Thermal management in hydrogen aircraft

Airbus Project Heat Exchangers for Hydrogen Aircraft

2025-10-01 From Conflux | Translated by AI 1 min Reading Time

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Conflux Technology is working with Airbus on the thermal management of hydrogen aircraft: Additively manufactured heat exchangers will cool the next generation of fuel cell propulsion systems.

Conflux is developing an advanced heat exchanger using additive manufacturing for Airbus' Zeroe project, which aims to bring a commercially viable, fully electric, hydrogen-powered passenger aircraft into operation.(Image: Conflux) — Conflux is developing an advanced heat exchanger using additive manufacturing for Airbus' Zeroe project, which aims to bring a commercially viable, fully electric, hydrogen-powered passenger aircraft into operation.
(Image: Conflux)

Conflux Technology is officially supporting Airbus' Zeroe project. The company will develop an advanced heat exchanger specifically for hydrogen-electric propulsion systems, which will be additively manufactured. The heat exchanger, whose technology readiness level is currently being assessed, plays a critical role in thermal regulation within megawatt-class fuel cell systems.

Hydrogen fuel cells generate a significant amount of heat. In aircraft with fuel cell propulsion, compact and efficient thermal management solutions are required. Conflux developed the heat exchanger based on Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulations. The component was validated through laboratory tests. The goal was low weight and high performance, tailored to the demanding conditions of aerospace integration.

"Our collaboration with Airbus marks a significant step in applying additive manufacturing for sustainable aviation," said Michael Fuller, CEO of Conflux Technology. "Thermal management is a key requirement for hydrogen propulsion, and our expertise helps transition this technology from the lab to real-world application."

The Goal is A Commercially Viable Aircraft

The Airbus Zeroe project focuses on bringing a commercially viable, fully electric, hydrogen-powered passenger aircraft into operation, with suppliers like Conflux contributing to enabling these aviation systems.

The Conflux heat exchanger is being evaluated for its integration into Airbus's surrounding hydrogen fuel cell architecture, with ongoing development and system-level testing planned in the coming months.

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