Airplanes produce high levels of pollution compared to other forms of public transportation. More sustainable fuel technology and more efficient engine design have been used to save fuel consumption while reducing pollution. At Airbus, they aim for hydrogen fueled aircraft to be operational by 2035.
To realize this dream, Airbus is developing a hydrogen cell-powered engine specifically for airplanes. It's a fan engine that turns liquid hydrogen into a gas before interacting with oxygen inside the engine to produce electrical power. This then drives an electric motor connected to a fan with eight blades.
The result of this hydrogen cell reaction is heat and water vapor which is then released into the atmosphere without any pollution. Airbus hopes the first test using the A380 MSN1 test platform aircraft will be possible by 2026.
On the test aircraft the hydrogen will be stored in a cryogenic tank in the fuselage before being flown to the engine pod. In future commercial versions, the tank will be placed once in the engine pod. With this design, the interior of the plane can accommodate more passengers and cargo.
The development of this hydrogen engine is under the Airbus ZERO initiative which wants to produce a more sustainable passenger plane.