Fraunhofer at ILA 2026

The Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft is presenting industrial-scale manufacturing systems, electric propulsion components, and satellite-based monitoring instruments to accelerate decarbonization and commercial scalability in the aerospace sector. These applied research developments are designed to transition custom aerospace engineering into high-rate, cost-effective serial production.

Scalable Automation for Hydrogen and Thermoplastic Aerostructures
Transitioning to low-emission commercial flight requires automated manufacturing capable of processing advanced lightweight materials at high cycle rates. To address the infrastructure needs of hydrogen flight, a flexible, automated machining and assembly system for carbon-fiber-reinforced polymer (CFRP) liquid hydrogen tanks has been developed. Known as HYTANK, this system automates process steps beyond surface pre-treatment and barrier-layer application, establishing a validated mechanism for the repeatable serial manufacturing of cryogenic fuel storage systems.

For structural components, thermoplastic sandwich architectures are replacing traditional thermoset composites to enable recyclability and reduced processing times. The EcoRudder component, engineered under the European Clean Aviation project FasterH2, utilizes a specialized manufacturing process that compresses cycle times for complex aerostructures. This approach demonstrates that components like aircraft rudders can be fabricated with the throughput necessary for commercial production lines while retaining structural integrity and full material circularity.




Power Electronics and High-Density Electric Powertrains
Electric and hybrid-electric aviation architectures depend heavily on reducing the weight-to-power ratio of electrical architectures. Component developments include direct-current to direct-current (DC-DC) power converters that achieve exceptionally high power densities, alongside high-voltage distribution networks engineered for altitude-specific safety margins.

For primary propulsion, a megawatt-class electric motor delivers the torque and thermal management necessary for regional-class hybrid powertrains. These power electronics and drive components provide the foundational hardware required to satisfy stringent aviation certification standards for efficiency and system redundancy.

Satellite Communications and High-Resolution Earth Observation
Space infrastructure is increasingly moving toward standardized, small-satellite architectures that require high-precision instruments optimized for volume production. For orbital telecommunications, non-terrestrial network base stations for 5G and 6G infrastructure allow for the direct testing and validation of satellite communications under simulated and real orbital conditions. This system ensures reliable network connectivity, precise timing synchronization, and stable data links across hybrid terrestrial-satellite networks.

In environmental monitoring, specialized optical dispersion modules have been developed for the European Space Agency (ESA) Copernicus Carbon Dioxide Monitoring (CO2M) mission. These dispersers enable high-resolution, quantitative greenhouse gas tracking by splitting light into precise spectral bands, facilitating the accurate measurement of global carbon dioxide emissions from orbit.

Additionally, the compact "Rainbow" space spectrometer adapts this high-precision optical technology for small-satellite constellations. Designed for agricultural monitoring, the spectrometer measures soil moisture profiles and nutrient availability to support commercial smart-farming applications from low Earth orbit.




Additional Context: Technical Specifications and Competitive Benchmarking
The aerospace technologies introduced focus on overcoming the low production volumes typically associated with high-performance aerospace engineering. In the field of cryogenic hydrogen storage, conventional manufacturing relies on manual lay-up and specialized autoclaves, limiting production output. Automated systems like HYTANK position automated fiber placement and automated cleanroom assembly as direct alternatives, aiming to reduce manufacturing cycle times for composite tanks by a significant margin compared to traditional methods.

In power electronics, standard industrial DC-DC converters typically achieve power densities between 5 and 10 kilowatts per kilogram. The power electronics developed for electric flight push past these limitations by utilizing wide-bandgap semiconductors, such as silicon carbide, to minimize thermal losses and achieve the much higher power densities required for flight certification.

Similarly, the optical modules for the CO2M mission represent a major advancement over standard diffraction gratings. By integrating custom-engineered, high-efficiency dispersers, these optical payloads achieve the narrow spectral resolution necessary to quantify localized carbon emissions with high accuracy, establishing a new performance benchmark for civil greenhouse gas monitoring instruments.

Edited by Evgeny Churilov, Induportals Media - Adapted by AI.

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