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System Analysis and Comparison Between a 2 MW Conventional Liquid Cooling System and a Novel Two-Phase Cooling System for Fuel Cell-Powered Aircraft

Author

Listed:
  • Henk Jan van Gerner

    (NLR—Royal Netherlands Aerospace Centre, 1059 CM Amsterdam, The Netherlands)

  • Tim Luten

    (NLR—Royal Netherlands Aerospace Centre, 1059 CM Amsterdam, The Netherlands)

  • William Resende

    (Airbus Commercial Aircraft, 22335 Hamburg, Germany)

  • Georg Mühlthaler

    (Airbus Commercial Aircraft, 22335 Hamburg, Germany)

  • Marcus-Benedict Buntz

    (Aerostack GmbH, 72581 Dettingen, Germany)

Abstract

Hydrogen-powered fuel cells are the preferred energy source for electric aircraft. However, for aircraft applications, it is of upmost importance to reduce the mass of the fuel cell system. A considerable amount of the total system mass is due to the fuel cell cooling system. In this paper, the analysis of a 2 MW cooling system for fuel cell-powered aircraft is discussed. A detailed comparison is made between a conventional liquid cooling system with ethylene glycol–water (EGW) and a novel two-phase cooling system that uses the evaporation of a liquid to remove waste heat from the fuel cells. For this novel two-phase cooling system, several refrigerants were analyzed, and methanol resulted in the lowest system mass. The mass of a liquid EGW system is 35% higher than for two-phase methanol with accumulator and 2.4 times higher than for two-phase methanol without accumulator. Because of this large mass benefit, a demonstrator for a two-phase methanol cooling system without accumulator with a capacity of 200 kW is currently being built.

Suggested Citation

  • Henk Jan van Gerner & Tim Luten & William Resende & Georg Mühlthaler & Marcus-Benedict Buntz, 2025. "System Analysis and Comparison Between a 2 MW Conventional Liquid Cooling System and a Novel Two-Phase Cooling System for Fuel Cell-Powered Aircraft," Energies, MDPI, vol. 18(4), pages 1-18, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jeners:v:18:y:2025:i:4:p:849-:d:1588871
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    2. Wang, Yun & Chen, Ken S. & Mishler, Jeffrey & Cho, Sung Chan & Adroher, Xavier Cordobes, 2011. "A review of polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells: Technology, applications, and needs on fundamental research," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 88(4), pages 981-1007, April.
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