Growing demand for air travel means that airport operators are looking for new ways to curb carbon emissions on the ground, making electric vehicle and aircraft charging an attractive proposition.
Eaton, the intelligent power management company, is responding with the roll-out of Green Motion Air to airport operators across Europe, starting with a demonstration of the technology at the 2023 Paris Air Show at Le Bourget Airport, June 19 to 25.
Green Motion Air is built on Eaton's proprietary DC charging technology, bringing unrivalled conversion efficiency of 96% to charging electric planes and electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft.
François Randin, business development director, Energy Transition, Digital and Services Eaton, said: “This latest version of technology that was formerly called SKYCHARGE was initially developed by Green Motion - now part of Eaton - and Pipistrel, the company that made history with its Velis Electro by obtaining the first-ever type certificate for electric propulsion in aviation. Green Motion Air is already well-proven after becoming the world’s first to be approved by EASA, the European Union Aviation Safety Agency.
“We will display Green Motion Air at the Paris Air Show to show its versatility as a standalone charger either stationary or mounted on wheels for ultimate mobility on airside. We will explain to airport operators and OEMs alike the role it will play in a broader strategy of airport electrification thanks to its online and vehicle-to-grid (V2G) functionality.”
Airports can be transformed into energy hubs through Eaton’s Buildings as a Grid approach to the energy transition, which unites the power needs of buildings and electric vehicles with on-site renewable energy generation.
Explaining how this approach works at an airport, Randin said: “Buildings as a Grid is strategic so it could mean coupling on-airport renewable energy generated from assets such as solar panels, with EV charging stations in airport car parks, Green Motion Air, and other electrical equipment too.”
The Buildings as a Grid approach is based on a concept called sector coupling that links energy consumption with renewable energy generation and storage to reduce costs and carbon emissions and lessen pressure on the grid. It is a flexible and scalable approach, so airport operators can start with Green Motion Air, for instance, and plan to expand their infrastructure via Eaton’s related hardware and software at a later stage.
The product benefits of Green Motion Air include a 10-inch color touch-screen display for ease of use, which enables the user to pause and resume the charging session, cybersecurity protection, and secure user authentication. It is suitable for indoor and outdoor mounting, with cable extensions available for enhanced flexibility, or mobile use.
Further details on Green Motion Air will be available at the Eaton Chalet, at the 2023 Paris Air Show at Le Bourget Airport.
