the first hydrogen fuel cell was created in 1842.
when was the first hydrogen fuel cell created?
1842
the first references to hydrogen fuel cells appeared in 1838. in a letter dated october 1838 but published in the december 1838 edition of "the london and edinburgh philosophical magazine and journal of science", welsh physicist and barrister william grove wrote about the development of his first crude fuel cells. he used a combination of sheet iron, copper and porcelain plates, and a solution of sulphate of copper and dilute acid. in a letter to the same publication written in december 1838 but published in june 1839, german physicist christian friedrich schönbein discussed the first crude fuel cell that he had invented. his letter discussed current generated from hydrogen and oxygen dissolved in water. grove later sketched his design, in 1842, in the same journal. the fuel cell he made used similar materials to today's phosphoric acid fuel cell.
fuel cell
the hyfish hydrogen fuel cell system had some unique attributes. it was ultra light and compact, which helped to keep the uav's weight to 13.2 pounds. this fuel cell created no emissions, another great attribute, and consisted of polymer electrolyte. because of this, it was able to create one kilowatt of electrical power output. all in all, the fuel cell weighed a measly 6.6 pounds, which included its pressurized hydrogen tank. the fuel cell stack gave power to an impeller jet which enabled flight for about six minutes, despite the less than ideal weather conditions for such an experiment. this kind of technology is what is used in jet skis. the hyfish excited scientists and made history because it was the first fast plane with jet wings to fly with only a hydrogen fuel cell and its only power source. it performed vertical climbs into the air, loops, circles, and various other aerial acrobatics and tricks while flying at extremely fast speeds reaching 124 miles per hour. george gu, president and ceo of horizon fuel cell technologies, verbally displayed his high hopes for the future of uavs: "we are confident that record-breaking 15 to 30 hour flight times are now within reach for small uavs, which would offer new and distruptive possibilities in the aviation industry." the hyfish development team included some notable and accomplished scientists and researchers. smartfish gmbh of bern, switzerland, developed the flight model. the gas-cell stack was designed and created by horizon fuel technologies in singapore. drukon, located in spitzkunnersdorf, germany, developed and oversaw the pressure-reducing valve. and finally, ainet in germany developed the building of forms.
hyfish