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nOVel low-prEssure cRyogenic Liquid hydrogEn storAge For aviation.

Project description

DEENESFRITPL

Better hydrogen storage can make air travel greener

The future of green, more sustainable flying will depend on hydrogen-powered aviation. At the moment, this technology is limited by the hydrogen storage aboard aircraft, whose energy-to-mass ratio is too low to be practical. The EU-funded OVERLEAF project will solve this by employing a design that utilises innovative materials to develop an innovative liquid hydrogen storage tank. This tank will seamlessly integrate with an aircraft’s fuselage and structure, while simultaneously achieving a gravimetric index of approximately 50 % for 500 kilograms of hydrogen. This high energy-to-mass ratio will make the transition to hydrogen-powered flight viable for the first time and help achieve the European Green Deal by lowering the environmental burden of air travel.

Objective

In order to meet the objectives of the European Green Deal by 2050 in the aviation sector, the transition towards H2-powered aviation is the solution with the most potential. Although hydrogen-powered aircrafts exist, the current cost of storing and using H2 as a fuel in prolonged flights make their democratization impossible. The main blocking point is the absence of viable storage systems of H2 in aircrafts considering the strict limitations in terms of weight, volume, and cost-efficiency. A sensitivity analysis shows how the economics depend on the tank’s gravimetric index (GI). Today’s technology can barely achieve 20% GI for 500kg of H2, while industry actors need at the very least 35% GI for 500kg of H2 to transition towards H2-powered aviation.
OVERLEAF intends to develop a game changer Liquid Hydrogen (LH2) storage tank to enable the transition towards H2-powered aviation. Based on a disruptive design (under patent process) and leveraging innovative materials and technologies, the OVERLEAF solution is expected to boast a GI higher than 60% for 500kg of LH2, with no venting over 24h. Furthermore, the concept is an enabler for using the aircraft’s fuselage as the outer tank, allowing to seamlessly integrate the tank in the aircrafts structure.
OVERLEAF will have an interdisciplinary R&D approach focusing on advance materials engineering, testing and combination at lab and at pilot scale, together with appropriate simulation of different design architectures of the hydrogen storage system. The project will be based on three distinctive phases and implemented in 7 Work Packages. The consortium includes multidisciplinary partners from 6 different EU countries and contains all the necessary expertise and know-how to carry-out all tasks needed to achieve OVERLEAF’s ambitious objective.

Fields of science

Programme(s)

Topic(s)

Call for proposal

HORIZON-CL5-2021-D5-01

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Funding Scheme

HORIZON-AG - HORIZON Action Grant Budget-Based

Coordinator

ACITURRI ENGINEERING SL
Net EU contribution
€ 1 138 795,00
Address
Calle jeronimo munoz 8 parque tecnologico boecillo
47151 Boecillo
Spain

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Region
Centro (ES) Castilla y León Valladolid
Activity type
Private for-profit entities (excluding Higher or Secondary Education Establishments)
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Other funding
€ 0,00

Participants (9)

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EC signature date 7 April 2022
Last update: 5 September 2022

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Permalink: https://cordis.europa.eu/project/id/101056818

European Union, 2023