Stralis Aircraft developing cleaner and cheaper hydrogen-electric plane

A Brisbane-based aviation company is developing green hydrogen-powered aircraft in the hopes it will lead to cheaper flights for customers, lower running costs for airlines and reduced greenhouse gas emissions.

Stralis Aircraft and CQ University have partnered to develop the technology required, with plans for commercial flights between Brisbane and Gladstone in 2027.

It plans to be the first company to fly a plane in Australia using hydrogen.

“This technology will not just be cleaner, but quieter,” Stralis Aircraft head of partnerships Emma Whittlesea said.

“We’re also hoping that with the projected prices for hydrogen it could be cheaper, which makes it more cost-effective.”

Dr Whittlesea said while other hydrogen-electric systems were being developed for aircraft, the technology being used by Stralis was unique.

Stralis is creating high temperature proton-exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cells, as the aircraft needs to have greater power to carry passengers and luggage.

“You can power a plane off a low temperature fuel cell … they’re being used all over the place in cars and trucks,” she said.

“We’re just going to get a much better performance from the ones we’re developing.”

A man wearing high vis looks at a grey aeroplane
Stralis used hydrogen to turn a plane’s propeller while on the ground. (Supplied: Stralis)

Dr Whittlesea said the company planned to have its test aeroplane Bonnie in the skies later this year.

“We have already started testing on the ground … we’ve spun the prop successfully using gaseous hydrogen,” Dr Whittlesea said.

Hydrogen fuel cells create electricity through the chemical reaction of combining hydrogen and oxygen.

Dr Whittlesea said other companies around the world had already flown planes powered by hydrogen and other groups were beginning to explore the same high temperature PEM fuel cell technology.

A close up of the nose of a small grey aeroplane with a larger plane in the background
Stralis wants to fly a hydrogen-powered aeroplane on the Brisbane to Gladstone route by 2027. (Supplied: Stralis/ Patrick Auld)

The company has about $US235 million ($AU372m) in letters of intent from 10 airlines across the United States, Europe, Asia, Australia and New Zealand who are interested in purchasing the aircraft if the technology is successful.

While the details of the potential customers were confidential, she said some were public companies.

Dr Whittlesea said green hydrogen-powered aircraft would produce virtually no greenhouse gas emissions.

“All the system releases is water vapour,” she said.

The search for sustainable aviation

CQ University hydrogen expert Jonathon Love said the aviation sector was one of the hardest industries to move towards a clean fuel and away from kerosene or jet fuel.

“Nearly all the aviation companies are trying to work out how to decarbonise … there are different approaches, different technologies out there,” Professor Love said.

A grey aeroplane with two men in high vis standing nearby
The company says the technology could make flying cheaper for customers.  (Supplied: Stralis)

He said there were other alternatives for flights, such as batteries which could only be used for very short flights.

He said long-distance flights would likely be powered with a more sustainable fuel in the future.

“Where hydrogen comes in is that mid-range, which is really good for a lot of the regional flights in Australia, it’s almost perfect for it,” he said.

Professor Love said the university would help Stralis by pairing the company with researchers to help engineer the fuel cell.

The cell would need to work properly, produce the right amount of power and be maintained at the right temperature.

The company plans to purchase green hydrogen for its supply chain as locally as possible.

“We have our launch customer Sky Trans Airlines who are looking at a first commercial route between Brisbane and Gladstone, so we are very much looking to use green hydrogen [produced] locally in Gladstone,” Dr Whittlesea said.

While the supply chain was still being developed, she said the company was confident it would not be an issue by the time commercial flights were available.

She said Stralis was looking at using liquid hydrogen as it took up less space than gas.

But she said it added another step in the production process which had not been done in Gladstone.

Green hydrogen can be produced when it is extracted from water through electrolysis, which is powered by a renewable energy source such as solar.

The electrical current passes through the water to separate hydrogen and oxygen.

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