Design of a Regional Hydrogen-powered Aircraft

Abstract

The designed aircraft is a regional turboprop hydrogen combustion aircraft, which aims to operate on routes where the ATR 72 - 600 operates, such as the routes between the Canary Islands, using green hydrogen. An aircraft of this size has been chosen since it is easier to implement revolutionary technologies on them than on a larger aircraft. Carbon emissions and the impact of aviation on global warming are negative aspects of commercial aviation. Current aircraft have reduced their emissions considerably over the past few decades, however, traffic growth has been greater and will continue to grow in the coming years. The strategy of the aerospace industry in the following decades aims to reduce CO2 emissions. This is where the project is framed, an aircraft that contributes to the reduction of CO2 emissions from commercial aviation. The aircraft’s passenger cabin has a single class configuration. The wings, the vertical and horizontal stabilizers and the landing gear have been designed based on similar aircraft. The result of this study is an aircraft that matches the range of the ATR-72 at maximum take-off weight. To achieve this, the energy consumption of the designed aircraft is higher. This is due to the heavy and bulky cryogenic hydrogen tanks, which require a larger fuselage and more powerful engines, resulting in an increase in the aircraft’s empty operating weight and an increase in the aircraft’s maximum take-off weight with respect to the reference aircraft.