The effect of adding hydrogen peroxide to an engine used in unmanned aerial vehicles on fuel consumption, energy, exergy, and sustainability parameters

This study explores the use of hydrogen peroxide solution—a novel additive not previously used in UAV engines—to improve the energy efficiency of commercially available unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). Different hydrogen peroxide ratios were blended with JP-8 fuel, a common UAV fuel, to boost engine performance and optimise operating conditions. The effects of these fuel blends on engine performance and emissions were thoroughly analysed at various UAV thrust levels (5 kg, 10 kg, 15 kg, 20 kg, and 25 kg). Energy, exergy, and sustainability assessments were conducted based on the findings. It was found that increasing engine thrust with the same fuel mixture resulted in higher system disorder and entropy production. For instance, at 5 kg thrust with the P20 fuel mixture, entropy generation was 0.046 kW/K, rising to 0.112 kW/K at 25 kg thrust. The study indicates that adding hydrogen peroxide to JP-8 fuel in UAVs decreases energy and exergy efficiencies. Specifically, at 15 kg thrust, JP-8's energy and exergy efficiencies were 18.54% and 17.37%, respectively. These values dropped to 15.50% and 14.59% with the P30 fuel blend. The sustainability index ranged from 1.226 to 1.070 across all fuel types.