Descripción del proyecto
No hay límites para la reducción de peso de los depósitos de aeronaves
El futuro de la aviación sin emisiones depende de combustibles alternativos como el hidrógeno, que requiere un almacenamiento seguro y eficaz a bordo. Esto plantea uno de los retos de ingeniería más complejos del sector aeroespacial. En el proyecto COCOLIH2T, financiado con fondos europeos, se ofrecerá una solución disruptiva para reducir el peso y el efecto del volumen del depósito dentro de una aeronave sin comprometer la seguridad del sistema. El equipo del proyecto pretende desarrollar un depósito compuesto, seguro y aislado al vacío para el hidrógeno líquido (LH2) destinado al sector de la aviación, mediante tecnologías de fabricación innovadoras para diseñar y fabricar un depósito conforme. La estructura del depósito de LH2 se basará en un concepto de compuesto termoplástico multimaterial que reduce el consumo de energía y abarata los costes de fabricación. Este proyecto podría acelerar el desarrollo de una industria aeronáutica sostenible.
Objetivo
Alternative fuels such as hydrogen (H2) are seen as playing a central role in a zero-emission future for aviation, but the level of penetration for H2 will depend heavily on scientific and technological breakthroughs to overcome the challenges posed by H2 powered aircraft. The safe and efficient storage of H2 on-board future aircraft is the essential enabler of H2 technologies and will be one of the most complex aerospace engineering challenges that the industry has ever faced. Improvements to existing state-of-the-art solutions includes a better utilization of the available space for fuel storage, adequate insulation techniques to minimize heat leak, continued safe operations, and a weight reduction through low-weight materials, such as thermoset or thermoplastic composites, all while addressing those materials’ inherent challenges (permeability, microcracking, thermal fatigue). COCOLIH2T consortium led by Collins Aerospace is proposing a disruptive concept focused on reducing the impact of the tank’s weight and volume within an aircraft, while ensuring system safety. COCOLIH2T will not only develop a safe composite and vacuum insulated LH2 tank for the aviation sector but has the ambition to go beyond by designing and manufacturing a conformal tank through novel fabrication technologies enabling a reduction of more than 60% in production energy consumption, at least 50% in production time leading to significantly lower manufacturing costs. Additionally, the proposed structure of the tank, based on a multi-material thermoplastic composite concept, is intended to facilitate aircraft structural integration to support overall system weight reduction compared with conventional tank configurations. The key challenge that COCOLIH2T will tackle is the generation of a feasible and affordable design of a conformal variable section box-shape tank while minimizing the boil-off leakages wherever possible. COCOLIH2T’s overall system will be demonstrated at TRL4 by 2025.
Ámbito científico
Palabras clave
Programa(s)
- HORIZON.2.5 - Climate, Energy and Mobility Main Programme
Régimen de financiación
HORIZON-JU-RIA - HORIZON JU Research and Innovation ActionsCoordinador
T23 Cork
Irlanda