Phase II Final Report - NASA's Institute for Advanced Concepts

Chapter 3.0 Vehicle Design
3.5 Fuel Storage and Production
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Carbon 13.8 MPa (2000 psi)
Carbon 34.5 MPa (5000 psi)
Carbon 68.9 MPa (10,000 psi)
Titanium 13.8 MPa (2000 psi)
Titanium 34.5 MPa (5000 psi)
Titanium 68.9 MPa (10,000 psi)
10
1
0.1 0.2 0.5 1 1.5 2
0.1
Hydrogen Mass Stored (kg)
Figure 3-148: Spherical Pressure Tank Mass Constructed of Carbon and Titanium at
Various Storage Pressures
Figure 3-148 shows how the mass of the tank will vary with different construction materials.
The curves were generated for titanium and carbon over a range of hydrogen storage masses.
The effect of storage pressure on the tank mass is due to the compressibility factor, Equation 3-
37, that was used. The change in storage pressure also has a significant effect on the volume (or
tank radius) as would be expected. This effect is shown in Figure 3-149. This figure represents
the same hydrogen storage volumes given in Figure 3-148. This demonstrates that storing
hydrogen gas at high pressures will minimize volume with a lesser effect on the overall tank
mass.
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