Portable Power Systems on the Battlefield Jonathan J. Miles, Associate Professor Department of Integrated Science & Technology James Madison University 28 September 2004

Who am I? Background Assistant/Associate Professor, ISAT, 1996/2000  Affiliated with Energy Academic Team Teach courses at all levels that involve applied sciences and engineering, energy technologies and issues Co-director, Infrared Development and Thermal Structures Laboratory (funded by NASA, NSF, industry) Director, JMU Office of the Virginia Wind Energy Collaborative (funded by U.S. DOE, VA DMME) Research Associate, Energy Research Center, Lehigh University, 1995  1996 Ph.D., Mechanical Engineering, University of Massachusetts at Amherst, 1994 B.A., Physics, Clark University, 1985 /

Define “portable” Webster defines as “capable of being carried.” Fuel is heavy, a limited resource in the field, and not easily transported. In theory, portable power production via solar- or wind-based technologies could reduce substantially fuel demands. In practice, are the sizes and operating profiles of conventional renewable energy systems practical for military operations?

Define “remote” Webster defines as “located out of the way.” The U.S. military today, and in the future, is active in Middle East hot spots (easy to advance, hard to hold, requires occupation of urban areas); preemptive strikes/special ops in “borderline” countries and remote areas; humanitarian missions to stop ethnic cleansing or to assist in natural disasters. In remote locations, disruption of supply of fuel, spare parts, and other resources critical to reliable power production is mission critical.

Where is portable, remote power needed? Forward command post Vehicle-based activities Individual/troop Special ops or foot soldier Squad on patrol

What are the applications? Communications Voice Data Logistics Water purification Food preparation Sanitation and Hygiene Fuel supply Transportation Fuel pumping and filtering Maintenance Innovative applications Drones

What are the needs of the troops? Power systems that are extremely reliable portable understandable

Where is the technology today? Today’s options include Batteries Issues: weight, environmentally unfriendly, limited capacity, disposition Photovoltaic and small wind systems Issues: size, weight, availability of power Diesel generator sets Issues: weight, fuel, maintenance, noise

What are the future challenges? Communications Software will continue to advance, will be able to supply situational information across all levels Smaller systems, more data, greater power consumption Logistics Increasing need for clean water Technology provides ability to tap seawater, brackish water, even sewage “Orange County officials Wednesday night overwhelmingly approved the first stage of a controversial $600-million plan to turn sewage into drinking water.”

What are the future challenges? Transportation Fuel sources likely to become increasingly scarce Need to think about technologies to create, store, and utilize hydrogen In 2001, Ballard introduced the Nexa® power module, the world's first volume-produced proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cell module designed for integration into a wide variety of stationary and portable power generation applications.

Which technologies are most promising? Fuel cells Characteristics Platinum loading necessary for power density, expensive Methanol leading as fuel of choice Could enable universal connectivity of wireless devices (high power loading) Fuel cells Challenges Portable fuel cells produce low power (even a 1.2-kW unit is large) Durability is not yet comparable batteries Micro-fabrication of fuel cells is promising but still in development phase 1 “Fuel Cells for Portable Power: Markets, Manufacture and Cost,” Darnell Group, Inc., ”Micro-Fabricated Thin-Film Fuel Cells for Portable Power Requirements,” Jankowski et al., 2002

Which technologies are most promising? Remote/integrated solar, wind Characteristics No fuel requirements Highly reliable and commercially-proven technologies Challenges Intermittent supply Require significant infrastructure and open space 1 /military_battery_Chargers.htm

Which other technologies are promising and where can I learn about them? The Institute for Defense Analysis ( publishes relevant research atwww.ida.org Defense Technical Information Center ( National Technical Information Service ( Examples: “Portable Power Generation Based on Mesoscale Free Piston Knock Engine,” Honeywell, Inc., 2002 “Modular Portable Air- Conditioning System,” Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division, 2001

Space is the limit! Solar Power Satellites A SPS converts solar into electricity, then into microwaves to be beamed to Earth Beam is received and converted to electrical current by rectifying antenna SPS resides in geo- stationary orbit SPS would operate 24/7 and receive, nominally, eight times the insolation available on Earth solar_power_sats_ html

Acknowledgements Mr. Phil Dougherty, U.S. Department of Energy Dr. Christie-Joy Brodrick, Department of Integrated Science and Technology

Questions?

Portable Power Systems on the Battlefield Jonathan J. Miles, Associate Professor Department of Integrated Science & Technology James Madison University 28 September 2004