Airbus and Toshiba ESS's Challenge: Accelerating the Hydrogen Aircraft Era with Superconducting Motors

The Aviation Industry's Challenge Towards a Hydrogen Society

Amidst the global trend towards decarbonization, the aviation industry also faces the significant challenge of reducing CO2 emissions. The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) has set a goal of improving aircraft fuel efficiency by 2% annually by 2050 and not increasing CO2 emissions from international aviation after 2020. Achieving this goal requires the electrification of aircraft, and the use of hydrogen energy is attracting significant attention in this regard.

Airbus and Toshiba ESS: Paving the Future with Superconducting Motors

Airbus UpNext, a subsidiary of the European aircraft manufacturer Airbus, and Toshiba Energy Systems & Solutions (ESS) have announced a joint research project on "superconducting motor" technology for the development of next-generation hydrogen aircraft. This initiative can be considered a major step towards realizing hydrogen aircraft. Airbus has set a goal of achieving net-zero carbon dioxide emissions by 2050 and is promoting research and development of "hydrogen aircraft" that use hydrogen as fuel. In hydrogen aircraft, motors powered by hydrogen will propel the aircraft instead of conventional jet engines. Toshiba ESS's developed "superconducting motor" is expected to be this new propulsion system. Superconducting technology, used in linear motor cars, is characterized by zero electrical resistance. When installed in aircraft motors, it has the potential to achieve lightweight and high-power output.

A New Era of Hydrogen Aircraft Enabled by Superconducting Motors

According to Toshiba ESS, the superconducting motor developed this time has achieved a weight and size reduction of less than one-tenth compared to conventional motors of the same output. This is expected to significantly reduce the overall weight of the aircraft. Airbus's hydrogen aircraft will use liquid hydrogen at -253 degrees Celsius as fuel. By using this ultra-low-temperature liquid hydrogen to lower the temperature of the superconducting motor, even more efficient flight than with conventional hydrogen aircraft motors will be possible. A Toshiba ESS executive is confident that the practical application of superconducting motors will revolutionize not only the aircraft industry but also the large-scale mobility industry as a whole. Airbus also commented that this partnership is a natural choice to realize the development of cutting-edge superconducting motor technology that meets the needs of the aerospace industry.

History and Current Status of Hydrogen Aircraft Development

The development of aircraft using hydrogen energy actually began in the late 1950s. Early research projects focused on hydrogen turbine engines, but since the 2000s, the development of aircraft equipped with fuel cells has also progressed. In recent years, Europe has been leading the development of hydrogen aircraft. In the EU's "Horizon 2020" project, the development of aircraft equipped with fuel cells and hydrogen turbine engines is underway. Airbus has also announced three concepts using hydrogen as the main power source, aiming to realize zero-emission passenger aircraft by 2035.

Challenges and Prospects

Realizing hydrogen aircraft requires not only technological challenges but also infrastructure development such as hydrogen production, storage, and transportation. However, with the active research and development of companies such as Airbus and Toshiba ESS, and the cooperation of national governments and industries, there is a good possibility that these challenges will be overcome and the hydrogen aircraft era will arrive. Superconducting motors will be a key technology to accelerate the realization of hydrogen aircraft. The challenge of Airbus and Toshiba ESS is a major step towards decarbonization in the aviation industry and an important initiative that contributes to the realization of a sustainable society.