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Related: About this forumNRL Shatters Endurance Record for Small (Fuel Cell-)Electric UAV
http://www.nrl.navy.mil/media/news-releases/2013/nrl-shatters-endurance-record-for-small-electric-uav[font face=Serif][font size=5]NRL Shatters Endurance Record for Small Electric UAV[/font]
05/09/2013 07:00 EDT - 45-13r
Contact: Public Affairs Office, (202) 767-2541
[font size=3]Researchers at the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory flew their fuel cell powered Ion Tiger UAV for 48 hours and 1 minute on April 16-18 by using liquid hydrogen fuel in a new, NRL-developed, cryogenic fuel storage tank and delivery system. This flight shatters their previous record of 26 hours and 2 minutes set in 2009 using the same vehicle, but with gaseous hydrogen stored at 5000 psi.
Liquid hydrogen is three times denser than 5000-psi compressed hydrogen. The cryogenic liquid is stored in a lightweight tank, allowing more hydrogen to be carried onboard to increase flight endurance. Success in flight requires developing a high quality, lightweight insulated flight dewar for the cryogenic fuel, plus matching the boil off of the cryogenic hydrogen to the vehicle fuel consumption.
"Liquid hydrogen coupled with fuel-cell technology has the potential to expand the utility of small unmanned systems by greatly increasing endurance while still affording all the benefits of electric propulsion," said Dr. Karen Swider-Lyons, NRL principal investigator.
Although long endurance is possible with conventional, hydrocarbon-fueled systems, these are usually loud, inefficient, and unreliable in this aircraft class. Similarly, small, electric, battery-powered systems are limited to endurances of only several hours.
[/font][/font]
05/09/2013 07:00 EDT - 45-13r
Contact: Public Affairs Office, (202) 767-2541
[font size=3]Researchers at the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory flew their fuel cell powered Ion Tiger UAV for 48 hours and 1 minute on April 16-18 by using liquid hydrogen fuel in a new, NRL-developed, cryogenic fuel storage tank and delivery system. This flight shatters their previous record of 26 hours and 2 minutes set in 2009 using the same vehicle, but with gaseous hydrogen stored at 5000 psi.
Liquid hydrogen is three times denser than 5000-psi compressed hydrogen. The cryogenic liquid is stored in a lightweight tank, allowing more hydrogen to be carried onboard to increase flight endurance. Success in flight requires developing a high quality, lightweight insulated flight dewar for the cryogenic fuel, plus matching the boil off of the cryogenic hydrogen to the vehicle fuel consumption.
"Liquid hydrogen coupled with fuel-cell technology has the potential to expand the utility of small unmanned systems by greatly increasing endurance while still affording all the benefits of electric propulsion," said Dr. Karen Swider-Lyons, NRL principal investigator.
Although long endurance is possible with conventional, hydrocarbon-fueled systems, these are usually loud, inefficient, and unreliable in this aircraft class. Similarly, small, electric, battery-powered systems are limited to endurances of only several hours.
[/font][/font]
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NRL Shatters Endurance Record for Small (Fuel Cell-)Electric UAV (Original Post)
OKIsItJustMe
May 2013
OP
wtmusic
(39,166 posts)1. Awesome. Our noisy drones were allowing some suspected terrorists to escape destruction.
Oops, "UAV". Did I say drone?
OKIsItJustMe
(19,938 posts)2. And, god knows, the technology isn’t useful for anything else.
(Right?)
I mean, just because its more practical to power one of these with a hydrogen fuel cell, rather than batteries
wtmusic
(39,166 posts)3. Um, no. It's not more "practical".
It's much more expensive, more convoluted, more involved. Just like pretty much anything involved with fuel cells and cryogenic liquids.
(Right?)
OKIsItJustMe
(19,938 posts)4. Apparently you didn’t read the OP
http://www.nrl.navy.mil/media/news-releases/2013/nrl-shatters-endurance-record-for-small-electric-uav
Researchers at the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory flew their fuel cell powered Ion Tiger UAV for 48 hours and 1 minute on April 16-18 by using liquid hydrogen fuel
small, electric, battery-powered systems are limited to endurances of only several hours.
Researchers at the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory flew their fuel cell powered Ion Tiger UAV for 48 hours and 1 minute on April 16-18 by using liquid hydrogen fuel
small, electric, battery-powered systems are limited to endurances of only several hours.