Periodic Reporting for period 1 - SWITCH (Sustainable Water-Injecting Turbofan Comprising Hybrid-electrics)
Reporting period: 2023-01-01 to 2023-06-30
SWITCH aims to answer the challenge of climate-neutral short-medium range air transport by developing a revolutionary sustainable gas turbine propulsion system – the hybrid Water-Enhanced Turbofan (hybrid WET). It boosts WET technology with hybridization to improve energy efficiency by 25% and reduce climate impact by 75% (using net zero-CO2 sustainable aviation fuel, 50% with conventional Jet-A kerosene) compared to a state-of-the-art engine. It is the only concept to significantly reduce all three major warming effects on our climate: CO2 through unmatched efficiency, NOx through water injection in the combustor, and contrails through particle removal and water recovery. Local air quality and noise levels around airports are improved through electric taxiing. The hybrid WET is fully compatible with drop-in SAF and could also be adapted to burn hydrogen. It addresses all climate-notable market segments: Short-, medium- and long-range.
The SWITCH project will meet this challenge with a global consortium, through an unprecedented programmatic effort between airframer, engine and system OEMs, key tier 1 suppliers and leading researchers in combustion and propulsion, leveraging relevant and effective synergies between European and national programs. SWITCH will mature the hybrid WET’s two key innovation concepts by 2025: The WET engine to technology readiness level (TRL) 4 through validation of its key enabling technologies and the Electrical Aircraft Propulsion (EAP) system to TRL 5 through flight-ready engine ground demonstration of the full propulsion system.
Results from SWITCH will reinforce confidence in the climate reduction potential of the hybrid WET propulsion system and form the technological foundation to achieve TRL 6 by 2030. This will enable the innovation to enter into the market by 2035 on a new short-medium range aircraft to significantly reduce aviation’s climate impact towards the European Green Deal’s goal of climate neutrality by 2050.
The SWITCH project will meet this challenge with a global consortium, through an unprecedented programmatic effort between airframer, engine and system OEMs, key tier 1 suppliers and leading researchers in combustion and propulsion, leveraging relevant and effective synergies between European and national programs. SWITCH will mature the hybrid WET’s two key innovation concepts by 2025: The WET engine to technology readiness level (TRL) 4 through validation of its key enabling technologies and the Electrical Aircraft Propulsion (EAP) system to TRL 5 through flight-ready engine ground demonstration of the full propulsion system.
Results from SWITCH will reinforce confidence in the climate reduction potential of the hybrid WET propulsion system and form the technological foundation to achieve TRL 6 by 2030. This will enable the innovation to enter into the market by 2035 on a new short-medium range aircraft to significantly reduce aviation’s climate impact towards the European Green Deal’s goal of climate neutrality by 2050.
In the reporting period, the core of the work performed in SWITCH covered:
- EAP & WET Concept Elaboration. The baseline engine was defined. The engine performance requirements for both a conventional, evolutionary improved engine as well as for a water-enhanced turbofan (WET) were aligned. An important part of this alignment was the definition of critical operational scenarios that are taken into account when defining the water management of the WET concept. The aircraft operations profile was modified with the objective to minimize the overall mission fuel consumption. The aircraft’s performance was calculated with the WET concept for a specific evaluation mission. Concepts for integration of the WET configuration were elaborated. Target of the concepts is an under wing installation with minimized impact on wing aerodynamics and an improved diffusion of the condenser cold side. Synergies and opportunities between the WET and EAP technologies were assessed to derive a common systems structure for the Hybrid WET engine. WET-specific high level engine requirements as well as requirements derived from Top-Level Aircraft Requirements (TLARs) will form the highest level system requirements for the Hybrid WET engine.
- EAP Engine Demonstrator. The SWITCH consortium partners have worked to define tailored systems engineering process that can be followed by all of the partners. The team has been progressing on the engine and EAP system architecture design, and made progress on the verification and validation planning. The concept design review was successfully completed, allowing the team to progress into preliminary design. An initial systems requirement document was established for the EAP system and has placed it under revision control. The initial set of EAP test objectives with planned test bench allocations was elaborated. Definition and preparation work for the EAP Ground Test and the Test Bed Adaption were done. The concept design for the major components that constitute the EAP system and the concept design of the integration of those components into an existing engine are progressing, and hardware procurement was started.
- WET Technology Maturation. For the combustor, concept calculations were performed and the design for rig testing completed and the hardware procurement was started. A vaporizer concept was defined and will undergo concept review. Test definitions are progressing. Initial CFD studies of the condenser are completed and a number of different designs were modelled, drawings were released and parts are being procured. For the water recovery, pre-design tools and high-fidelity models were created, a test concept review was conducted and test rig components are being manufactured. 4 different WET engine concepts are studied for nacelle drag effects and thrust reverser concepts have been identified.
- EAP & WET Concept Elaboration. The baseline engine was defined. The engine performance requirements for both a conventional, evolutionary improved engine as well as for a water-enhanced turbofan (WET) were aligned. An important part of this alignment was the definition of critical operational scenarios that are taken into account when defining the water management of the WET concept. The aircraft operations profile was modified with the objective to minimize the overall mission fuel consumption. The aircraft’s performance was calculated with the WET concept for a specific evaluation mission. Concepts for integration of the WET configuration were elaborated. Target of the concepts is an under wing installation with minimized impact on wing aerodynamics and an improved diffusion of the condenser cold side. Synergies and opportunities between the WET and EAP technologies were assessed to derive a common systems structure for the Hybrid WET engine. WET-specific high level engine requirements as well as requirements derived from Top-Level Aircraft Requirements (TLARs) will form the highest level system requirements for the Hybrid WET engine.
- EAP Engine Demonstrator. The SWITCH consortium partners have worked to define tailored systems engineering process that can be followed by all of the partners. The team has been progressing on the engine and EAP system architecture design, and made progress on the verification and validation planning. The concept design review was successfully completed, allowing the team to progress into preliminary design. An initial systems requirement document was established for the EAP system and has placed it under revision control. The initial set of EAP test objectives with planned test bench allocations was elaborated. Definition and preparation work for the EAP Ground Test and the Test Bed Adaption were done. The concept design for the major components that constitute the EAP system and the concept design of the integration of those components into an existing engine are progressing, and hardware procurement was started.
- WET Technology Maturation. For the combustor, concept calculations were performed and the design for rig testing completed and the hardware procurement was started. A vaporizer concept was defined and will undergo concept review. Test definitions are progressing. Initial CFD studies of the condenser are completed and a number of different designs were modelled, drawings were released and parts are being procured. For the water recovery, pre-design tools and high-fidelity models were created, a test concept review was conducted and test rig components are being manufactured. 4 different WET engine concepts are studied for nacelle drag effects and thrust reverser concepts have been identified.
SWITCH’s overall objective is to demonstrate at TRL4/5 the disruptive ultra-efficient next generation SMR propulsion concept of the hybrid WET engine, resulting in 25% lower fuel burn and more than 60% reduction of non-CO2 related climate impact compared to a 2020 market available state of the art aero engine. The concept will be compatible with SR/SMR aircraft architectures and is even scalable to all other relevant thrust classes. .Key enablers and actions needed for the engine architecture to allow the adoption of hydrogen as fuel / energy source will be defined, including compatibility with future hydrogen-powered aircraft concept. The demonstration plan will be detailed to reach TRL4 for the WET engine concept at project completion. The electric aircraft propulsion will be matured to TRL4 through the development and testing of its sub-systems components in the laboratory environment and to TRL5 in 2025 through integration and testing of the full system in an engine ground demonstrator. The engine ground demonstrator will be designed and fabricated to be flight worthy to enable flight testing early in Phase 2. A roadmap towards full-scale demonstration of the propulsion system compatible with TRL6 at aircraft level before the end of the Clean Aviation programme and compatible with an EIS by 2035 will be delivered.