Promising Research

To ensure that the Dutch manufacturing industry remains competitive beyond 2030 and to strengthen the position of knowledge institutions/academia by building a knowledge base on the key topics of “smart structures” and “enabling hydrogen-powered flight.”

Most projects focus on technologies that should already strengthen the Dutch position and generate revenue in the international supply chain by 2030. To ensure that we can maintain this position and remain a European leader beyond 2030, we must start conducting research now into the technologies that will be needed after 2030. These topics were proposed by NLR and TU Delft and coordinated with the industry.

This project focuses on two topics that are crucial for the sustainability of aviation: making aircraft smarter and lighter by developing “Smart Structural Components” and advancing the technologies needed for hydrogen-powered flight, referred to as “Enabling Hydrogen Flight.” The 13 topics within this project include new propulsion systems and propulsion concepts, electro-thermal systems, new design concepts and materials, ultra-efficient structural components, and cost-effective manufacturing technologies for new aircraft configurations.

All topics of this project have started over the past year, with progress varying by topic. On November 21, 2024, an event was held where LiT stakeholders had the opportunity to learn more about the topics through short pitches, followed by poster presentations and discussions with the researchers. You can find the posters below.

The next steps for each topic are outlined in the posters.