CF EMEA: Innovation Spotlight features alternative fuel technologies

Hydrogen fuel could one day replace standard jet fuel amid industry-wide concerns for sustainability, according to two startups presenting at the Cargo Facts EMEA Innovation Spotlight. Representatives of Universal Hydrogen and HyPoint suggested that hydrogen fuel can eliminate carbon emissions without significantly increasing unit cost. The startups presented their technologies, current market interest, and future prospects to a virtual audience of industry professionals. HyPoint HyPoint, a California-based developer of hydrogen fuel cell systems, also aims to enable zero-emission air transportation. The company has received considerable interest both commercially and federally – including a NASA iTech Initiative Cycle II award in 2020. Founder and CEO Alex Ivanenko described the features of his product that differentiate it from competitors in his presentation. [caption id="attachment_416054" align="alignright" width="600"] Alex Ivanenko, founder and CEO of HyPoint.[/caption] “We are using our own unique bipolar plates with highly conductive corrosion-resistant materials, which dramatically decrease the weight of the fuel-cell stack,” he said. “We replaced commonly used low-temperature membranes with high-temperature ones, which dramatically increases the efficiency of cooling.” But the key innovation in the system, said Ivanenko, is their “turbo air-cooled system”, which uses compressed air for both cooling and to provide oxygen. “We increase pressure inside the fuel cell to deliver more oxygen in the electrochemical reaction. And that allowed us to dramatically increase power output.” These innovations combined allow for a lightweight, yet high-power fuel system, which can achieve up to 2,000 watts per kilogram of specific power, according to Ivanenko. The company completed its testing program in March 2021, unveiling their first operable prototype that same month. HyPoint is currently designing the full-scale system and aims to conduct the first flight in 2022. Universal Hydrogen Los Angeles-based Universal Hydrogen aims to accelerate the decarbonization of the aviation industry via multiple technologies. Recently, the company secured $20.5 million in a financing round to develop conversion kits to retrofit aircraft with its hydrogen fuel cell. Chief Commercial Officer Rod Williams described the components of the conversion kits and the prototype aircraft in his presentation. [caption id="attachment_416053" align="alignleft" width="600"] Rod Williams, chief commercial officer of Universal Hydrogen.[/caption] “We’re working firstly on an STC conversion kit to take that Dash 8-300, and convert it into a zero-carbon hydrogen powered aircraft,” he said. “A big part of that, of course, is taking out the turboprop engine and replacing it with the hydrogen fuel cell powertrain, which you can see with the external thermal management shown on the new cells.” The challenge remaining, said Williams, is the lack of existing infrastructure to support the transport of hydrogen. The company is addressing this through the use of hydrogen modules, specifically designed to fit within a standard container. “The hydrogen modules serve as both the fuel tank within the aircraft as well as the transportation mechanism to transport the hydrogen from where it’s produced to the point of consumption, which is the aircraft. The hydrogen modules and cells can be fitted into a standard container, so the method of transporting those modules is using the standard intermodal container network,” he said. The module was also designed to be particularly lightweight, allowing it to carry twice as much hydrogen as a standard container. According to Williams, these technologies would eliminate the need to fully replace the existing infrastructure in airports. He further described how the company’s technology could be particularly appealing to the air cargo industry, adding that they have already received interest from several cargo operators. “We expect the unit costs of this configuration to be the same as the unit costs of a standard kerosene power configuration, even with the reduction in cargo capability,” Williams said. “And that’s because the economics of hydrogen and low maintenance costs of the hydrogen fuel cell powertrain offsets the loss in cargo capacity that you might have.” Watch the full session, which includes presentations from three other startups , below:

CF EMEA: Innovation Spotlight features alternative fuel technologies

Presenters from HyPoint and Universal Hydrogen explain how hydrogen could eventually replace conventional jet fuel.

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