丁玉杰 Likes:

Affiliation of Author(s):

冶金工程学院

Journal:

Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews

Key Words:

Proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC); Unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV); Power-to-weight ratio; Thermal management; Heat dissipation technology

Abstract:

Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells (PEMFCs) have drawn tremendous attentions in unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) application due to advantages of high energy conversion efficiency, low noise, and zero emissions. However, the heat dissipation issues severely restrict the achievement of high power-to-weight ratio goals. This paper systematically reviews the research progress on the heat dissipation technologies of PEMFCs for UAVs. Aiming at the system composition and power characteristics of fuel cell UAVs, the heat generation characteristics and heat dissipation requirements of fuel cell systems are analyzed under the constraint of high power-to-weight ratio. For the dual requirements of lightweight design and efficient heat dissipation in UAVs, the current thermal management technologies mainly include air cooling, passive cooling, liquid cooling, and phase-change cooling. These heat dissipation methods have their own limitations: The air cooling and passive cooling feature simple structures, but are only suitable for low-power scenarios. Although liquid cooling and phase-change cooling have strong heat dissipation capabilities, the additional equipment increases the weight, thereby reducing the power-to-weight ratio. Future research should focus on improvements in materials and heat dissipation methods, including the selection of lightweight materials (such as pyrolytic graphite sheets) and high-efficiency coolants (such as nanoparticles), as well as the exploration of microchannel heat dissipation, new types of pulsating heat pipes, low-pressure spray cooling, composite heat dissipation, and the application of liquid hydrogen tanks and high-temperature PEMFCs. This will enable efficient lightweight heat dissipation and promote the wide application of high power-to-weight ratio PEMFC in UAVs.

Co-author:

刘慧泽

First Author:

li linbo,fangzhao,dingyujie

Indexed by:

Journal paper

Volume:

242/117316

ISSN No.:

1364-0321

Translation or Not:

no

Date of Publication:

2026-08-15