British Rolls-Royce engineers successfully used hydrogen instead of traditional jet fuel for the engine of a modern airliner.
The ground test, which took place at the Boscombe Down test site, used green hydrogen produced by wind and tidal energy from the Orkney Islands in Scotland. A converted AE 2100-A turboprop engine, which powers civil and military aircraft, was selected for testing.
The successful test results by Rolls-Royce and airline easyJet are another step in the industry’s efforts to prove that hydrogen can be a viable fuel option, helping companies reduce harmful carbon emissions that affect climate change.
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The partnership tests of Rolls-Royce and easyJet were carried out as part of the Race to Zero project (“Road to a carbon-free future”) from the United Nations, aimed at achieving zero net carbon dioxide emissions by 2050.
Airlines are pushing for the use of greener fuel as an alternative to petroleum-based aviation fuel. But air travel is one of the most difficult industries to decarbonize, and technologies like electricity or hydrogen fuel are still years away from being able to carry a full plane long distances.
At the same time, several companies are actively working on hydrogen fuel technology. Airbus plans to use its Superjumbo A380 to test hydrogen jet engines as part of its plan to enter service with a zero-emissions aircraft by 2035.
CFM International, a joint venture between France’s Safran and General Electric of the US, is also developing an engine that can run on hydrogen.
The test, led by Rolls-Royce, while not actually flying the plane, is part of a new hydrogen demonstration program launched in the summer by the FTSE 100 group in partnership with EasyJet after research showed there was market potential for hydrogen-powered planes.
Both companies plan to move on to the second phase of testing, which in turn will lead to full-scale ground testing of the Rolls-Royce Pearl 15 jet engine.
Grant Shepps, the UK’s business secretary, described the demonstration as “a great example of how we can work together to make aviation cleaner, creating jobs across the country”.
“We are pushing the boundaries to unlock the possibilities of using zero-carbon fuels that could help change the future of flight,” comments Grazia Vittadini, Chief Technical Officer of Rolls-Royce.
Other companies are focusing their efforts on the development and testing of electric aircraft. Recently, the prototype of the all-electric passenger plane Eviation Alice, equipped with two 640 kW electric motors, made its first test flight. The plane is planned to be used for suburban, cargo and representative flights at a distance of 240 to 400 km.
Source: Rolls-Royce, ArsTechnica
