The RADIANT Project has for ambition to create the smartest self-limiting heating system integrated on cabin panel to revolutionize the thermal comfort of Aircraft while contributing to the competitiveness of our industry. The consortium members are HUTCHINSON, a world leader for Cabin solutions, CANOE is a R&T centre with more than 5 years of expertise in the field of cost-effective carbon fibrous materials and smart composites especially for aeronautics market and CTAG a non-profit technology Center with years of expertise in the numerical simulation for thermal efficiency active in the automotive industry. The RADIANT PANEL project offers a disruptive innovation proposal based on three main pillars: A new positive temperature coefficient (PTC) textile coating made of ex-cellulose carbon fiber and a PVDF-based polymer, A heated multi-functional cabin panel A fully robotized manufacturing cell for the cabin panel assembly. During the project, 2 type of coating will be tested. The textile coating will be assembled with their connectors on the top layer of the cabin panel by a collaborative work between a Cobot and a 6 axis robot. It is also proposed to carry out the full cabin temperature and air flow simulation using a specific software (TAITherm) coupled with the Human Thermal Module for the comfort prediction. Functionnal test and certification test will be validated the soltuion. The RADIANT project has a 36 months duration and a budget of 702,516€. The consortium aims to take 10% market share of the cabin panel business, evaluated at 90 M€.

The Environment control system plays a significant role in guaranteeing air quality and thermal comfort in the aircraft cabin. Nevertheless, standard ECS remains one of the main power consumer function in the aircraft. Our EC2S solution proposes to reduce the need of fresh flow from 70% to a much lower percentage by recycling and treating cabin air, downsizing the ECS system weight, fuel consumption, pollution and costs. Our ambition is to design the first Air Recirculation System (named EC2S Environment Control Secondary System) by integrating the smartest Air treatment processes and Sensors and demonstrate its efficiency and certifiability on the CS2 regional aircraft ground demonstrator. The Consortium - made of Hutchinson (coordinator, and world leader for ECS solutions in Aeronautic domain), Ecologicsense and Tera Environment (SMEs specialized in sensors and air quality monitoring), and a research center (CEA, working on indoor air treatment) - presents complementary skills to the success of the project. This solution is based on four main pillars: • A multi-technology approach for Air treatment, covering the largest Temperature / air flow conditions • World class sensors transferred from the automotive industry, ensuring reliability and cost • A compact EC2S pack that can be easily connected to a “in service” aircraft ECS system • A common monitoring system to split the ECS function between the primary ECS and the secondary based on the optimization of fuel consumption. The innovation potential of the project goes beyond the call objectives by providing a more comprehensive on-line monitoring chain of the air quality of the cabin and by its capacity to trap CO/CO2. The consortium will ensure demonstration of the system both in laboratory and cabin demonstrator and will perform an economic study. The EC2S project has a 1,77 M€ budget. The introduction of this disruptive solution might generate a business over 30 M€ per year.

Despite the ubiquity of plastics in daily life, our capacity to recycle end-of-life plastic products remains limited. Today, most plastic waste collected in the EU is either sent to landfill or incinerated for energy recovery, which releases large amounts of greenhouse gases. A promising strategy for transforming the plastics sector into a circular economy is to increase the amount of plastic waste that is mechanically recycled. However, this amount represents less than 10% of the feedstock used to make new products in the EU, because of poor physical properties. Three formidable challenges are at the origin of this lasting problem: chain degradation during processing, immiscibility of mixtures comprising different kinds of recycled polymers, and reduced ability to efficiently recycle elastomeric materials with permanent bonds. We propose to address them with ReBond, a DN dedicated to developing a versatile platform for reinforcing polymer-polymer interfaces and improving the mechanical properties and processability of recycled plastics. We shall implement a novel strategy based on the use of vitrimers, which are permanent chemical networks comprising thermally-activated dynamic covalent crosslinks. We envision that processing of recycled polymers can be substantially enhanced through the addition of vitrimers. To accomplish this ambitious goal we have devised an interdisciplinary approach involving polymer synthesis, structure, rheology, processing and mechanical properties. A superb training program, spanning polymer chemistry, physics, and engineering, provides trainees with double doctorates and a unique scientific background with access to the state-of-the-art in the field. ReBond assembles an international team of experts from both academia and industry to provide outstanding inter-sectorial experience to the next generation of material scientists and pioneers of circular plastics economy.

The need for thermal insulation pertaining to space applications, e.g., satellites and launch vehicles, demands the requirement for the components of the satellite or launch vehicles to remain within the operating temperature range throughout the life of the satellite or the course of the journey. The project ISBA proposes to develop a disruptive technology through seven different applications in the space sector, based on aerogels or xerogels which will be used as a new thermal insulation solution in order to make it competitive, clean, compact, easier to produce and assembly. In the specific domain of space, the impact of the project will enable an amplified profit at product level, allowing to design new concepts, way lighter, by avoiding secondary structures for maintaining MLI layout or rigid shield, and cheaper than the reference solutions. The technology thus assembled will guarantee a level of cleanliness compatible with the level of requirements of space applications, which will be one of focal points of ground-breaking developments. Thus, the overall objectives of the project can be summarized as follows: (i) Develop aerogel/xerogel-based solutions for cryogenic, in the range of LN2 (-195.79°C) to -50°C, moderate, up to 800°C and high temperature, above 800°C, space applications, (ii) develop additive manufacturing technologies specifically for aerogels in space applications, (iii) develop coating-technologies on aerogels/xerogels for operating in space environments, (iv) improve cleanliness of aerogels by developing enveloping technologies tailored for aerogels, (v) enhance industrial competitiveness of aerogel/xerogel solutions in space, and (vi) present EU-efficient alternatives to the current MLI solutions, thus reducing dependency on US technologies. To achieve these objectives, a consortium of two major end-user industry partners from EU, five major research and development centers focusing on aerogels, ceramics, and coatings, and one industry partner experienced in packaging technologies is established.