From a Battery-Based to a PEM Fuel Cell-Based Propulsion Architecture on a Lightweight Full Electric Aircraft: A Comparative Numerical Study

Abstract

The aviation sector is firmly committed to reducing harmful emissions and electric propulsion promises to tackle both pollution and noise at the same time. More Electric Aircrafts are progressively giving way to full electric aircraft that are expected to represent the next revolution in aviation. As is known, electric propulsion can be based on different electrochemical sources; nowadays, the widely used systems are developed on lithium battery packs, especially in automotive, where requirements in terms of gravimetric and volumetric energy densities are not so stringent compared to the aeronautical sector. Systems based on hydrogen fuel cells exhibit better performance in terms of range and endurance. In this article, a numerical study is presented on a lightweight electric aircraft, whose battery-based architecture is converted to a fuel cell-based architecture with the contribution of a battery pack that essentially intervenes in the take-off phase and, in addition, of a pack of ultracapacitors to prevent high discharge rate of the battery. The final intent is to explore the range extension without an increase in maximum take-off weight. The lumped parameter numerical models of the two propulsion systems have been developed in Simcenter Amesim where a set of simulations has been launched. It is shown that even under the constraint on the maximum take-off weight a significant extension of the range is obtained when adopting an electric propulsion system based on hydrogen fuel cells.

Challenges and Solutions of Hydrogen Fuel Cells in Transportation Systems: A Review and Prospects

“…The batteries were used to overcome the fuel cells' lower power density. Marinaro et al [107] presented a numerical analysis of the propulsion system based on PEMFC as the primary power source as well as a battery backup and ultra-capacitor for a secondary energy source. The PEMFC unit was designed to meet continuous electrical loads during the cruising segment of the flight, and the battery pack was designed to provide an extra energy boost during take-off and climbing.…”

Implementation of Fuel Cells in Aviation from a Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul Perspective

“…For example, hydrogen is stored in metal hydride cylinders, while the oxygen is stored in liquefied form in submarine applications [65], a completely different approach from the previously discussed solution for aircraft. Specific layouts for commercial aviation PEMFC systems are, for example, described in Schröder et al [27], Campanari et al [34], Correa et al [76], Lapeña-Rey et al [77], while An et al [72], Marinaro et al [78], Suewatanakul et al [79], Kim and Kwon [80], Bradley et al [81] describe layouts for smaller unmanned aerial vehicles.…”

Performance and Weight Parameters Calculation for Hydrogen- and Battery-Powered Aircraft Concepts

“…In 2017, Frosina et al [15] developed a simple model to evaluate the performance of a light aircraft equipped with a hybrid-electric propulsion system. Marinaro et al [16], in their article, present a numerical study of a light electric aircraft whose architecture based on batteries is converted to an architecture based on fuel cells with the contribution of a battery pack that essentially intervenes in the take-off phase and, in addition, of a pack of ultracapacitors to prevent a high discharge rate of the battery. The final intent is to explore the range extension without an increase in maximum take-off weight.…”