Change in Direction

Despite challenges, the advantages of hydrogen as a trans- formative aviation fuel continue to drive research efforts, says ATUL CHANDRA

- ATUL CHANDRA

The use of hydrogen in commercial aviation has long been touted as a panacea for reducing long-haul aviation emissions driven by the use of fossil fuels. However, despite large-scale enthusiasm and plentiful funding, the integration of hydrogen as a fuel into the aviation ecosystem has proven an extremely complex issue that will require decades of effort.

A vocal proponent of the benefits of a hydrogen-powered commercial aircraft, earlier this year, in March, during the Airbus Summit, the manufacturer announced that it would focus its efforts on a fuel cell fully-electric propulsion system. Another dampener has been the collapse of Universal Hydrogen, the California-based Hydrogen aviation pioneer, which was launched in 2020 and managed to fly in 2023, a small regional aircraft powered with one hydrogen-powered electric motor, while the other engine was a conventional engine last year. The company ran out of funds after using up $100 million worth of investor funding.

These events have removed some of the buzz behind hydrogen propulsion for the aviation industry. However, there still remains a substantial amount of work underway on various aspects of hydrogen-related propulsion. This is because hydrogen remains a promising alternative to fossil fuels since it has a specific energy-per-unit mass that is three times higher than traditional jet fuel, and, generated from renewable energy through electrolysis, emits no CO₂ emissions.

AIRBUS SHIFTS FOCUS