Imagine building a rocket engine like a Lego set, using 3D printing to make it cheaper and faster to assemble. Instead of guessing when a part might break, the engine uses a smart brain to monitor its own health in real-time. It runs on clean hydrogen, making it an eco-friendly way to get satellites into orbit.
European space launchers face high costs and intense global competition. There is a critical need for reusable, low-cost, and green propulsion systems to maintain independent access to space.
A demonstrator of a green high-thrust engine (GTHE) using liquid hydrogen, featuring 3D-printed parts and an AI-based health monitoring system.
If you are a launch provider dealing with high operational costs — this project developed a green high-thrust engine that aims to halve launch prices in the short term. This allows for more frequent and affordable missions to space.
If you are a manufacturer dealing with complex part assembly — this project developed extended additive manufacturing techniques to reduce the number of engine parts. This streamlines production and lowers the cost of high-power hardware.
If you are a software company dealing with hardware failure risks — this project developed an AI-driven health monitoring system. This enables the reusability of engines by predicting maintenance needs before a failure occurs.
The project aims to improve competitiveness by halving launch prices in the short term through low-cost subsystems and additive manufacturing.
Based on available project data, the project aims to reach TRL7 by 2026 through on-ground demonstration tests, moving from prototype to a demonstrated system.
Based on available project data, the project is coordinated by ArianeGroup SAS with a consortium of 15 partners, but specific licensing terms are not listed.
The project is scheduled from 2024-03-01 to 2027-02-28, with on-ground demonstration tests planned by 2026.
The project focuses on creating common building blocks for a family of launchers of all scales, ensuring the engine is rapidly operational for various European launcher types.
The consortium is heavily industry-led, with 9 industrial partners (60% of the group) and 5 SMEs, indicating a strong push toward commercialization. Led by ArianeGroup SAS, the group spans 6 countries (AT, BE, DE, FR, IT, NL), combining the scale of major aerospace actors with the agility of small businesses and the research depth of 4 research organizations and 1 university.
Contact ArianeGroup SAS regarding the ENLIGHTEN-ED engine demonstration platform.
Contact us to connect with the ENLIGHTEN-ED consortium for additive manufacturing and AI health monitoring licensing.
