Intelligent Energy (IE), one of the UK’s major hydrogen fuel cell manufacturers, has secured a £ 17M programme to fast-track development of a new zero-emission hydrogen fuel cell system that could be powering commercial aircraft within the decade.
The project addresses the key challenge with traditional fuel cell systems – how to keep the fuel cells at the correct operating temperature without introducing significant aircraft drag from cooling systems. In aviation particularly, minimising the heat exchanger size is critical to reduce mass and drag, and to optimise overall efficiency.
IE’s patented direct water-injection technology uses air-cooled condensers with a smaller frontal area than conventional liquid glycol radiators. In Project HEIGHTS, IE will further develop this novel cooling method to achieve a significant reduction in heat exchanger size.
The investment comes as aviation faces rising pressure to cut emissions. Batteries remain constrained by weight and range, while hydrogen-electric propulsion is gaining traction as a cleaner, scalable alternative.
The project marks a major step forward for Intelligent Energy, and its fuel cell technology offers significant environmental and economic benefits to the aviation sector.