I last talked about hydrogen airplanes almost a year ago in August, so I thought it was time for an update. Recently, researchers at FAMU-FSU College of Engineering in Tallahassee, Florida along with scientists from NASA have been working on developing a hydrogen fuel cell airplane that uses advanced superconductors to power the aircraft.
The hydrogen airplanes cited as examples for the new system may be as small as a twin propeller aircraft or as large as a Boeing 737. The hydrogen airplanes would use liquid hydrogen (LH2), which has twice the energy density as gasoline, for use in either fuel cells or high-speed turbo generators or in a hybrid system combining both components.
This combination of cryogenic hydrogen and electromagnetic superconducting motors would mean zero or near zero emissions for the aircraft. Currently, the airline industry contributes 5-percent of the total greenhouse gas emissions to the transportation industry. Aircraft noise would also be greatly reduced by moving to a hydrogen-electric propulsion system.
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