PURG-AI: predictive purging for open-cathode PEM fuel cells in UAVs

H2 Dron Energy is a Spanish company specialising in hydrogen propulsion for drones, with six years of track record: first public funding from NEOTEC-CDTI in 2020, two patents (EP20736391 and P202230849), first prototype flight in 2022, and a stack already scaled up to 2 kW since 2025. The founding team brings together more than a century of combined experience in the aerospace sector (Airbus, INTA, Iberia, Telefónica).

Our own characterisation across five different fuel cell stacks shows that fixed-timing anode purging, the industry standard, wastes between 45% and 65% of the hydrogen consumed, with no relation to the stack's actual condition at any given moment.

PURG-AI is a predictive algorithm that calculates the optimal purge timing (frequency and duration) from real-time readings of current, voltage, temperature and humidity, replacing the fixed value currently set by the manufacturer. It requires no additional component: it is installed as a software update on the balance-of-plant (BOP) control electronics that H2 Dron Energy has already developed. And it works with fuel cell stacks from any manufacturer, as long as they are open-cathode, dead-end-anode systems.

The project starts from a TRL6: a platform that already flies and a BOP controller already built. We are applying for funding under IH-MIE Open Call 2026, Challenge 1 (Fuel Cell Cost and Durability), with a twelve-month plan to validate the algorithm on the test bench and in real flight (TRL7).

We are looking for European partners to:

Validate the algorithm on fuel cell stacks from other manufacturers, expanding the characterisation dataset beyond our own five stacks.

Integrate PURG-AI into third-party UAV platforms or hydrogen propulsion systems.

Collaborate on field trials under extreme environmental conditions (humidity and temperature).

Explore synergies with fuel cell manufacturers, UAV integrators and hydrogen or aerospace research centres within the IH-MIE ecosystem.