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ZeroAvia awarded California grant for liquid hydrogen refueling trucks for electric planes & boats

February 06, 2024

ZeroAvia has been awarded $3.25 million in funding by the California Energy Commission (CEC) to develop a first-of-its-kind mobile liquid hydrogen (LH2) refueling truck for heavy-duty applications, including aviation and maritime. The funding for this project comes from the Gas R&D Program administered by the CEC and authorized by the California Public Utilities Commission.

The company will begin work at Livermore Municipal Airport to design, build, and demonstrate a 10,000-liter mobile LH2 refueler with sufficient flow rates to refuel in a similar time as traditional jet fuel refills. This ambitious target will support hydrogen-powered aircraft in meeting tight turnaround windows, especially in regional transport. The LH2 refueler will also be designed to improve on existing energy efficiency in LH2 applications, including reducing hydrogen boil-off to less than 0.1% per day.

ZeroAvia is developing hydrogen fuel cell propulsion as a solution to tackling the climate impact from aviation. The company plans to support passenger and cargo flights by the end of 2025 with its first hydrogen-electric engines (ZA600) for 9-19 seat aircraft using gaseous hydrogen storage. To scale hydrogen engines to larger commercial aircraft and to enable longer ranges across all aircraft sizes, cryogenic liquid hydrogen must be used to reduce the size and weight of the fuel storage systems.

The CEC-funded project advances the commercial viability of liquid hydrogen-fueled aircraft by supporting advancements in energy performance, cost efficiency, and refueling speed. The technology also has potential application in other segments of the transportation sector, including road freight and maritime.