Aircraft power plant with electric motor powered by fuel cell
AssigneePratt & Whitney Canada Corp.
InventorPierre Bertrand
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An aircraft power plant, has: an air mover for propelling an aircraft; an electric motor drivingly engaged with the air mover; a gas turbine engine having a compressor for pressurizing air, a combustor in which the pressurised air is mixed with fuel and ignited for generating combustion gases, and a turbine for extracting energy from the combustion gases; and a hydrogen fuel cell operatively connected to the electric motor for powering the electric motor with electricity generated by the hydrogen fuel cell, the hydrogen fuel cell operable to generate electricity using the air from the compressor and hydrogen from a source of hydrogen.
Claims17
An aircraft power plant, comprising:
- an air mover for propelling an aircraft;
- an electric motor drivingly engaged with the air mover;
- a gas turbine engine having a compressor for pressurizing air, a combustor in which the pressurised air is mixed with fuel and ignited for generating combustion gases, and a turbine for extracting energy from the combustion gases;
- a hydrogen fuel cell operatively connected to the electric motor for powering the electric motor with electricity generated by the hydrogen fuel cell, the hydrogen fuel cell operable to generate electricity using the air from the compressor and hydrogen from a source of hydrogen;
- a heat exchanger facilitating heat transfer from the hydrogen fuel cell to ambient air;
- and
- an ejector driving the ambient air through the heat exchanger, the ejector being driven using combustion gas exhausted from the gas turbine engine.
A method of driving an air mover for propelling an aircraft, the method comprising:
- operating a gas turbine engine;
- conveying compressed air extracted from the gas turbine engine to a hydrogen fuel cell;
- generating electricity with the hydrogen fuel cell using oxygen from the compressed air and hydrogen from a source of hydrogen onboard the aircraft;
- supplying the electricity generated by the hydrogen fuel cell to an electric motor drivingly engaged with the air mover;
- facilitating heat transfer from the hydrogen fuel cell to ambient air outside of the gas turbine engine with a heat exchanger;
- and
- driving the ambient air through the heat exchanger with an ejector driven using combustion gas exhausted from the gas turbine engine.
An aircraft power plant, comprising:
- an electric motor drivingly engaged with a load;
- a gas turbine engine;
- a hydrogen fuel cell operatively connected to the electric motor for powering the electric motor with electricity generated by the hydrogen fuel cell, the hydrogen fuel cell operable to generate the electricity using compressed air extracted from the gas turbine engine and hydrogen from a source of hydrogen;
- a heat exchanger facilitating heat transfer from the hydrogen fuel cell to ambient air outside of the gas turbine engine;
- and
- an ejector driving the ambient air through the heat exchanger, the ejector being driven using combustion gas exhausted from the gas turbine engine.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.