California-based company claim Hydrogen powered Airplane tested |
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Mon, 04 Jul 2005 00:35
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A California-based company called as AeroVironment has contended that it has successfully tested an aircraft powered by liquid hydrogen. The company says that the liquid hydrogen stored on board in combionation with the oxygen extracted from the air powers the fuel cells. AeroVironment adds that an unmanned plane powered by this fuel can be kept air-borne for close to 24 hours.
The craft has been named as Global Observer and bears close resemblance to a glider rather than a plane. The craft has got a wingspan of over 15m. Other interesting additions to its contour include small fuselage slung underneath and an extended "dragon-fly" tail. The front edge of the wing has got a line of eight propellers.
The Global Observer was first flown on May 26 at the US Army's Yuma Proving Grounds in Arizona. AeroVironment conducted a second test flight took on 2 June. The company has however decided not to release the details of the hydrogen tank or the exact nature of the fuel cells, which for the source of power on the craft.
Disclosing some of the details of the plane, Alex Hill, AeroVironment's Director of Washington Operations said that the insulation on the tank is crucial to the plane in order to operate efficiently. Commenting on the test flights he said, "We didn't fuel the plane all the way up - if we had done, we could have flown for about 24 hours. But as it is, we had two flights of just over an hour each."
The company thinks that the Global Observer could be extensively used in telecommunications platforms and could complement the role of satellites.
AeroVironment has tested a fuel cell propulsion system on its solar-powered plane Helios. The plane had climbed to 29.5km (96,863ft) in 2001. This was an altitude record for a non-rocket-powered winged aircraft. However, the plane had disintegrated on a test flight in June 2003.
The problem of Greenhouse gas emissions has made it mandatory that other alternatives must be found. If AeroVironment's claim is substantiated then the production of environment-friendly aircraft could become a reality.
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