據CNBC網站2月22日消息 空客公司（Airbus）表示，計劃在本世紀中葉之前在改裝的A380飛機上測試氫動力發動機，以期為商業航空旅行帶來低排放燃料。

這家歐洲飛機巨頭周二表示，其正在與發動機制造商CFM International（通用電氣航空子公司和法國賽峰集團的合資企業）合作研制試驗飛機，該試驗飛機將包括一種已在使用的發動機的改進版本，該發動機將必須處理氫氣燃燒的更高溫度。空客公司表示，試飛將于2026年開始。

飛機制造商和航空公司正爭相削減碳排放量，碳排放量占世界總量的2%以上。空客一直在積極尋求氫燃料，并表示正在研制一架以這種燃料為動力的客機，預計將于2035年投入使用。

競爭對手波音公司專注于更可持續的航空燃料，目前可持續航空燃料占航空燃料供應的比例不到1%，比傳統航空燃料更昂貴。首席執行官戴夫·卡爾霍恩在去年6月的一次投資者會議上表示，預計在2050年之前，氫動力飛機不會達到“我們所計劃的飛機規模”。

航空咨詢公司Aerodynamic Advisory董事總經理理查德·阿布拉菲亞表示，使用氫燃料的一大挑戰是，儲存氫燃料需要額外的設備，以增加飛機的重量，減少飛機可以運載的人數或貨物量。

他說：“當工程師和經濟學家互不交談時，就會產生氫燃料。”

空客表示，之所以選擇世界上最大的客機A380，是因為它有空間存放液氫罐和其他設備。

吳恒磊 編譯自 CNBC

原文如下：

Airbus plans to test hydrogen engine on A380 jumbo jet to fly in 2026

Airbus said it plans to test a hydrogen-powered engine on a modified A380 by the middle of the decade, in hopes of bringing lower-emission fuels to commercial air travel.

The European aircraft giant said Tuesday that it’s working with engine maker CFM International — a joint venture of General Electric’s aviation arm and France’s Safran — on the test plane, which will include a modified version of an engine already in use that will have to handle higher temperatures at which hydrogen burns. Test flights could begin 2026, Airbus said.

Aircraft manufacturers and airlines are scrambling to slash their carbon emissions, which account for more than 2% of the world’s total. Airbus has aggressively pursued hydrogen and said it is working on a passenger aircraft powered by the fuel that it expects will enter service in 2035.

Rival Boeing has focused on more sustainable aviation fuels, which currently make up less than 1% of the jet fuel supply and are more expensive than conventional jet fuel. CEO Dave Calhoun said at an investor conference last June that he didn’t expect a hydrogen-powered plane on “the scale of airplanes that we’re referring to” before 2050.

One big challenge in using hydrogen fuel is that storing it would require additional equipment that adds weight to the aircraft, reducing the number of people or amount of cargo that a plane could carry, said Richard Aboulafia, managing director at Aerodynamic Advisory, an aviation consulting firm.

“Hydrogen is what happens when engineers and economists don’t talk to each other,” he said.

Airbus said it selected its A380, the world’s largest passenger plane, because it had room to store the liquid hydrogen tanks and other equipment.