Hickam Air Force Base in Hawaii is testing novel energy innovation to provide electrical power and hydrogen fuel in the sort of isolated and austere outposts the Air Force will need in the Pacific theater for its new Agile Combat Employment way of warfare.The technology, established by a majority veteran-founded startup based in Houston, uses wind and solar energy to use electrolysis to make hydrogen from water in the atmosphere.
The compressed hydrogen can then be converted into electric power via a hydrogen fuel cell, or utilized to fuel drones powered by the same kind of modern fuel cell.
Any of the water extracted that remains can be used for drinking.But what truly caught the eye of the military, explained Rick Harlow, CEO of NovaSpark Energy Corp., was the form element.
He just recently returned from Hawaii, where Novaspark showed their Hydrogen at the Tactical Edge of Contested logistics (HyTEC) system for INDOPACOM and at the 2025 Pacific Operational Science & & Technology conference Field Experimentation occasion, called POST FX.HyTEC is a portable system, smaller than 2 porta-potties, which can be airdropped on a parachute, pulled by a Joint Light Tactical Vehicle (JLTV), and takes less than 30 minutes to set up.The Marines told us, we need to be able to go up to five times a day, since we do not want to be a sitting target, Harlow informed Air & & Space Forces Magazine.For the Air Force, being able to airdrop the systems indicates quick deployment to separated environmentsas envisaged by Agile Combat Employment.Above all, by offering a source of power almost literally out of thin air, said Harlow, HyTEC can help remove dependance on a long logistics tail for fuel resupply in the vast, ocean-spanning, Pacific theatre.The HyTEC hydrogen fuel generator was demonstrated in April 2025 at POST FX at Marine Corps Base Hawaii.
Courtesy Novaspark Energy Corp.When it pertains to air transportation, area is always at a premium.
And the greatest customers of area are often fuel and water, Air Force authorities say, both of which can be provided by the HyTEC system, which generates about 4.5 pounds of compressed hydrogen every 24 hours.You do not need to fly diesel [or other fuels] around where it could cost as much as $400 to $500 a gallon by the time its provided, Harlow said.HyTEC is also geared up with a series of briefcase-sized hydrogen fuel cells that can output 4 kilowatts of electrical energy to power satellite terminals or other interactions and IT equipment.As an alternative to diesel or fuel generators, these fuel cells have heat and sound signatures that are both much lower, said Novaspark Chief Innovation Officer Lanson Jones.The sound from a fuel cell is a small hum.
Less than 30 decibels.
More peaceful than a dishwashing machine, and theres actually no heat signature, he said.
Unlike a diesel generator, it can run 24/7 for long periods of time.I call it the Swiss Army knife, Jones stated of the HyTEC, since not only can you develop hydrogen to sustain drones, or make electrical energy, but you can likewise use the compression equipment to refill tires, and, if the hydrogen tank is full and you desire to keep it, you can tap directly into the power from the wind turbine and from the solar panels without using that hydrogen.
And you can do other really cool things, like make water for the troops.The hydrogen HyTEC produces can be used to fuel a new generation of drones like Lockheed MartinsStalker, and ground vehiclesbeing established by the U.S.
Army, included Harlow.With hydrogen, you can not just go even more than batteries, but you can in fact go further than with dieselor other fuels, stated Harlow.So in useful terms with the drones, youre taking a look at going 2 to 3 times as far and bring 2 to 3 times the payload compared to batteries.
Theres a substantial tactical benefit, he said.The HyTEC system was first established with financing from the Defense Innovation Unit, Harlow explained.We won an agreement with the DIU, and they funded us to develop the unit and to show out that it works.
So we were able to utilize non-dilutive funding without needing to hand out a bunch of the company in the process of getting investment.They then won an AFWERX Commercial Solutions Offering contract, which was recently extended, Harlow stated, along with an Other Transaction Authority contract from the Army Contracting Command in Picatinny, N.J.Any military firm or element can purchase off that agreement, and so can the different National Guards in the different states.The National Guards ability to buy off that contract is considerable, Harlow stated, since the company is seeking to broaden into the catastrophe relief sector, where the Guard is extremely active.Source: Air & & Space Forces Magazine