Enlighten project – helping European launchers lift off
We are very proud to announce that IREPA LASER is contributing to a pioneering Horizon Europe project led by Ariane Group: ENLIGHTEN.
The space sector is a source of economic growth, jobs and exports, contributing to all the key strategic orientations of the EU strategic plan. In the face of growing competition and technological disruption, it is vital to act in support of the development of European space launchers in order to preserve Europe’s independent access to space. Faced with a smaller market than their competitors and lower launch prices, European launchers must improve their competitiveness by halving the launch price in the short term. In the long term, Europe will create common building blocks for an integrated and competitive European range of launchers of all scales with reuse capabilities. Europe must therefore focus its efforts on the liquid propulsion system, which can account for half the cost of the launcher and is essential for reusability.
As part of ENLIGHTEN (European iNitiative for Low cost, Innovative & Green High Thrust Engine), the consortium will strive to increase the competitiveness of European high-thrust engines by preparing a liquid hydrogen-based Green High Thrust Engine demonstrator using:
- The latest advances in additive manufacturing to reduce the cost and number of engine parts
- Edge AI and machine learning algorithms to develop Europe’s first health monitoring system for space engines, needed to achieve reusability
- New low-cost subsystems for engine ignition, nozzle extension, valves and integrated flexible lines
This future demonstrator, ENLIGHTEN, which will achieve its goal of developing new technologies, will be tested as part of a future project on DLR’s P5 High Thrust Engine test benches.
ENLIGHTEN will achieve its goal of reducing the cost of launcher engines thanks to its consortium bringing together aerospace players such as Ariane Group, AVIO, DLR and ONERA with start-ups and SMEs working on ALM and AI, as well as research organisations/academia such as Fraunhofer and KU Leuven, and will rely on AZO to disseminate the results for the benefit of all EU industries.
