European Hydrogen Plane Aims for First Round-the-World Non-Stop Flight
In a workshop along France’s Atlantic shoreline, aviation trailblazer Bertrand Piccard and his team are diligently accelerating their preparations for a flight that has the potential to revolutionize air travel entirely.
A decade ago, when Piccard led a highly publicized global flight in a solar-powered aircraft, it increased consciousness regarding climate change but offered minimal potential for transforming commercial aviation.
Currently, the 66-year-old Swiss explorer who led Solar Impulse is reaching for greater heights with the ambition to move towards more environmentally friendly commercial flights compared to those powered by conventional fossil fuels—this time utilizing super-cold liquid hydrogen.
The Climate Impulse initiative began last February with the aim of piloting a twin-seat aircraft around the world without stopping for nine consecutive days using so-called green hydrogen as fuel.
This involves splitting hydrogen from water molecules utilizing renewable electrical power via a method known as electrolysis.
This week, the Climate Impulse team—a group backed by companies like Airbus and a science accelerator named Syensqo ("science-co"), which originated from Belgium’s Solvay pharmaceutical firm—shared their initial year achievements with reporters in Les Sables d'Olonne, a coastal community famous for hosting the Vendée Globe around-the-world yacht race.
When is Climate Impulse expected to take off?
The initial test flights are scheduled for next year, however, the challenging circumnavigation journey is slated for 2028. Constructed using lightweight composite materials, this aircraft relies heavily on numerous experimental technologies and remains quite uncertain of success.
Piccard mentions that a leading aircraft company would be hesitant to undertake the risk of developing a prototype like Climate Impulse, particularly if failure was a possibility.
As a trailblazer, it’s my responsibility," he stated during an interview. "Demonstrating that it can be done provides a significant motivation for others to carry on.
Despite success with this project, specialists indicate that large-scale commercial flights powered by green hydrogen might still take several decades to materialize. It has attracted investments totaling tens of millions of euros, and the staff count—which currently numbers around several dozen—is expanding.
In 2015, the sun-driven aircraft represented a significant technical achievement; however, it lacked scalability, according to Raphael Dinelli, an engineer at Climate Impulse and one of the co-pilots. Due to its restricted range, this craft needed over a dozen stopovers for its global circumnavigation journey.
Climate Impulse is designed to launch autonomously, circle the globe for approximately 40,000 kilometers (around 25,000 miles) following the equatorial path without stopping for refueling or landing, and then return to where it started.
What is the process for flying with Climate Impulse?
The regulated discharge of liquid hydrogen from highly insulated tanks beneath the aircraft’s wings generates power that permeates the membrane of a fuel cell, which then drives the plane.
"The plane has the wingspan of an Airbus 320: 34 m (about 110 ft). It weighs 5-1/2 tons and it flies at 180 km/h — that means 100 knots at 10,000 ft (3,000 m) altitude," Piccard said on Thursday.
The objective includes harnessing power from the "turbulent zone" within the atmosphere, an area that might someday be utilized by airlines to aid in conserving fuel, as mentioned.
Since it's hydrogen, the sole emission will be water vapor. Nevertheless, external specialists warn that the ecological effect of these water-vapor contrails is still uncertain when considering practical or extensive applications.
According to the International Energy Agency, air travel accounts for approximately 2 percent of global carbon dioxide emissions.
Hydrogen has been utilized in aviation for many years, though exclusively as a gas rather than a liquid. Transitioning to liquid hydrogen would require considerable time to implement effectively. Currently, fossil fuels remain dominant due to their lower cost and higher efficiency, despite being the primary source of hydrogen production today.
Numerous governments aim to increase the production of green hydrogen; however, currently, the global capacity for generating sufficient clean electricity for terrestrial requirements remains inadequate. Moreover, producing enough clean energy to meet the demands for widespread usage in aviation appears even more challenging.
What happens next?
Over the past year, the team has constructed the cockpit shell, initiated work on the wing spar, and completed various internal elements. These features encompass rotating seats, a sleeping berth, and an exercise bike designed to enhance blood flow for the co-pilots confined within a compact cockpit under hypoxic circumstances throughout the nine-day journey.
The hardest parts await.
This year will see tests conducted on the fuel cells and propulsion systems to determine whether the electric motor, propeller, and batteries can be used for an initial phase of completely electric flights.
Dinelli mentioned that the most challenging aspect is controlling the flow of liquid hydrogen to maximize efficiency and extend the vehicle’s maximum range.
A further obstacle is maintaining the liquid hydrogen at -253 degrees Celsius (-423 Fahrenheit), which is almost absolute zero. It is crucial to build a tank that is completely sealed against leaks.
Liquid hydrogen is extremely combustible, which means that even slight leakage could lead to severe consequences.
Is there potential for flights powered by green hydrogen?
Up until now, liquid hydrogen has mostly gained recognition as a fuel for launching rockets into space.
The aviation sector contributes a modest portion of overall carbon emissions; however, this contribution is increasing more rapidly compared to other industries. This growth outpaces advancements seen with electric vehicles like cars and trucks on land, as the technology for electric aircraft lags significantly behind.
The batteries used in today’s electric vehicles are quite heavy, and reducing their weight will be essential for successful electric-powered aviation.
"There hasn't been a 'Tesla moment' in aviation as of yet," stated Nikhil Sachdeva, an expert on the aviation industry’s shift towards more environmentally friendly technologies at consultancy firm Roland Berger.
Hydrogen holds the promise to revolutionize aviation, which is why getting this right is crucial.
Utilizing extremely cold liquid hydrogen is "incredibly challenging, and at present we can manage it only for a few minutes. What we're discussing involves performing this safely for hours," according to Sachdeva.
However, Solar Impulse also encountered skepticism, he noted, and Piccard’s team demonstrated that they could achieve what others might view as impossible.
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