Military & Aerospace - Proton OnSite

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Regenerative Fuel Cells The <strong>Military</strong> & <strong>Aerospace</strong> Team within the Technology Generation group designs, develops, models and builds technology solutions based on our core proton exchange membrane (PEM) technology. We meet the technical needs of a diverse customer base that includes civilian and military government agencies and commercial aerospace partners. The primary needs that Distributed Energy Systems fulfills for our customers are supplying lightweight energy storage systems, hydrogen gas for fuel, or oxygen gas for breathing or as an oxidizing agent. We meet these needs by applying our high pressure water-electrolysis cells and high specific energy Regenerative Fuel Cell (RFC) energy storage systems. An RFC decouples energy storage from energy conversion, which frees the RFC from the size and weight penalties of batteries. We have capability with Unitized and Discrete RFC energy storage systems to optimize mass, volume, and roundtrip efficiency for a variety of mission scenarios. Regenerative Fuel Cell System Features & Benefits • Air-independent operation • Compatible with energy harvesting (solar, wind, wave) • Low signature • Enables long duration missions • Enables persistent surveillance • Enables loitering capability • Enables long-term data collection for earth science missions Regenerative Fuel Cell System How does it work? A closed-loop RFC is a critical energy storage system when ambient oxygen is not available. Both hydrogen and oxygen are generated by the electrolyzer and stored. A special fuel cell capable of 100% utilization of the hydrogen and oxygen consumes the reactants and generates DC electricity and product water.
Features & Benefits Application Specific Features & Benefits Satellites • Integrated energy storage and propulsion system using gaseous hydrogen and oxygen • Easily refuelable spacecraft with only low pressure water Electrolysis Stack Hydrogen High altitude aircraft • High specific energy (400-1000 Wh/kg), 2-5 times higher than advanced batteries, when configured with lightweight composite pressure vessels Unmanned undersea vehicles • High volume energy density when configured with metal hydride storage • Dry-connection recharge • No surfacing, no snorkeling Logistics fuel • Turns water, an existing logistics stream, into hydrogen fuel for vehicles, primary and backup power systems • Generated from renewable resources such as solar, wind and wave energy Oxygen Fuel Cell Stack Water An RFC, combined with metal hydride hydrogen storage and high pressure oxygen storage, is a competitive energy storage system for underwater vehicles. A concept design for a 21-inch diameter unmanned underwater vehicle can achieve faster recharge than the best batteries. Other applications • Generation of oxygen and/or hydrogen in the absence of air Case Study High Altitude Airship Project The Missile Defense Agency is currently supporting the development of a stratospheric airship long-endurance unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV). The mission of the High Altitude Airship program is to provide a multi-purpose platform to support homeland defense, deployable communications for regional conflicts, special operations, and joint theater operations. RFC technology enables the long endurance capability, as batteries are just too heavy. The airship would operate its payload and simultaneously recharge the reactant storage tanks on power provided by a photovoltaic array during daylight hours. Through the night hours, the stored reactants will be fed to a fuel cell to power the payload. Such a system can remain in flight, on station 24-hours per day for months or years at a time. Illustration courtesy of Missile Defense Agency
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Military & Aerospace - Proton OnSite

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