Hydrogen Fuel Cells for Electric Aircraft

At the November 2021 Innovation Hour, Hertz Fellow Bob Mackey will discuss the development of hydrogen fuel cell-powered aircraft for energy-efficient, lower cost transportation that eliminates a major source of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.

Hydrogen is the lightest element and carries the most chemical energy per mass, and its simplicity makes electrochemical fuel cells conceptually simple.

As Manager of Airframe Integration at ZeroAvia, Mackey is leading a team of engineers that is integrating hydrogen fuel cells into regional transport aircraft. Now that electric aircraft are becoming practical, but batteries are still heavy, fuel cells provide an option to capture the chemical energy of hydrogen and turn it into useful thrust and payload transport.

In the regional transport market, hydrogen fuel cell electric aircraft can be more energy efficient at lower operating costs compared to today's kerosene turbine/turboprop aircraft, eliminating a major source of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.

This Hertz Foundation Innovation Hour will take place live on Wednesday, November 10, 2021, from 12:00–1:00 p.m. Pacific, using the Zoom video conference platform. You can attend on a desktop, mobile device, or by phone. Please register using the form below, and we'll email you the Zoom meeting information.

If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to contact us.