Regardless of where one sits on the issue, there's no shortage of hot air when discussions turn to the subject of climate change. And that might be a good thing, says aviation entrepreneur Paul Eremenko, who's pitching the idea of hydrogen aircraft as a solution to excessive carbon emissions. Here's how he proposes his notion will fly.

Capsule-Shaped Pods

ZeroAvia hydrogen powered plane
Verve

A former executive at Airbus SE and United Technologies Corp. and currently fronting his own company Universal Hydrogen, Eremenko believes hydrogen can cut down 2.5 per cent of carbon emissions attributable to air travel. It's already been adopted by NASA in the agency's fleet of smaller planes. And according to Verve, California-based ZeroAvia has been pushing its fleet of hydrogen-fueled planes since 2019.

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Eremenko has no plans to build a plane or even an airship to push his venture, however. Instead, he wants to retrofit current aircraft with his latest invention, a capsule-shaped pod roughly seven feet long and 3 feet in diameter that would store the hydrogen. Coated with kevlar, Eremenko says they're durable and would come with a kit to convert a small regional airline jet to hydrogen.

Risky Venture

Hindenburg Disaster of 1937
Chemistry World

Eremenko's idea is a followup to hydrogen fuel cells, which in recent years have been talked up as a way to power vehicles and even small communities. BMW has been examining hydrogen fuel cell technology while proponents argue that hydrogen is a better alternative to electric vehicles.

Airlines adopting these pods may also have to risk losing capacity since larger flights would require more pods. A passenger plane capable of carrying 50 passengers may wind up having to sacrifice 10 seats to make room for these hydrogen storage facilities. Then there's the trepidation that still lingers over the Hindenburg, the hydrogen airship that blew up above New York in 1937 after an Atlantic crossing.

Any Other Alternatives?

Proposed delivery system for hydrogen onto planes
Universal Hydrogen

But there's also the argument that planes using liquid fuel have been responsible for a lot of explosions during a crash. Electric-powered aircraft so far are prevalent among smaller planes, but not so much for commercial aircraft that would require heavier batteries.

Realizing that alternative energy options in aviation are limited, so convinced is Eremenko that his idea will fly safely, he's put in three million dollars of his own money to finance his company. "Ultimately, we think aviation is the killer app, because aviation doesn’t have an alternative,’’ he said. "Also, it’s fun for us, because we’re aviation people.’"

Sources: MSN, The Verge

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