Rolls-Royce to lead on hybrid aero engine system project

Rolls-Royce has been selected to lead a project aimed at demonstrating a hybrid-electric gas-turbine propulsion system for future ultra-efficient short- to medium-range aircraft.

The firm, which has its civil aerospace division in Derby, has been selected by the European Union’s Clean Aviation programme to lead the ELEVATED project.

ELEVATED is one of 19 ground-breaking Clean Aviation projects announced to further decarbonise aviation while strengthening EU competitiveness and industrial leadership.

The initiatives, which also include solutions for hydrogen-powered and ultra-efficient regional aircraft architectures, will receive up to €290 million in EU funding, contributing to a total public and private investment of €664 million across the Clean Aviation Call 4 projects.

The Clean Aviation Joint Undertaking is the European Union’s leading research and innovation programme for transforming aviation towards a sustainable and climate neutral future.

The Rolls-Royce-led ELEVATED consortium brings together key industry, academic and research partners across France, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain and the UK.

Subject to successful completion of grant preparation, the project will embed a hybrid-electric subsystem into a donor engine, enabling the technology to be integrated, controlled and tested under realistic boundary conditions.

The hybrid-electric subsystem is expected to contribute to the ambitious goal of achieving at least a 20% reduction in carbon emissions.

ELEVATED will be used to assess the potential impact of hybrid-electric elements on the UltraFan 30 technology demonstrator, which is designed to validate such technologies for future short- and medium-range aircraft.

Planned for ground testing in 2028, it brings together advances in engine core architecture, fan systems, materials and manufacturing to target significant improvements in fuel burn, efficiency, emissions and durability, while being compatible with 100% sustainable aviation fuel from day one.

Alan Newby, director of research and technology at Rolls-Royce, said: “We are proud that Rolls-Royce has been selected to lead the ELEVATED project as part of the EU’s successful Clean Aviation programme.

“By integrating and demonstrating an innovative hybrid-electric system under realistic conditions, we will generate data to validate our modelling and inform technology selection, product development, certification planning and industrialisation.”