, and combined heat and power applications utilizing new high temperature fuel cells.

Fuel Cell Systems for the American Warfighter

Power generation and energy storage devices are essential components of the operational capabilities of the modern U. S. military. They are paramount to the tactical performance of advanced electronic systems such as Night Vision Goggles, GPS systems, and laser target designators. The modern “digitized” U.S. military relies extensively on these electronic technologies and others as they are fully integrated into combat environments. However, the demand for these electronic systems, as well as new tactical capabilities, is outpacing the supply of available power and energy devices. Recent studies from Iraq show that standard military power and energy systems, such as generators and batteries, were in high demand but short supply, which often limited operational speed and capabilities. In an effort to improve upon existing military power generation and energy storage devices, the Army’s Research, Development, and Engineering Centers (RDECs) are evaluating innovative technologies such as fuel cells for military applications. A variety of programs at the U.S. ARMY Communications-Electronics Research, Development, and Engineering Center (CERDEC) Fuel Cell lab are serving to fill the power and energy gap for soldier-based platforms. CERDEC serves as a test, evaluation, and program management center focused on transitioning integrated systems from the labs to the users. CERDEC has adopted a “systems of systems” approach to the development and testing of military fuel cell units and strives to develop completely packaged systems in order to rapidly transition fuel cell technology into the field. This paper will address current Army Communications-Electronics Research Development Engineering Center (CERDEC) fuel cell technology programs and their adaptation into military environments.

An analysis of hydrogen production from ammonia hydride hydrogen generators for use in military fuel cell environments

In an effort to simultaneously improve upon existing power storage and generation devices while supplying America’s war fighters with state-of-the-art equipment, the US military has focused on fuel cell technology for several military applications. These applications include soldier and sensor power (0–100 W) and auxiliary power units (500–3000 W). Over the past few years, the fuel cell industry has realized remarkable decreases in the size and weight of proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cell systems. However, a safe and affordable means of storing and generating hydrogen does not yet exist to justify their transition into the field. In order to assess the hydrogen storage capacity and hydrogen generation rates of ammonia (NH3) based systems, the US Army Communications-Electronics Research, Development, and Engineering Center (CERDEC), tested several ammonia hydride hydrogen generator systems built by Hydrogen Components Inc. (HCI).