Airbus and Toshiba Collaborate on Superconducting Aircraft Motor

Collaboration for Ultra-Efficient Motor Development

Airbus and Toshiba have joined forces to develop an ultra-efficient superconducting motor for aircraft that utilizes liquid hydrogen to power the propulsion system and cool adjacent systems.

Among the alternatives for reducing aircraft emissions, hydrogen stands out for its high energy density and ability to limit emissions to almost just water. However, hydrogen occupies more space compared to aviation fuel, making it viable only when stored as a cryogenic liquid at temperatures below -253 °C.

In hydrogen-powered aircraft, the idea is for hydrogen to feed into a fuel cell, generating electricity that either charges battery banks or directly drives an electric motor. However, there’s still a weight issue since electric motors powerful enough for conventional-sized aircraft tend to be very heavy, resulting in a poor power-to-weight ratio.

Innovative Cooling Solutions

To address this challenge, both Airbus, through its Airbus UpNext subsidiary, and Toshiba, via its Toshiba Energy Systems & Solutions Corporation division, are exploring how to use the liquid hydrogen from the fuel cells to cool a cryogenic superconducting electric motor before feeding it to the fuel cell.

When certain materials are cooled to extremely low temperatures, like that of liquid hydrogen, they become superconducting, meaning their electrical resistance drops nearly to zero, allowing them to maintain an electrical current indefinitely. This leads to much more powerful and efficient magnets used in devices like CT scanners, particle accelerators, power transmission networks, and, of course, electric motors.

Airbus claims that a superconducting motor can be over three times lighter than conventional systems and boasts a 97% efficiency rating in the powertrain. This results in significantly more power coming from a much smaller and lighter package—an essential factor for aircraft applications.

Key Agreement at Japan Aerospace 2024

The agreement between the companies, signed at Japan Aerospace 2024, will combine technology from Airbus’s Cryoprop demonstrator project and Toshiba’s half-century of development in 2-megawatt-class superconducting motors.

Partnering with Toshiba presents a unique opportunity to push beyond the limitations of today’s partial superconducting and conventional electrical motors,” said Grzegorz Ombach, Airbus Senior Vice President and Head of Disruptive R&T. “Through this collaboration, we aim to deliver breakthrough technology that could unlock new design possibilities, particularly for Airbus’s future hydrogen-powered aircraft. This partnership represents a natural and essential step in advancing superconducting motor technology to meet the needs of the aerospace industry.

Read the original article on: New Atlas

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