Green push: Airbus develops first ever fuel cell engine as it launches electric battery partnership
Airbus has announced the development of its first ever fuel cell engine on the same day it partnered with French car maker Renault to develop electric batteries for aviation and automotive.
The fuel cell engine is one of the several technologies being considered for the development of a hydrogen-fuelled aircraft, which Airbus wants into service by the mid-2030s
According to Airbus’s zero-emission aircraft vice-president Glen Llewellyn, the company is testing the technology to see if hydrogen-powered aircraft are feasible by 2035.
“At scale, and if the technology targets were achieved, fuel cell engines may be able to power a one hundred passenger aircraft with a range of approximately 1,000 nautical miles,” Llewellyn said.
This is not the first time the EU plane maker has delved into fuel cell propulsion technology, as in late December 2020 it unveiled six removable fuel cell propulsion systems.
Through its electric battery partnership, Airbus will instead look at energy storage, which is the main roadblock for the development of long-range electric planes and cars.
“Driven by the same ambition to innovate and reduce the carbon footprint, our engineering teams are exchanging with those of Airbus to converge transversal technologies that will enable both hybrid aircraft to be operated and the vehicles of tomorrow to be developed,” said Gilles Le Borgne, executive vice-president for engineering at the Renault Group.