Title: Extending the Capability of the Open-Source Aircraft Design Framework “AeroFuse” to Design Hydrogen-Electric Aircraft

As part of my MEng thesis, I extended the open-source aircraft design tool “AeroFuse” to support hydrogen-electric propulsion, enabling the conceptual design of zero-emission aircraft. This involved modelling PEM fuel cell performance, cryogenic liquid hydrogen (LH2) storage including boil-off losses, and integrating these systems into a realistic mission-level analysis for a retrofitted Dash 8 Q400 regional aircraft.

I developed detailed submodules in Julia to estimate fuel cell sizing, tank geometry and insulation performance, and estimated an aircraft weight breakdown through an iterative sizing loop. Trade-offs between component design (e.g., tank insulation thickness, fuel cell area) and mission feasibility (range, payload) were explored. The final design achieved a 1,500 km range and Mach 0.5 cruise speed, though at the cost of a reduced passenger capacity.

The work provided insights into the feasibility and engineering challenges of hydrogen retrofits, particularly regarding payload, integration and certification. It also laid the groundwork for future extensions, including thermal management systems, safety analysis, and economic modelling.