In Toulouse, Universal Hydrogen converts ATR aircraft to hydrogen
In the race for decarbonized aviation, Universal Hydrogen, co-founded in 2020 in California by the former technical director of Airbus Paul Eremenko, has just inaugurated a 3,000 square meter workshop and its European headquarters next to the runways of the Toulouse-Blagnac airport. Established in Toulouse since October, the company has recruited former Airbus executives to design removable tanks of gaseous or liquid hydrogen for the regional planes Dash 8 from Bombardier and ATR 72 from Airbus and Leonardo. The turboprops of these 45 to 78-seat propeller aircraft will be replaced by electric motors powered by fuel cells.
“Hydrogen provides performance equivalent to kerosene, whereas the batteries would be too heavy to power a 60-passenger electric plane,” explains Pierre Farjounel, director of the Europe subsidiary. Replacing the tanks simplifies the supply of hydrogen, a very volatile gas that must be compressed to more than 700 bars or liquefied at -253 degrees to increase autonomy. The modules of two tanks will each be changed at airports and recharged in future green hydrogen plants, produced by the electrolysis of water with renewable electricity. “With our solution, we seek to simplify airline operations and reduce capital expenditures,” says CTO Mark Cousin.
25 hires
The young company has already raised 85 million dollars from the mining company FFI, Airbus Ventures, JetBlue Ventures, Power Plug, etc. It employs 90 people in the United States where it develops the gaseous hydrogen module, the propulsion chain and the conversion of the Dash 8, and 25 in Toulouse where it designed the liquid hydrogen tanks and the conversion of the ATR 72. “We will have 50 employees in Toulouse at the end of the year and we must triple the workforce in three years, foreseeing Pierre Farjounel. We will invest several tens of millions of euros over five years to design the modules. »
The liquid hydrogen tanks, in double aluminum skins, must maintain the temperature of the fuel for four days. “Liquid hydrogen brings constraints but allows you to travel 1,000 kilometers in an ATR 72 with 400 kg of fuel, against 350 km with 200 kg of gaseous hydrogen, which is more voluminous”, explains Mark Cousin. Installing four modules instead of three rows of seats in the rear will reduce the capacity of the ATR 72 from 72 to 56 seats. The aircraft will have two 2 megawatt electric motors and 12 fuel cells.
Lower the cost of green hydrogen
Universal Hydrogen also designed the power chain by integrating fuel cells and motors from the American MagniX. It has already integrated a 1 megawatt propulsion system which will be flight tested on a Dash 8 at the end of the year, in order to obtain certification in 2025. It remains to reduce the cost of green hydrogen, twice and half as expensive as kerosene. “The prices of the two fuels will intersect in 2025 according to a study,” says Pierre Farjounel.
The start-up offers airlines the conversion of their planes and a fuel supply contract. It has received letters of intent from around fifteen companies and lessors to convert 200 ATR and Dash 8. Among the recognized customers Amelia, Air Nostrum and the American Connect Airlines which ordered the conversion of 75 ATR 72 -600 in 2025 and 25 optional! The manufacturer ATR, on the other hand, did not buy the conversion and put on SAF vegetable fuel.