With a goal of developing a hydrogen fuel cell powered multi-rotor UAS, Project RACHEL recently eclipsed its original test flight target of 60 minutes with a five-kilogram payload, as the purpose-built fuel cell powered UAS flew for an uninterrupted 70 minutes carrying a five-kilogram payload.

The flight was completed using a UAS that had less than a 20-kilogram maximum take-off mass, using a six-liter cylinder containing hydrogen gas compressed to 300 bar.

Supported by Innovate UK, Project RACHEL is led by Productiv, a venture engineering company, on behalf of BATCAM, a UAS filming specialist based in the United Kingdom.

The UAS is powered by fuel cells from Intelligent Energy, which possesses a great amount of expertise and a proven track record in producing some of the world’s lightest and most power-dense fuel cell stacks for commercial UAS.

“The advantages of fuel cells over batteries for our customers are clear; fast refuel, no vibration, quiet operation, zero emission at point of use and three times more flight time than batteries,” explains David Woolhouse, CEO at Intelligent Energy.

“Fuel cells are a game-changer for the commercial UAV market.”

Project RACHEL is expected to be complete in early 2019, with BATCAM conducting real-world end-user trials. The involved entities say that the successful completion of the project will provide great benefits for industries using UAS commercially, including sectors such as mining, agriculture and emergency services.

The integration work for the project has been completed by Intelligent Energy, while BATCAM has advised on design requirements, project targets and has piloted the test flights.

“I congratulate all partners on this fantastic achievement,” says Jon Hurndall, CEO of BATCAM.

“It is great to see product innovation and continued development with hydrogen fuel cells for UAVs – these represent a viable alternative to Lithium Polymer batteries which are not only difficult and costly to transport internationally but largely inefficient in comparison to hydrogen.”