ZeroAvia today announced that it has been awarded USD3.25 million in funding by the California Energy Commission (CEC) to develop a first-of-a-kind mobile liquid hydrogen (LH2) refuelling truck for heavy-duty applications, including aviation and maritime. Funding for the project comes from the Gas R&D Program administered by the CEC and authorised by the California Public Utilities Commission.
“Working at Livermore Municipal Airport, ZeroAvia will begin work this month to design, build, and demonstrate a 10,000-litre mobile LH2 refueller with sufficient flow rates to refuel in a similar time as traditional jet fuel refills” according to the press release. “Hitting this ambitious target will support hydrogen-powered aircraft in meeting tight turnaround windows, especially in regional transport.
“The LH2 refueler will also be designed to improve on existing energy efficiency in LH2 applications, including reducing hydrogen boil-off to less than 0.1% per day.
“ZeroAvia is developing hydrogen fuel cell propulsion as a solution to tackling the climate impact from aviation. The company plans to support passenger and cargo flights by the end of 2025 with its first hydrogen-electric engines (ZA600) for 9-19 seat aircraft using gaseous hydrogen storage.
“To scale hydrogen engines to larger commercial aircraft and to enable longer ranges across all aircraft sizes, cryogenic liquid hydrogen must be used to reduce the size and weight of the fuel storage systems. ZeroAvia is already developing its larger ZA2000 engine family, with the first high power ground tests of the fully integrated electric propulsion system conducted earlier this year. These larger aircraft – such as the Dash-8-400 76-seat aircraft ZeroAvia is working on with Alaska Airlines and other partners – will require up to 1 ton of LH2 storage on board to support up to 700 nautical mile range, with target launch in 2027.
“The CEC-funded project advances the commercial viability of liquid hydrogen fuelled aircraft by supporting advancements in energy performance, cost efficiency, and refuelling speed. The technology also has potential application in other segments of the transportation sector, including road freight and maritime.”
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(Image: ZeroAvia)