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Pratt & Whitney Canada to Test Hydrogen Combustion Technology on Turboprop Engine

Pratt & Whitney Canada to Test Hydrogen Combustion Technology on Turboprop Engine

Pratt & Whitney Canada will use its PW127XT regional turboprop engine to demonstrate hydrogen combustion technology under the Hydrogen Advanced Design Engine Study, or HyADES.

According to the company, the PW127XT engine, the most advanced member of the PW100 engine series, offers over 3 percent better fuel efficiency, 40 percent improved time on wing and 20 percent reduced maintenance costs.

Edward Hoskin, vice president of engineering at Pratt & Whitney Canada, said HyADES, funded by Canada’s Initiative for Sustainable Aviation Technology, will enable the continuous development of key technologies for hydrogen-powered aircraft and improve engine efficiency and hybrid-electric propulsion to advance aviation sustainability.

The project will test the hydrogen combustion technology in phases, with the first one focusing on fuel nozzle and combustor rig trials using hydrogen fuel and the remaining phases centering on full engine ground testing.

Green Hydrogen Production

As Pratt & Whitney’s HyADES partner, Next Hydrogen Solutions will develop high-efficiency, low-cost electrolyzers for hydrogen production infrastructure.

Raveel Afzaal, president and CEO of Next Hydrogen Solutions, said “the ability to produce green hydrogen at scale will be a critical enabler for reducing aviation CO2 emissions.”

INSAT-Supported Turbine Engine Improvement Project

Pratt & Whitney is also part of another project supported by the Canadian sustainable aviation technology initiative. Under the Turbine Engine Advanced Materials for Efficiency project, the company will partner with Derivation Research Laboratory to explore advanced materials for hot section components of gas turbine engines to help improve thermal efficiency and reduce fuel consumption and emissions.

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