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Building a Hydrogen-Powered, Unmanned Aerial Vehicle
group of WSU students is building
A the first airplane fueled by liquid
hydrogen at a university. Researchers are
developing such vehicles with the goal of
flying them at extremely high altitudes for
days at a time.
Hydrogen-powered unmanned aerial
vehicles (UAVs) are of significant interest
because unlike satellites, they can
return to earth and be re-used, says
Jacob Leachman, assistant professor in
the School of Mechanical and Materials
Engineering who is leading the student
project. A hydrogen-powered craft is also
more environmentally friendly than those
depending on fossil fuels, with the only
waste product being water. The planes also
can stay aloft much longer than gasolinepowered
vehicles—up to 14 days without
needing to refuel. Such unmanned vehicles
have numerous applications, ranging
from weather monitoring to forestry and
military applications.
Working on the project since last June,
the students have begun building a prototype.
The plane, made of Styrofoam with a
carbon fiber wing spar, will weigh about 30
pounds with a 22-foot wingspan.
Leachman wanted to give students a
valuable, hands-on experience in developing
a cutting-edge technology.
“It’s a really exciting industry, and it
is projected to double in size in the next
decade,” he says.
With financial support from alumni
gifts, the group of mechanical and electrical
engineering students is first developing
a battery-powered plane. They will then
move to using a hydrogen fuel cell that runs
on hydrogen gas and then on liquid hydrogen.
The idea is similar to a hybrid car, says
Leachman, but instead of moving from battery
power to gasoline, the plane will move
toward being powered by hydrogen.
Leachman conducts research in the
storage and preparation of cryogenic
fuels, or fuels like hydrogen and natural
gas that have to be stored at extremely
low temperatures to remain liquids. He
has developed a small pressurizer that he
thinks might be useful for an unmanned,
WSU students working on a hydrogen powered UAV
hydrogen-powered, high altitude plane.
NASA designs of the HALE (high-altitude,
long endurance) planes currently use a
cumbersome 400 pound helium tank that
serves to pressurize the hydrogen so that
it can be used for fuel. Leachman would
like to replace the 400-pound tank with
his pressurizer that is a little smaller than
a pen. He asked the students to work with
him to develop a way to test the idea.
The biggest challenge for the project is
thermal energy management—using heat
exchangers to heat the hydrogen up from
minus 421 degrees Fahrenheit to room
temperature.
“It’s an engineering and design problem.
There’s no problem with the science, and
the engineering is very solvable,” he says.
“It’s just a difficult thermal management
problem.”
The project provides the opportunity for
WSU to do something that no one else is
doing at a university, says Leachman.
“We’re competing for the national
championship—and we’re the only ones
competing,” he says.
“This is why I’m here—to expand my
knowledge and apply what I’m learning and
to be part of something that could be huge,”
adds Eric Barrow, a senior in mechanical
engineering who signed onto the project.
With help from Ryan Brodie, a materials
science alumnus and materials process
engineer at Pratt & Whitney-Rocketdyne,
the researchers recently received major
support in the form of equipment from
the NASA Marshall Space Flight Center
to develop a hydrogen testing laboratory.
They are developing the lab in WSU’s
Thermal Fluids Research Building. The
new laboratory will allow the researchers
to conduct hydrogen energy research and
experiments in areas such as embrittlement,
a process in which hydrogen diffuses
into metals and can cause them to become
brittle. Embrittlement is a concern in
rocketry, fuel tanks, and general hydrogen
system design.
“This is a unique experience for a highly
motivated team,” says Leachman. “If
successful, the accomplishment will be
self-evident.” ❚
If you’re interested in supporting the project,
please contact Don Shearer, associate director
of advancement for the College of Engineering
and Architecture, at don.shearer@wsu.edu or
509-335-4733.
School of Mechanical and Materials Engineering | Spring 2013 11