In “Fuel Cells: A Real Option for Unmanned Aerial Vehicles Propulsion” some unclarities were detected in several figures shown in Table 2. To clarify the table, for the Horizon Energy Systems/AEROPAK, the weight (3.5 kg) has been replaced only by the FC weight (0.47 kg); therefore, the FC power density changes from 57.14 W/kg to 425.53 W/kg. Also, the FC power of PROTONEX/ProCore VI is changed from 800 W (peak power) to 280 W (output power), which implies FC power density of 686.27 W/kg.
We provide the updated Table 2.
Table 2.
Examples of PEM fuel cells for UAV applications. Specifications from manufacturers' websites and [18].
| Fuel type | Manufacturer/model | FC weight (kg) | FC power (W) | FC power density (W/kg) | Application/remarks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chemical hydride cartridge | Horizon Energy Systems/AEROPAK | 0.470 | 200 | 425.53 | IAI Bird Eye 650 LE UAV 10 A-21 V nominal 600 W with LiPo batteries; cartridge type I: 446 Wh/kg; type II: 607 Wh/kg Also used in Bluebird Boomerang Mini-UAV and Elbit Skylark UAV |
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| Sodium borohydride | Protonex/UAV C-250 | 1.2 | 250 | 208.33 | 500 W peak power with batteries Fuel 833 Wh/kg hydrated Cartridge 1.8 kg, 1.5 l |
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| Compressed H2 | Protonex/Spider Lion UAV (NRL) | 1.77 | 95 | 53.67 | Spider Lion Micro-UAV 2005, 3-hour flight |
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| Compressed H2 | Protonex/Ion Tiger UAV (NRL) | 1 | 550 | 550 | Ion Tiger UAV; 550 W FC (1 kg + 3.6 kg tank 0.5 kg H2), 26 h 1 m flight record in 2009 Powerplant total weight (including fuel and cooling) = 6 kg. Specific energy 1300 Wh/kg; 26 h endurance |
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| Compressed H2 | EnergyOr/EO-310-XLE | 3.95 | 310 | 78.48 | Radiant Coral Technologies demonstrator UAV 1st flight February 25, 2013 Hybrid; the weight includes auxiliary systems |
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| Compressed H2 | EnergyOr/EO-210-XLE | 3.65 | 250 | 68.49 | The weight includes auxiliary systems |
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| Compressed H2 | DLR/HyFish UAV | 3 | 1000 | 333.33 | HyFish UAV 2007, 0.5-hour flight |
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| Compressed H2 | UTRC/Gen1 | 1.78 | 1200 | 674.16 | Helicopter UAV (October 11, 2009) FC (675 W/kg) Powerplant (500 W/kg) Minicopter Maxi Joker; 20 m flight |
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| Compressed H2 | BCS/BCS500 | 6.35 | 500 | 78.74 | Georgia Tech University UAV 2006 Powerplant weight 12 kg |
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| Compressed H2 | Horizon Energy Systems/H-100 | 1.36 | 100 | 73.53 | Johannesburg University Piper Cub UAV |
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| Sodium borohydride | Protonex/ProCore VI | 0.408 | 280 | 686.27 | AeroVironment Puma UAV 2008 Endurance 9 h |
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| Compressed H2 | Horizon Fuel Cell Technologies | 5 | 650 | 130 | Pterosaur Micro-UAV 2008. Oklahoma State and California State Universities 15.5 h endurance; FC 480 Wh/kg |
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| Liquid H2 | NASA/Sensor Technology/AeroVironment | — | — | — | AeroVironment Global Observer (GO-1); 65,000 ft alt., 7-day endurance; PL 180 kg |