Cotswold-based aviation sector disruptor ZeroAvia has landed a $3.25 (£2.55m) deal from the California Energy Commission (CEC) to develop a first-of-a-kind mobile liquid hydrogen (LH2) refueling truck.

In the terms of the deal, the zero-emission aviation pioneer will design, build and test a first-of-a-kind rapid liquid hydrogen (LH2) refueling vehicle for aviation and other heavy-duty applications - and the plan will see new operations at the sunshine state's Livermore Municipal Airport.

The award, the California's primary energy policy and planning agency, will charge ZeroAvia with creating a truck for heavy-duty applications, including aviation and maritime, with funding for the project coming from a gas research and development program administered by the CEC.

Val Miftakhov, Founder & CEO, ZeroAvia, said: "Given the gravity of the climate emergency, the rapid acceleration of clean engine technology using fuel cells must be met with optimized refueling technologies and infrastructure to ensure speedy adoption. This mobile LH2 refueler project is therefore of essential importance to ZeroAvia, the wider aviation industry, and anybody working to clean up heavy duty transportation."

Working at Livermore Municipal Airport, ZeroAvia will begin work this month 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.

Hitting this "ambitious target", the company said, 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. ZeroAvia is already developing its larger ZA2000 engine family, with the first high-power ground tests of the fully integrated electric propulsion system conducted earlier this year.

These larger aircraft - such as the Dash-8-400 76-seat aircraft ZeroAvia is working on with Alaska Airlines and other partners - will require up to one ton of LH2 storage on board to support up to 700 nautical mile range. Target launch is set for 2027.

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