Sandia Corporation

Their core work

Sandia National Laboratories is a major US Department of Energy national laboratory with deep expertise in combustion science, fuel spray dynamics, and high-pressure injection physics. Within H2020, they serve as a third-party host for Marie Skłodowska-Curie fellows, providing access to world-class combustion research facilities and expertise in computational fluid dynamics (CFD) modeling of fuel sprays under extreme conditions. Their contribution centers on understanding how fuels behave at supercritical pressures and temperatures — knowledge critical for designing cleaner, more efficient engines and transitioning to carbon-neutral synthetic fuels.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

Sandia's early H2020 involvement (2015–2019) focused on fundamental physics of fuel injection at extreme pressures, studying how conventional fuels behave under supercritical conditions in projects like IPPAD and UNIFIED. From 2019 onward, the focus shifted decisively toward renewable and synthetic fuels — AHEAD introduced renewable fuel characterization, and AI-FIE (2022) added artificial intelligence methods and e-fuel optimization. This trajectory mirrors the broader energy transition, moving from understanding combustion fundamentals to applying that knowledge for carbon-neutral fuel systems.

Sandia is pivoting from fundamental combustion research toward AI-assisted design of injection systems for carbon-neutral e-fuels, positioning them at the intersection of decarbonization and computational engineering.

How they like to work

Sandia participates exclusively as a third party in MSCA fellowships, meaning they host visiting researchers rather than leading or co-managing project work packages. This is typical for a non-EU institution of their caliber — they provide facilities, mentorship, and domain expertise while the EU-based host institution manages the grant. With 19 unique partners across 9 countries from just 4 projects, they connect to a broad European combustion research network despite their US base.

Despite only 4 projects, Sandia connects to 19 unique partners across 9 countries, reflecting the large consortia typical of MSCA training networks. Their network spans European combustion and fuel research groups, with Sandia serving as the transatlantic bridge for researcher mobility.

What sets them apart

Sandia National Laboratories operates some of the world's most advanced combustion research facilities, including the Engine Combustion Network and high-pressure spray chambers that few European labs can match. As a US national lab participating in EU projects, they offer European researchers access to experimental capabilities and datasets that are simply unavailable in Europe. For consortium builders, including Sandia as a third party adds credibility and access to US combustion diagnostics expertise that strengthens any fuel-related MSCA proposal.

Highlights from their portfolio

• AI-FIE
  Most recent project (2022-2025) combining AI with fuel injection for carbon-neutral synthetic fuels — represents the frontier of their evolving expertise.
• IPPAD
  Studied fuel injection at an extreme 4500 bar pressure, pushing the boundaries of supercritical spray research beyond typical industrial conditions.
• AHEAD
  Bridges fundamental combustion science with renewable fuels, marking Sandia's pivot toward the energy transition within H2020.