WSEAS Transactions on Environment and Development
Print ISSN: 1790-5079, E-ISSN: 2224-3496
Volume 14, 2018
Evaluations on Hydrogen Fuel Cells as a Source of Energy for Specific Operations Category Civil RPAS Systems
Authors: , ,
Abstract: This paper is on the evaluation of hydrogen fuel cells as a mean to enhance Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems performances in terms of reachable range and endurance to integrate them into controlled airspaces operatively and safely. RPAS systems are raising deep interest within the civil aeronautical community for their advantages like, among the other issues, preserving human operators from safety risks in a variety of aerial operations. The European Aviation Safety Authority is elaborating a risk based concept of operations for which, RPAS sorties will be classified into open, specific or certified category operations according to the associated level of risk (from low to high level respectively). Among these categories, RPAS systems capable of specific level operations can represent concretely the kind of RPAS really capable of operational integration into controlled airspaces. Starting from these premises, this paper has been developed on the evaluation of hybrid propulsion systems based on hydrogen fuel cells as a possible source of power to enhance range and endurance of RPAS systems to operate into controlled airspaces. Main steps to size a fuel cell system to feed electrical motors of a fixed wing RPAS capable of specific operations category are listed and briefly described in this article. Then, a more extensive parametric model of a fuel cell power line based on operative and safety requirements for medium range/medium endurance RPAS systems is presented and discussed. Finally, main concerns related to the use of hydrogen are listed and discussed laying the basis for future development of this study.
Search Articles
Keywords: Controlled Airspaces, Endurance, Hydrogen Fuel Cell, Integration, Parametric Model, Range, Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems (RPAS), Safety
Pages: 102-111
WSEAS Transactions on Environment and Development, ISSN / E-ISSN: 1790-5079 / 2224-3496, Volume 14, 2018, Art. #10