Toray Advanced Composites has been awarded funding from the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy’s Research and Development for Mobility scheme for the development of a long-life, fully composite liquid hydrogen tank for civil aviation.
The funding has been awarded to Toray, together with partners from industry and academia. Hydrogen has been identified by the European Commission (EC) as a key priority to achieve the European Green Deal for a sustainable economy. The company develops and produces advanced thermoplastic and thermoset composite materials. The broad product portfolio is incorporated in high-performance products for aerospace, space, communications, automotive, consumer, and industrial applications.
Tanks will advance liquid hydrogen as sustainable aviation fuel
By converting the construction of the hydrogen tank from existing metallic solutions to composites, the liquid hydrogen (LH2) composite tank will achieve weight savings that enable the advancement of liquid hydrogen as a sustainable fuel source for civil aviation. This will lower the carbon footprint of air travel and increase and extend the flight range of aircraft fleet by reducing construction weight and cost.
The cross-sector research undertaken as part of the programme aims to result in a lightweight composite tank which can withstand the extreme low temperatures of liquid hydrogen which is stored at -253°C. The project will focus on composite tank construction, digital design strategies, and production technologies.
Consortium includes 13 industry partners
The consortium comprises of 13 partners across academia and industry: Aircraft Development and Systems Engineering (ADSE), Airborne, Bold Findings, Cryoworld, GKN Aerospace’s Fokker business, IT’S Engineering, KVE, NLR, PhotonFirst Technologies, Somni Solutions, TANIQ, and Technical University Delft together with SAM|XL.
Frank Meurs, Managing Director, Toray Advanced Composites, “We are delighted to have been granted this funding. By joining together the best of Dutch industries and institutes in a unique consortium, we will contribute to the acceleration of hydrogen technology into aerospace as a sustainable fuel source for the future. This project underlines the commitment across the supply chain to drive forward sustainable propulsion technologies and is conducted in full alignment with the major aircraft and engine manufacturers.”
