This work investigates the integration of Solid Oxide Fuel Cells (SOFCs) and a small methanol/nitromethane fueled piston engine as a prospective hybrid powertrain for small Unmanned Aerial Systems (UASs). The increased chemical energy density of a liquid fuel when compared to traditional batteries, along with ease of storage, accessibility, and refuel time make the use of a liquid fuel powered UAS preferable when compared to battery only power UAS’.

Currently small UAS’ (up to 20 lb. max gross take-off weight) are of increasing interest as a research area, as they have a wide application to a variety of fields. UAS’ are currently being used for precision agricultural crop management and water resource visual inspection. UAS’ are a cost effective avenue to survey water resources and track water runoff that is contaminating water resources. UAS’ can be easily automated and fitted with sensors and cameras capable of providing actionable feedback to the user. The use of UAS’ for land management and survey is expected to continue to expand. However, nearly all UAS’ are powered by a typical lithium polymer battery pack, giving an average endurance of approximately twenty minutes. This is acceptable to most hobbyists and for short filming duration; however, it limits UAS’ to only being able to be operated in close proximity to the user. Current power plants for UAS’ are not suited for long duration missions, such as the survey of water resources. Therefore, the development of a hybrid power plant is crucial for UAS’ to be utilized to their full potential as a survey tool.

This work introduces a small internal combustion engine to act as a partial oxidation fuel reformer, producing high temperature exhaust and syngas. The exhaust of this engine is then analyzed as a fuel source for traditional SOFC’s. This work indicates that the combination of a methanol/nitromethane powered engine and SOFC’s have the potential to act as a hybrid powertrain to extend the endurance and range of small Unmanned Aerial Systems.  


Advancements of a Piston Engine and Electrochemical Combined Hybrid System for Unmanned Aerial Systems

Division / Sponsors: 
Power Division & Nuclear Engineering Division (NED)

Power Conference
Paper Proceedings: https://asmedigitalcollection.asme.org/POWER/POWER2020/volume/83747

International Conference on Nuclear Engineering
Paper Proceedings: https://asmedigitalcollection.asme.org/ICONE/ICONE2020/volume/83761

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