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Copyright  2009
 
Last Update: 07/30/2009
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BASF Innovations

Above the clouds with the fuel cell

Celtec

The Antares DLR-H2 motor glider is the first manned aircraft to be powered exclusively by hydrogen. The fuel cell system that makes this possible is hidden in the under-wing pods. Here the electricity for the on-board electronics and electric motor is generated. The heart of the system are membrane electrode assemblies developed by BASF Fuel Cell.

The Antares DLR-H2 was built by the German Aerospace Center (DLR) and the Lange Aviation company to test the fuel cell’s potential for aviation applications. BASF is participating in the pilot project to promote an innovative energy technology which will really be taking off in the near future, and not just on board aircrafts. In times of scarce energy resources the fuel cell helps maintain security of supply because hydrogen can be generated in a wide variety of ways: using wind or solar energy and from natural gas or diesel. The only waste gas the fuel cell emits is water vapor. It is also much more efficient than conventional energy technologies. With approximately the same weight, Antares can fly 750 kilometers with a fuel cell and only around 100 kilometers with a battery.

In the membrane electrode assemblies (MEAs) developed by BASF Fuel Cell, chemical energy generated by the reaction between oxygen and hydrogen into water is converted directly into electrical power. Marketed under the brand name Celtec® , the MEAs contain the world’s first commercially available membrane for fuel cells that allows operating temperatures of up to 180°C. To make a fuel cell system capable of producing sufficient electricity for powering the Antares motor glider, several cells are combined into a fuel cell stack. The challenge facing the developers is to keep the fuel cell system as lightweight as possible.
More about the fuel cell in Science around us
The project partners presented the Antares DLR-H2 motor glider to the public during the first official flight at the Hamburg-Fuhlsbüttel airport on July 7. (photo)
The project partners presented the Antares DLR-H2 motor glider to the public during the first official flight at the Hamburg-Fuhlsbüttel airport on July 7.

 

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Several cells are combined to form a fuel stack. (© Graphic arts BASF)

Several cells are combined to form a fuel stack.

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