Key results from the EU H2020 project CENTRELINE are presented. The research activities undertaken to demonstrate the proof of concept (technology readiness level—TRL 3) for the so-called propulsive fuselage concept (PFC) for fuselage wake-filling propulsion integration are discussed. The technology application case in the wide-body market segment is motivated. The developed performance bookkeeping scheme for fuselage boundary layer ingestion (BLI) propulsion integration is reviewed. The results of the 2D aerodynamic shape optimization for the bare PFC configuration are presented. Key findings from the high-fidelity aero-numerical simulation and aerodynamic validation testing, i.e., the overall aircraft wind tunnel and the BLI fan rig test campaigns, are discussed. The design results for the architectural concept, systems integration and electric machinery pre-design for the fuselage fan turbo-electric power train are summarized. The design and performance implications on the main power plants are analyzed. Conceptual design solutions for the mechanical and aero-structural integration of the BLI propulsive device are introduced. Key heuristics deduced for PFC conceptual aircraft design are presented. Assessments of fuel burn, NOx emissions, and noise are presented for the PFC aircraft and benchmarked against advanced conventional technology for an entry-into-service in 2035. The PFC design mission fuel benefit based on 2D optimized PFC aero-shaping is 4.7%.

Providing sufficient cooling power for an aircraft will become increasingly challenging with the introduction of (hybrid-) electric propulsion. To avoid excessive drag from heat exchangers, the heat sink potential of the aircraft surface is evaluated in this study. Semi-empirical correlations are used to estimate aircraft surface area and heat transfer. The impact of surface heating on aircraft drag is qualitatively assessed. Locating surface heat exchangers where fully turbulent flow is present promises a decrease in aircraft drag. Surface cooling potential is investigated over a range from small regional aircraft to large wide body jets and a range of surface temperatures. Four mission points are considered: Take-off, hot day take-off, climb and cruise. The results show that surface heat exchangers can provide cooling power in the same order of magnitude as the waste heat expected from (hybrid-) electric drive trains for all sizes of considered aircraft. Also, a clear trend favouring smaller aircraft with regards to the ratio of available to required cooling power is visible.

The aim of this research is the identification of a unified bookkeeping and evaluation scheme for the integrated performance analysis of a boundary layer ingesting (BLI) concept in the conceptual design phase. A thorough review and classification of existing performance bookkeeping schemes suits as a basis for the derivation of a bookkeeping scheme suitable for the initial sizing as well as detailed design analysis during the conceptual phase of a BLI concept. Figures of merit for the concept performance assessment are evaluated with regard to the requirements of aircraft multidisciplinary conceptual design. Based on the survey, the most practical integral momentum conservation approach is deduced and its application to integrated conceptual sizing and a subsequent design analysis is evaluated. The proposed scheme is universally applicable to coupled airframe–propulsion aircraft concepts, compatible with standard aircraft and propulsion system sizing tools and, under certain assumptions, deployable for low- and high-fidelity evaluation methods. Finally, several figures of merit are selected to cover a range of design aspects in the BLI evaluation.

Hybrid-Electric Propulsion (HEP) could be part of the solution to decrease emissions associated with regional commercial aviation. This study presents results for the aircraft level fuel reduction potential of a regional turboprop concept with an HEP architecture and Entry-Into-Service (EIS) in 2035+. The configuration specifically tackles the elaborated challenges of introducing an additional electrical energy source to the configuration by employing a twofold electrical assistance to a turboshaft engine in combination with an innovative thermal management concept. Relevant components and disciplines were modeled and incorporated into an integrated aircraft design environment. The behavior and interaction of the HEP architecture with the aircraft was thoroughly investigated. A best-performing configuration was derived and compared with a conventional reference configuration following a State-of-the-Art (SoA) reference aircraft approach. For a typical mission with 200 nmi range, a block fuel reduction of 9.6% was found. However, the assumed battery performance characteristics limited the reduction potential and led to a fuel burn increase for the 600 nmi design mission. Furthermore, sourcing the non-propulsive subsystems directly from the on-board battery was detrimental. The innovative Thermal Management System (TMS) located in the propeller slipstream showed a synergistic effect with the investigated configuration.

One challenge for the design and analysis of hybrid electric aircraft configurations is an increased demand in the rejection of excess waste heat. A wing surface heat exchanger concept, which is explored as part of the IMOTHEP project, foresees transferring heat from the propulsive electrical components to the wing surface of the aircraft. Here, heat is mainly dissipated and transported by forced convection. The present study focuses on the analysis of the impact of heat rejection via the wing surface on the wing’s heat transfer and aerodynamic efficiency characteristics. For this purpose, RANS CFD studies of 2D airfoils and a 3D wing propeller geometry of a regional turboprop configuration in representative flight conditions (take off, cruise, and taxi in) are carried out. For each condition, the influence of defining parameters, such as altitude, freestream velocity, angle of attack, surface temperature, and propeller thrust is explored. It is shown that, when increasing the wing surface temperature compared against the freestream temperature, the aerodynamic efficiency of the wing deteriorates for all flight conditions. In reference cruise conditions for example, the lift-to-drag ratio decreases by 4%, while the average heat transfer coefficient is reduced by almost 20% when increasing the surface temperature by 300 K. Furthermore, the propeller slipstream enhances the wing’s heat transfer capacity significantly.

In recent years, aircraft concepts employing wake-filling devices to reduce mission fuel burn have gained increasing attention. The study presented here aims at a detailed physical understanding of the effects of integrating a propulsive fuselage device on a commercial aircraft. Compared to an isolated, axisymmetric fuselage-propulsor configuration, a propulsive fuselage device experiences an increased circumferential inlet distortion due to three-dimensional geometric features of the aircraft. This study uses three-dimensional CFD simulations to investigate the effect of fuselage upsweep on the aero-propulsive performance of an aircraft configuration featuring a boundary layer ingestion device. It is shown that fuselage upsweep has a negative impact on the performance of a propulsive fuselage device as compared to an axisymmetric configuration. Increasing the upsweep angle by $$\Delta \alpha _{{{\text{SW}},{\text{PFC}}}} = 3.5^\circ$$Δ α SW , PFC = 3 . 5 ∘ leads to an increase in required fuselage fan shaft power by 19%. Furthermore, it is demonstrated that the negative effects of fuselage upsweep on the propulsor’s performance can be effectively mitigated by a circumferential variation in the propulsor nacelle thickness.