The third year of the project allow continuing the implementation of the workplan, with in parallel, the maturation plan of each technologies including 4 sub-systems, the Additive Manufacturing processes and the Health Monitoring Systems and the Engine Demo platform development and test campaign preparation.
The subsystems development continued this third year with the manufacturing of prototypes and preparation and conduction of tests at product level on the new technologies:
- Laser Ignition System (LIS): preparation and conduction of test campaign in the M3 bench at DLR in order to demonstrate the capacity to ignite several combustion chambers simultaneously.
- Low cost regulation chamber valve: AGS Chamber Valve prototype was finalized and test campaign has been performed to check tigthness, dynamics and electrical aspect of the valve and its controller.
- Nozzle Extension: Prototype has been manufactured via direct energy deposition (DED) and finalised via post printed activities (visual inspection, dimensionnal check, thermal treatment, non destructive inspection). Then a cold test campaign has been performed on the Nozzle Extension prototype to check the tigthtness, capacity to withstand pressure level and to charaterize the prototype.
- Low cost high pressure integrated lines: Critical Design Review has been achieved successfully. All actions raised during this review has then been completed (validated via a specific keypoint). Then manufacturing logic has been established with the supplier and several parts of the lines have been manufactured (Elbow, tubes, flanges, mass flow meter, flexible).
With regard to the additive manufacturing process the third year allows the consortium to continue:
- The maturation of large scale laser Beam Melting (LBM) with re-assessment of the properties of the printed material (IN718) after multiple changes in the configuration and optimizations of the ANTARES (formerly called ADIRA) machine.
- The maturation of laser metal deposition powder (LMD-p) process with:
- The elaboration of the manufacturing and post manufacturing process of two exhaust lines in INCONEL 625 by IREPA Laser;
- The successful manufacturing of the inlet manifold which is the first part of the final demonstrator by Fraunhofer ILT
- The maturation of multimaterial process continued with the implementation and experimentation of an intermediate layer to prevent intermixing of Ti and Ni.
Enligthen Health Monitoring System (EHMS), including the electronic card (EHMC), has been tested on the ISFM bench in order to evaluate its behavior. EHMS models, which includes several methods to identify failures, have been compared to Gaussian distribution-based reference method to characterize its performances (reliability, competitiveness) under real-world scenarios.
And finally the Engine Demo Platform continue its definition in order to welcome the different technology and to clarify the way to define the test campaign in order to contribute to the maturation of the different subsystems. Critical Design Review (CDR) of the plateform has been conducted in July 2025. Design of several part of the engines have been finalised (Generator lines, turbine exhaust lines, small lines, exhaust lines...). Mechanical justifications were not fully available at CDR and a dedicated Key Point has to be performed during RP4. Most of functional justifications related to Engine ignition, steady state and shut-down phases have been finalised during RP3. Electrical and Control Systems architecture has been consolidated with some important modification during RP3 and a specific KP performed. From engine control point of view, a significant progress has been done during the RP#3 to demonstrate engine controllability considering the new electrical valves introduced in the engine demo platform. The control logic has been established including definition of “responsibilities” between engine and test bench wrt engine electrical devices control. Impact on on P5 DLR test bench has started with CFD computations launched to assess the impact of the exhaust line and shorted nozzle extension.
