The overall system architecture, addressing:

• Electrical, thermal and energy management functions, at the requested performance targets (detailed in the next section) for an Ultra Efficient Regional aircraft and Flight Test Demonstrator.
• The Validation and Verification approach of the integrated system towards in-flight demonstration at TRL6 by 2030.
• Electrical Power Generation and Distribution System (EPGDS), covering:
  • High Voltage technologies and equipment relevant to electric propulsive loads, interfacing to the propulsive system electrical systems located within the nacelle.
  • Non-propulsive power sources and generators (including starter generator) o Power conversion units required to generate different voltage and power levels considered at aircraft level, for non-propulsive and propulsive consumers.
  • The interfacing with batteries used for propulsive electrical energy storage. The battery power source development (battery pack and Batter Management System) is not included in the project, but the developed systems should be compatible with the interfacing to a battery system for the Flight Test Demonstrator. The applicant will expose the contribution from projects financed by other institutions or being selffunded due to provide the battery pack including the Battery Management System.
  • Harness and connectors to enable the interconnection of equipment.
  • Power distribution units, protection devices, and fault management for the EPGDS.
  • Energy management and health monitoring.
  • Grounding and bonding definition to mitigate conducted and radiated emissions accounting novel designs of the airframe.
  • Protection and mitigation of adverse physical phenomena associated with severe environmental condition at altitude such as partial discharge, arcing and lightning effects at high voltage, pressurised, low pressurized and non-pressurised areas.
• Thermal Management System (TMS), covering:
  • The thermal management of propulsive and non-propulsive heat loads located withing the airframe, such as power electronics, batteries, generators, and other relevant thermal loads. In particular, the thermal management of batteries operating at high C-rates (high power phases and fast charging) shall be addressed, in line with aircraft requirements and operational environment (cold and hot conditions on ground and in flight).
  • The cooling generation system, based on high-power densities technologies such as Vapour Cycle System (VCS), to regulate the temperature of multiple heat loads.
  • Adaptative heat transport solutions, based on highly efficient technologies such as active pumped loops (mono-phasic and/or di phasic), passive systems possibly based on heat pipes, or other advanced technologies.
  • High power density heat exchanger or heat extraction devices, considering novel manufacturing processes and novel integration schemes for heat exchangers to maximise power density while reducing drag and new solutions for “waste heat extraction” with improved heat insulation to enable higher density electronics.
  • Integration with electrical and electronics consumer equipment, including batteries.
• Optimised Energy management solutions, covering:
  • The monitoring of energy and power sources required for the propulsive and non propulsive energy management strategies defined at aircraft level, depending on flight phases and aircraft/environmental conditions.
  • Specific functions, algorithms, and features to balance those sources, based on real-time status and predictions of remaining energy storage, in nominal and non-nominal situations. The optimised energy management solutions shall make the onboard electrical power system flexible and adaptable to flight conditions, while accommodating at highest efficiency significantly larger onboard power and energy budget, compared to current state-of-the-art.
  • Safe avionics for the management and interaction of propulsive and non-propulsive power generation and distribution, and implication on flight Management System, health monitoring system, centralized maintenance systems, and other relevant systems.
  • Adequate pilot interfaces, providing crew awareness of hybrid-electric systems, addressing crew workload and interactions, and providing adequate automation (e.g awareness of available power, remaining flight endurance, crew assistance in managing failures, crew alerting system).

The project shall address all systems installed within the airframe (mainly into the fuselage but including the electrical distribution along the wing and pylon, to the connexion with the nacelle of a wing-mounted propulsive system), and needed for the hybrid-electric Flight Test Demonstration.