Conflux Technology developing heat exchangers for Airbus’s hydrogen-electric aircraft project

Conflux Technology has revealed that it is part of Airbus's ZEROe, with the Geelong-headquartered business contributing development of additively-manufactured heat exchangers for the hydrogen-electric aviation project.

According to a statement from Conflux on Tuesday, its heat exchanger plays a critical role in thermal regulation within ZEROe's fuel cell systems.

The company said its exchanger was developed through rigorous Computational Fluid Dynamic (CFD) modelling, validated in lab-scale testing, and is currently undergoing a technology readiness maturity assessment.

“Thermal management is a core enabler for hydrogen propulsion, and our expertise is helping to advance this technology from lab to flight,” said Michael Fuller, CEO of Conflux Technology. 

The exchanger is being evaluated for integration into Airbus’ broader hydrogen fuel cell architecture. Conflux expects continued development and system-level testing over coming months.

Airbus launched its ZEROe project in 2020, investigating the feasibility of propulsion through both hydrogen combustion and fuel cells. 

This year it revised its project roadmap and its focus on hydrogen fuel cells powering the current aircraft design, ahead of three earlier combustion-powered concepts.

The “new, notional concept” announced in March featured “four, 2-megawatt electric propulsion engines, each driven by a fuel cell system that converts hydrogen and oxygen into electrical energy.” Two liquid hydrogen tanks would supply the four fuel cells.

Airbus said its plans could see the new single-aisle aircraft “enter service in the second half of the 2030s”.

Conflux shared earlier in September that it is part of the Honeywell-led TheMa4HERA consortium, which is co-funded by the EU, includes 28 partners across 10 European countries and concerns hybrid-electric regional aircraft.

Conflux was established a decade ago. According to a statement it made in April, Europe represents over 35 per cent of its business, across aerospace and several Formula 1 teams.

Picture: supplied 

Further reading

Conflux Joins Honeywell-led hybrid-powered aircraft R&D consortium

Additive manufacturer Conflux expands to UK

Conflux wins manufacturing title at Governor of Victoria Export Awards

Conflux announces project with Rocket Factory Augsburg