Altitude Testing of Fuel Cell Systems for Aircraft Applications

Chang, Vernon W.; Gallman, John W.

doi:10.4271/2004-01-3200

Cited by 7 publications

(11 citation statements)

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“…Only a few studies have reported operation of fuel cells at high altitudes with the specific intent of quantifying the effect of low pressure on performance. For example, Cessna and Boeing tested a 1.2 kW-rated Ballard Nexa proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) system at pressure altitudes up to 5000 ft (1524 m) and showed a net power decrease to 970 from 1300 W at sea level [27]. Another Ballard system was tested by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in Mexico City, Mexico [7400 ft (2256 m)].…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Performance of Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cell at High-Altitude Conditions

Pratt

Brouwer

Samuelsen

2007

Journal of Propulsion and Power

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The effects of oxygen concentration and ambient pressure on fuel cell performance are explored both in theory and in experiment. For fuel cells in general the effect due to a change in oxygen concentration is shown to be fundamentally different than the effect due to a change in cathode pressure, even if partial pressure is held constant. For a proton exchange membrane fuel cell, a significant reason for this difference comes from the nature of mass diffusion processes in the fuel cell structure, which infers that there is an optimum fuel cell design (macroscale and microscale) for a given operating pressure and oxygen concentration. In the experimental work a proton exchange membrane fuel cell was subjected to varying atmospheric conditions from sea level to 53,500 ft (16,307 m) with results analyzed up to 35,000 ft (10,668 m). The results showed that at low current density operation a decrease in either cathode pressure or concentration led to an increase in irreversible losses associated with reaction kinetics (activation polarization) and confirmed the differing effects of cathode pressure and oxygen concentration. Consideration of all these effects enables both fuel cell-and system-level optimization of aeronautical fuel cell-based power systems.

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confidence: 99%

Performance of Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cell at High-Altitude Conditions

Pratt

Brouwer

Samuelsen

2007

Journal of Propulsion and Power

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“…As explained before, performance decline with altitude is expected due to ambient pressure decrease and due to air compressor efficiency drop [2,16,20]. In order to study the feasibility of integrating PEMFC systems to aircrafts, it is necessary to quantify this effect.…”

Section: Altitude Experimentsmentioning

confidence: 98%

“…The ENF-ICA project led by Politecnico di Torino demonstrated an aircraft powered by a fuel cell and Li-ion batteries [15]. Studies on the effects of air pressure decrease due to altitude on the performances of PEMFC systems have been led [2,16] and conclude to a power and efficiency decline as altitude is increased.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 98%

PEMFC application for aviation: Experimental and numerical study of sensitivity to altitude

Hordé¹,

Achard²,

Metkemeijer³

2012

International Journal of Hydrogen Energy

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“…Chang and Gallman have tested a complete fuel cell system based on Ballard`s NEXA modules under reduced pressures corresponding to a maximum altitude of 5000 ft (1). They verified in their tests that the power generating capability of the fuel cell decreased with exposure to increasing pressure altitudes.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Low Pressure Test Facility for Polymer Electrolyte Membrane Fuel Cells and First Measurements

2008

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The electrical power consumption will increase significantly in the next generations of aircraft. The use of fuel cells in aircraft allows a more environmentally friendly generation of electrical energy with a higher efficiency than the present electrical power generators in aircraft. Fuel cells in aircraft will be operated under special conditions and in particular the low pressures conditions are of interest. For this purpose at the DLR test facilities for polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells (PEFC) have been builtup and first experiments under low pressure conditions were performed. For a better understanding of the electrochemical behaviour, a single cell was operated at various pressures and the electrochemical performance was investigated in combination with locally resolved current density distribution measurements. Under low-pressure conditions the water balance in the fuel cell is the crucial factor to explain fuel cell performance.

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Altitude Testing of Fuel Cell Systems for Aircraft Applications

Cited by 7 publications

References 0 publications

Performance of Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cell at High-Altitude Conditions

Performance of Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cell at High-Altitude Conditions

PEMFC application for aviation: Experimental and numerical study of sensitivity to altitude

Low Pressure Test Facility for Polymer Electrolyte Membrane Fuel Cells and First Measurements

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