Fuel cell power system options for Mars rovers

Fuel cells may offer an alternative as a power generation technology. These devices the energy stored in a fuel (mainly hydrogen, oxygen, methanol) into electricity and heat through an electrodynamical oxidisation process. They are not light dependent, they are reasonably mass efficient devices, are flight-proven outside of Europe (NASA’s Space Shuttle) and have a high efficiency. They can also be used for both mobile rovers and static landers on planetary surfaces as well as in space. They can be commonly used in hybrid configuration with other power system elements (e.g. solar arrays, batteries etc.)

The primary goal of this activity is to develop a power system simulation tool for Mars surface applications. This tool will aid in identifying the best hybrid configuration together with specific mission profiles and investigate which power system elements should be operated with a specific application. Input parameters of the software tool are considered application, simulation environment (within this activity, this environment is limited to the Mars surface), and the desired power system features. The software then adapts the system properties with respect to those parameters and to common user-defined optimisation criterion, for example mass performance optimisation.

In the medium-term timeframe, it is envisaged to have this tool available for terrestrial applications. Therefore, this activity aims at implementing a flexible tool that might be adapted to other environments and applications.

Executive Summary

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