Green Hydrogen from Scrap Metal and Water?

Dean Sigler Announcements, Biofuels, Fuel Cells, hydrogen, Hydrogen Fuel, Sustainable Aviation Leave a Comment

Can we make green hydrogen (or other energy sources) from scrap we otherwise throw away?  One of the frequently announced “breakthroughs” recurrently finding its way to our attention is that scrap food or farm waste has found its way to becoming aviation fuel, for instance.  United and Alaska Airlines have flown aircraft powered by biofuels produced from food waste by suppliers at SEATAC airport in Seattle, Washington. Hydrogen is undergoing a growth spurt.  The U. S. Department of Energy explains, “Hydrogen is an energy carrier that can be used to store, move, and deliver energy produced from other sources.”  Green hydrogen seems to be an answer to many demands.  It comes from splitting water, and if produced through clean means, is a carbon neutral to carbon negative product. Stainless Steel Powder and Water Dr. Guy Ben Hamu, Head of the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Sami Shamoon College of Engineering, explains the process uses H2 trapping, something usually related to …

ZeroAvia to Supply Surcar with Hydrogen Floatplanes

Dean Sigler Announcements, Electric Powerplants, Fuel Cells, hydrogen, Hydrogen Fuel, Sustainable Aviation Leave a Comment

An Island-Hopping Customer Surcar Airlines is an enterprise based in the Canary Islands which hopes to serve its island routes with ZeroAvia-motored, hydrogen-fueled DeHavilland Twin Otters.  But not right away. Starting with conventionally-powered turbine twins, Surcar is working on a process, “Based on starting something totally new and that touches so many sectors at the same time. “Today we confirm that we have signed an agreement with@zeroavia to fly its ZA600 hydrogen-electric engines in order to operate ecological flights. “We will operate Twin Otter seaplanes updated with the ZA600 propulsion system on our sightseeing flights.”  This 600 kilowatt (804 horsepower) system is now being tested and certified for aircraft seating nine to 19 passengers. “This implies the commitment to lead the electrification of aviation in the Canary Islands and achieve zero-emission flights in the archipelago.” This ambition drives the airline to follow, and possibly lead in the European Union’s aim to, “…Reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 55 percent by 2030 …

Dreaming of Big Electric Airplanes: CATL and COMAC

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CATL and COMAC are dreaming of big electric airplanes.  The first company has made some recent battery breakthroughs, and the second has recently brought China’s biggest jet airliner to market. CATL. Contemporary Amperex Technology Ltd., is a behemoth.  According to TheInformation.com, “The company spent $124 million to acquire a lithium mine in China’s Jiangxi province, an operation that would feed into a $2.1 billion battery factory it was building nearby. And in October, it spent $3.6 billion to buy 25-percent of a cobalt operation in the Democratic Republic of Congo. This year, CATL has spent $1 billion on a lithium brine operation in Bolivia, $885 million for lithium rights in China’s Xinjiang province and $920 million for lithium rights in the Chinese province of Sichuan.” This globe-girdling spate of acquisition indicates the seriousness of China’s move to dominate world battery markets.  With recent news of CATL’s 500 Watt-hour-per-kilogram cells and their possible use in large aircraft, the need to compete …

Wisk Wows at Oshkosh

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A Wisk Cora flew autonomously several times along the length of the 8,002-foot main runway, a first at the Experimental Aircraft Association’s 2023 AirVenture in Oshkosh, Wisconsin.  The July 25 event was, “The first-ever public demonstration of a fully autonomous eVTOL fixed-wing airtaxi,” according to the company. Under development and appearing in different configurations over the last several years Wisk’s aircraft have flown in Hollister, California and in New Zealand.  Cora represents the fifth generation of such vehicles.  Wisk, a Boeing partner, is not stopping there. The flight from another perspective, with an explanation of the noise on the soundtrack: “The noise is the 787 APU, not the @WiskAero. ‘  Note how the noise drops as the auxiliary power unit shuts down, with crowd noise competing with the Cora for dominance. https://twitter.com/i/status/1684023361804943360    A Future with Four Seats The latest iteration for the firm is their sixth-generation craft, simply called Generation Six.  It’s a four-seater, with ample room for passengers and …

Pie in the Swiss Sky

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Pie Aeronefs is a small firm in Switzerland, specializing in battery-powered aviation, and close to flying its single-seat air racer, the UR-1 Devil.  We reported on this machine in 2021 at an early stage in its development, and now it’s going to be available as a kitplane.  Adding to a bumper crop, their UG-2 Bullfinch will also be available as a kit. Pronouncing that their aircraft are all zero-emissions machines, Swiss made, and innovative, Pie Aeronefs has this manifesto on its home page: “Pie Aeronefs is a Swiss all-electric aircraft manufacturer. “Through distributed electric propulsion, our zero carbon emitting airplanes shall surpass the performance of conventionally powered competitors. “Thanks to an innovative design, our aircraft are optimized for the electric energy system.” UR-1 Devil Supplied as a kit that the company says can be completed in 800 hours, the racer features carbon, aluminum, wood and electronics components, and “access to all technical data and assembly diagrams.”  Customers have to supply …

Joby Gets Certified, Stock Jumps

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“Joby Aviation has received a Federal Aviation Administration Special Airworthiness Certificate for the first aircraft built at its pilot production line in Marina, California, allowing Joby to begin flight testing of its first production prototype” according to Dan Carney’s reporting in Design News. Having visited the Woodpecker Ridge development site and written about Joby Energy and Joby Aviation since 2010, your editor has seen remarkable progress in the company.  JoeBen Bevirt had about a dozen engineers working in his design studio then, and that has steadily grown to around 1,300 employees today spread over several workshops and administrative offices along the central California coastline. What is This Thing Called, Love? From the paperwork in the Federal Register detailing Joby’s application for a Notice of proposed airworthiness criteria, Joby Aero, Inc. is asking for guidance on its Model JAS4-1 Powered-Lift. Since the craft is not described as an airplane, helicopter or with other terminology, the Register includes this note: “The Joby …

Electric Aircraft Sales Tell the Tale

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Electric aircraft sales told the tale at this year’s Paris Air Show.  European and American firms sold, or received letters of intent for, hundreds of craft, especially of interest in the electric, hydrogen, and hybrid categories we’ll discuss here.  We will have subsequent entries on other craft of interest at the show and the commercial possibilities they encompass. Afrijet’s electric intentions French airframer Aura Aero signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for “multiple electric aircraft” at the Paris Air Show.  This came a day after a Philippine-based Asian aerospace firm signed a Letter of Intent for three electric aircraft with Aura Aero. The 19-passenger, eight motor, ecologically friendly aircraft has an all-up weight of 8.6 tons and a hybrid cruising speed of 250 knots true air speed (288 mph).  Its pressurized cabin can alternately carry 1,900 kilograms (4,180 pounds) of cargo with a total volume of 21.5 cubic meters (759.3 cubic feet).  Total operating costs will run only one-tenth of …

Whisper Jet Unveiled

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Mark Moore had a long career at NASA, followed by his leadership of Uber Elevate, the car-sharing service’s attempt to emulate their terrestrial cab competition in a more skyward realm.  Moore left all that behind to form his own company, Whisper Aero, which recently unveiled its Whisper Jet electric ducted fan propulsor. “Whisper” is more than just a trade name here.  Moore and his team have created an electric ducted fan propulsion system that seems to be far quieter than anything else flying.  Whisper Aero plans to supply these systems to airframe manufacturers, but not to produce any aircraft itself. What’s All the Noise About? Moore works from the standpoint that reducing noise is paramount in gaining community acceptance of AAM (Advanced Air Mobility)* machines.  If Mark is correct in his assessments, which seem borne out by recent tests, his ultra-quiet propulsors should be a big part of future urban and regional flight. One dictum of propeller design is that …

Electra Rolls Out a Full-size Demonstrator

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Starting small, Electra Aero has rolled out a two-seat demonstrator of its multi-motor, blown-lift technology.  Bright yellow, the EL-2 “Goldfinch” celebrates “the beloved, nimble American Goldfinch bird indigenous to North America,” according to the company.  Its full-scale production aircraft will carry nine. John S. Langford, Founder and CEO of Electra.aero explains, “In the three years since we founded Electra, we’ve designed our eSTOL aircraft, validated our blown lift technology with a sub-scale demonstrator, and run a fully integrated test of our 150-kilowatt hybrid-electric generator at full scale.  Now we’re ready to test the entire system with this technology demonstrator aircraft. We can’t wait to fly this plane and show the world what our eSTOL aircraft can do.” Chris Courtin, Chief Engineer on the technology demonstrator project, explains the ambitious aircraft, a two-seat version of which will fly this year. Electra notes its “proprietary blown lift technology uses eight motors to provide additional wing lift, and hybrid-electric power that provides internal …

Miguel Iturmendi Hits New Heights

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The Perlan Project has special words for one of their pilots.  “It’s a big day for electric aviation and soaring. This morning after months of preparation, Perlan Pilot Miguel Iturmendi made 2 world altitude record claims for electric aviation under 500kg — max. Altitude and highest altitude in level flight, 16,000 feet in a motor glider! The new claim is 60% higher than the previous record. Congratulations Miguel!” Miguel has been higher, including a trip to 65,000 feet in 2019.  As pilots for the Perlan Project, Miguel and Chief Pilot Jim Payne hit a record height that day, although not the ultimate height for Perlan.  It’s not Miguel’s first, and probably won’t be his last record. He’s already gone to 20,000 feet in the modified Pipistrel Taurus he’s using for atmospheric research, but the altitude was not observed and verified by a certified observer for the National Aeronautical Association. The actual record was observed and certified by the NAA’s Kris …