SAE Update - September 2024 - 22

TECH FOCUS:
DECArBONizED AErOSPACE
Here's a cool idea:
Use less hydrogen
Bigger benefits
What does this mean for the
scalability of fuel cell propulsion?
With ultra-efficient power
distribution and electric drive
systems, it is conceivable the
technology could scale beyond
regional platforms and into the
shorter ranges of the narrowbody
market. GKN Aerospace has
published converged design
concepts for 48-, 96-, and
160-passenger fuel cell aircraft,
the latter with a projected 4,000km
(2,485-mile) range cruising at
Mach 0.7 at 35,000 feet.
Recognizing the relative
immaturity of fuel cell systems for
aerospace applications, it is
expected there is opportunity to
improve this further.
Breakthroughs like this may
bring additional benefits to
aviation. As critical as SAF is in
the near term, and for very large/
long range aircraft, it still leaves
CO2 and other non-CO2
emissions in the troposphere and
stratosphere-emissions that
could remain for anywhere
between 300 and 1000 years,
according to one NASA
publication. In contrast, hydrogen
fuel cell platforms produce only
water as a by-product, which is a
controllable exhaust, and
22
September 2024
GKN Aerospace team members working on a fuel cell test rig at their UK
Global Technology Centre, Bristol.
simultaneously removes particulates from the air
through inlet filtration. Furthermore, noise pollution is a
growing concern, leading to restrictions on flight times
and volume of flights. Hydrogen electric propulsion has
the potential for quieter flight, especially when the
propulsor is a ducted fan. This could make it easier to
meet the growing demand for air travel with fewer
aircraft and runways than would be required with
equivalent combustion-based platforms.
It should not surprise us that a significant change in
requirements could lead to a significant change in
solution. There is no single pathway to the aerospace
industry achieving net-zero carbon by 2050, but
hydrogen propulsion systems may be able to serve a
much larger portion of the market than we originally
thought. n
ABOUT THE AUTHOr
Dan Graham, Ph.D., is director of emerging technologies at GKN
Aerospace, leading exploration and development of technology
enablers for future aircraft, with a major focus on zero-carbon
hydrogen systems. His experience spans automotive, defense, and
aerospace sectors, having worked for McLaren Automotive and BAE
Systems prior to GKN Aerospace.
UPDATE
GKN Aerospace

https://science.nasa.gov/earth/climate-change/greenhouse-gases/the-atmosphere-getting-a-handle-on-carbon-dioxide/ https://science.nasa.gov/earth/climate-change/greenhouse-gases/the-atmosphere-getting-a-handle-on-carbon-dioxide/

SAE Update - September 2024

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of SAE Update - September 2024

SAE Update - September 2024 - Cov1
SAE Update - September 2024 - Cov2
SAE Update - September 2024 - 1
SAE Update - September 2024 - 2
SAE Update - September 2024 - 3
SAE Update - September 2024 - 4
SAE Update - September 2024 - 5
SAE Update - September 2024 - 6
SAE Update - September 2024 - 7
SAE Update - September 2024 - 8
SAE Update - September 2024 - 9
SAE Update - September 2024 - 10
SAE Update - September 2024 - 11
SAE Update - September 2024 - 12
SAE Update - September 2024 - 13
SAE Update - September 2024 - 14
SAE Update - September 2024 - 15
SAE Update - September 2024 - 16
SAE Update - September 2024 - 17
SAE Update - September 2024 - 18
SAE Update - September 2024 - 19
SAE Update - September 2024 - 20
SAE Update - September 2024 - 21
SAE Update - September 2024 - 22
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SAE Update - September 2024 - 33
SAE Update - September 2024 - 34
SAE Update - September 2024 - 35
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SAE Update - September 2024 - 37
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