1. Fuel Cells as Naval Prime Movers: Feasibility, Advances and Implications
- Author
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Sushma Dave and Akshat Mathur
- Subjects
Flexibility (engineering) ,Electric power system ,Service (systems architecture) ,Engineering ,business.industry ,Systems engineering ,Submarine ,Fuel cells ,Propulsion ,business ,Alternative fuels - Abstract
Fuel cell technology is increasingly making its forays into the maritime domain. There is a worldwide demand for increased shipboard power and curtailed overall emissions which are particularly evident in the case of warships. Therefore, many attempts have been made across the globe to integrate various kinds of fuel cells into naval propulsion systems for both surface and submersible vessels with varying degrees of successes. Fuel cells are a promising solution offering great operational flexibility along with environmental, economic and military benefits and advantages. However, a majority of the studies or attempts to introduce fuel cells on (war)ships have focused on sating ship service power requirements rather than developing a full power system with a partial, but notable, exception of the fuel cells-based Air Independent Propulsion systems employed by a handful of submarine types around the world. This paper aims to present a review of the technologies and studies focusing on the development of fuel cells for naval applications. Since warships place stringent and more demanding requirements on their equipment, they allow for a more rigorous examination of developing technologies and are hence preferably considered for this study.
- Published
- 2020
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