H2-powered aviation: Design and economics of green LH2 supply for airports

The economic competitiveness of hydrogen-powered aviation highly depends on the supply costs of green liquid hydrogen to enable true-zero CO ₂ flying. This study uses non-linear energy system optimization to analyze three main liquid hydrogen (LH ₂) supply pathways for five locations. Final liquid hydrogen costs at the dispenser supply costs could reach 2.04 USD/kgLH ₂ in a 2050 base case scenario for locations with strong renewable energy source conditions. This could lead to cost-competitive flying with hydrogen. Reflecting techno-economic uncertainties in two additional scenarios, the liquid hydrogen cost span at all five airport locations ranges between 1.37–3.48 USD/kgLH ₂, if hydrogen import options from larger hydrogen markets are also available. Import setups are of special importance for airports with a weaker renewable energy source situation, e.g., selected Central European airports. There, on-site supply might not only be too expensive, but space requirements for renewable energy sources could be too large for feasible implementation in densely populated regions. Furthermore, main costs for liquid hydrogen are caused by renewable energy sources, electrolysis systems, and liquefaction plants. Seven detailed design rules are derived for optimized energy systems for these and the storage components. This and the cost results should help infrastructure planners and general industry and policy players prioritize research and development needs.