(Invited) High Temperature Ionic Ceramics Fuel Cell to Power Unmanned Aerial Systems (UASs)

Small unmanned aerial systems (SUASs) have a great potential for numerous applications. The SUASs are light-weight, man-portable, and capable of delivering commercial products. Currently, small UASs are powered by lithium-ion batteries, however, flight endurance is limited and requires frequent charging battery due to low capacity and energy density. Numerous research and development efforts have focused on alternative power sources. These alternative power sources include technologies such as solar cells and hydrogen based polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells. In this presentation, we address a high temperature ionic ceramics fuel cell to power a ~20lbs unmanned aerial system for 8hrs (4x improvements over the competing battery technology).