ZEHyDA-2 - Zero Emission Hydrogen Demonstration in Airport Applications at Teesside International Airport and RAF-Leeming

This £3.37M, 16month project, led by ULEMCo with Teesside International Airport (TIAL), Motive Fuels, Newcastle University, and additional demonstration at RAF-Leeming, will deliver capability and learning for the application of hydrogen to decarbonise Airport operations. It builds upon the successful Phase-1 programme and based on the learning and awareness-raising of that initiative, targets upcycling airside specialist-vehicles and handling-equipment to zero-emission, to support the aviation sector's net-zero requirements.

Alongside this will be the installation of a hydrogen refuelling stations (HRS) located at RAF-Leeming and at Teesside International Airport (the latter as part of the related Teesside International Airport Refuelling Hub Project). These will be used to build understanding of the future role for hydrogen use within the ‘Airport-Hub Model’, at TIAL and RAF-Leeming.

It supports ULEMCo's goal to productionise their highly-novel, Phase-1 prototype HYICE-E drivetrain for airside applications, by extending the fleet of Medium Aircraft Tow-Tugs at both TIAL and RAF-L and applying the same and larger formats (50KW and 110KW H2ICE engines) to a range of airside vehicles, with the aim of creating a fleetwide conversion centre in the Teesside Region.

It will inform TIAL's objective of reaching net-zero and consolidate their position at the heart of the THTH, building on the significant achievement in Phase-1 of gaining approval from both the Civil-Aviation-Authority and the RAF for use of hydrogen vehicles, airside. The installation of the correctly sized Hydrogen Refuelling Stations will not only allow refuelling of vehicles funded in this project, but will enable refuelling of publicly owned vehicles, ULEMCo’s hydrogen dual-fuel H2ICED® vehicles developed outside this project, and vehicles deployed in other Teesside-hub projects.

Demonstration of the Hydrogen-Airport-Hub model will ultimately allow for application airside/roadside, and aircraft refuelling within civil/defence operations UK wide. Newcastle University's Future Mobility Group will capture and analyse the data generated, assessing the extent of tailpipe emissions reduction within the airport models across the country, evaluating the use of the HRS, measuring use behaviour and acceptance, as well as working with ULEMCo and Motive to disseminate the results to the Tees-Valley-Hydrogen-Transport-Hub and beyond.

Further additionality is created for the UK, by having RAF-L assess hydrogen-fuel and propulsion technologies across its operations, as part of its Project ViTAL, a collaboration between the RAF Experimental Centre(RAFX), NU and industry to undertake analysis of emerging clean energy technologies for the RAF and the wider military.