The European multinational aerospace company – Airbus said it looks forward to testing a hydrogen-powered engine on a modified A380 to bring a zero-emissions aircraft into service by 2035.
The largest commercial aircraft said it would work with CFM International, a joint venture of General Electric’s aviation arm and France’s Safran on the test plane, to develop an engine that can run on hydrogen. This modified version of the engine will handle higher temperatures at which hydrogen burns. The converted test flights could begin in 2026, Airbus said.
Aircraft manufacturers and airlines come together due to the increasing pressure on the aviation industry to cut the carbon emissions, that account for more than 2% of the world’s total. Airbus pursues hydrogen and said it is working on a passenger aircraft that expects to enter into service by 2035.
The number of challenges is several, one big challenge is that for storage of hydrogen fuel will add weight to the aircraft, as the 400 kg of liquid hydrogen will be stored in 4 tanks at –253o C. This would reduce the number of people or the amount of cargo that it could carry. Additionally, the gas burns at a much higher temperature than conventional fuel, so cooling and coating materials will also need to be developed.
All this being the reason Airbus selected A380 – the world’s largest passenger plane, as it had room to store liquid hydrogen tanks and other equipment.
