Boeing tests hydrogen fuel cell plane

Boeing tests hydrogen fuel cell plane Boeing said Thursday it has created aviation history by flying a manned airplane powered by hydrogen fuel cells during three tests in February and March at the Oca'a airfield, south of Madrid in Spain.
   A two-seat Dimona motor-glider with a 16.3 meter (53.5 foot) wingspan was modified by the engineering team at Boeing Research & Technology Europe (BR&TE) in Madrid to include a Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM) fuel cell/lithium-ion battery hybrid system to power an electric motor coupled to a conventional propeller.

Boeing's Dimona successfully tested hydrogen fuel cells in Spain (click image for video link).

   A fuel cell is an electrochemical device that converts hydrogen directly into electricity and heat with none of the products of combustion such as carbon dioxide. Other than heat, water is its only exhaust.
   During the flights, the pilot climbed to an altitude of 1,000 meters (3,300 feet) above sea level using a combination of battery power and power generated by hydrogen fuel cells. Then, after reaching the cruise altitude and disconnecting the batteries, the pilot flew straight and level at a cruising speed of 100 kilometers per hour (62 miles per hour) for about 20 minutes on power solely generated by the fuel cells.
   Boeing said that while its doesn’t envision that fuel cells will ever provide primary power for large passenger airplanes, PEM fuel cell technology could potentially power small manned and unmanned air vehicles, and over the longer term solid oxide fuel cells could be applied to secondary power-generating systems, such as auxiliary power units for large commercial airplanes.
   “Boeing is actively working to develop new technologies for environmentally progressive aerospace products,” said Francisco Escarti, BR&TE’s managing director. “We are proud of our pioneering work during the past five years on the Fuel Cell Demonstrator Airplane project. It is a tangible example of how we are exploring future leaps in environmental performance, as well as a credit to the talents and innovative spirit of our team.”
   A video of the test is available at video.boeing.com:8080/asx_external/events/fuel_cell_powered_airplane_300.asx.