An aircraft cabin is a unique environment due to the extremely high density of occupation and limited available air volume. This favours the dispersion of germs and the accumulation of pollutants such as Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs), polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) and ozone, which lead to poor air quality affecting travellers and employees. On the majority of aircrafts, air treatment consists of High Efficiency Particulate Air (HEPA) filters, which can trap particles but do not remove other pollutants (i.e. VOCs, ozone) and bio-contaminants (bacteria, viruses or fungi) are not inactivated. There is a need of efficient technologies capable of removing pollutants and bio-contaminants under aircraft environmental conditions while fulfilling constraints imposed by the size, weight and energy consumption. BREEZE project will develop an alternative air purification filter based on combined adsorption and photocatalytic oxidation using UVA-LEDs as irradiation source. The efficiency of BREEZE technology will be validated for the elimination of VOCs (>85% removal), ozone (up to 80% removal) and bio-contaminants such as bacteria and viruses (>95% inactivation). Ageing tests will be carried out in order to validate under real pressure and humidity conditions the air filter durability, which will be of at least 3,000 h. The optimised BREEZE device (including also a particulate filter) will be finally integrated in an Environment Control System demonstrator in topic manager’s facilities for its final validation in a real environment. The results obtained will be employed for the evaluation of BREEZE impacts i) focusing on safety and security (Risk Assessment); ii) from an environmental point of view (Life Cycle Assessment and Environmental Technical Verification) and iii) on the economy (Benefit Cost Analysis). Market uptake will be boosted by means of Dissemination activities aimed at spreading BREEZE results and impacts.

HAIRD project aims to deliver a new design for a next generation aircraft seating which is comfortable,light-weight, fast to disassemble, easy to dismantle, cost efficient to produce, highly recyclable and reliable in structural integrity. Within the HAIRD project a new mono-materials cushions will be developed to improve the easy-recyclability and the cost production. Topological and geometrical optimization techniques will be applied by means of computational tools to ensure weight reduction without compromising the structural reliability. This approach will be used in both structure and cushions combined by selection of very light-materials in the market. A new mechanical system also will be designed allowing fast assembly, dismantling and disassembly of the seat into the aircraft, shortening the maintenance cost and workforce. Finally an assessment of seating Life-cycle will be done to guarantee the new design improvement in terms of sustainability. The direct impact is expected in terms of sustainability, economical viability, novel attractive, cost reduction in maintenance and material, fuel consumption and CO2 emissions.

Current European policies plead for new technologies capable to implement feasible processes for recycling of products in their end of life cycle. Within this framework the re-use of thermoplastic composites, is a recurrent topic within the aircraft manufacturing industry which needs a suitable solution for the high performance thermoplastic composites once the craft is dismantled. PEEK (Polyether ether ketone) and PPS (Polyphenylene sulphide) all together reinforced with CF (Carbon Fibre) and, are the most common high performance materials considered as leftovers when their lifecycle has come to an end . Taking this into account, the RESET project aims to bring a second life to those thermoplastic composites which have been condemned to landfills, to the carbon fibre recovery by means of polymer pyrolysis or to energetic recovery. This milestone will be achieved through a sorting and milling process of these materials, leading to short chopped fibre reinforced thermoplastic granulates. These conditioned leftovers will be subsequently used to obtain new reinforced thermoplastic composites, by melt compounding along with virgin polymer, considering both monocomponent as well as binary blends. Besides, an evaluation of the properties of recycled materials will be carried out in terms of repeatability, processability and final product properties in order to ensure the suitability of the products regarding the final application of the demonstrators (e.g, brackets, clips...). With that purpose, process parameters will be defined during the design and evaluation of the prototypes mould. Summing up, the RESET project will lead to a whole new family of rCFRP reducing, therefore, the environmental footprint by giving a second life to the waste, by means of recycled high value products within the aircraft manufacturing value chain, redounding in the aerospacial economy through a closed-loop cycle philosophy.

Microbially influenced corrosion (MIC) is a costly problem caused by microorganism growing in the hydrocarbon-water interphase, affecting fuel production and processing equipment, fuel storage tanks, fuel handling systems and other infrastructure. Anti-microbial and/or antibiofilm materials and coatings are promising solution to passively control bio-contamination by preventing the adherence and growth of species to surrounding surfaces. However, methods for assessing antimicrobial materials under industrially-relevant environments are still missing. Studies defining real bio-contamination and key parameters are fundamental. MICTEST will develop new bio-contamination exposure protocols for lab-scale validation of materials, coatings and components for aircraft fuel systems. MICTEST will be focused on: i) performing an exhaustive sampling of contaminated fuels and materials, ii) defining representative core microbiomes of microorganisms isolated from real samples, iii) determining key parameters mimicking real environments, iv) selecting representatives coatings, materials and components, and v) proposing the most appropriate combination of technologies for assessing antimicrobial/antibiofilm properties correlated with material degradation, coating performance and the potential effects on fuel properties. Different protocols will be developed and adapted to fuel type, material and environmental conditions that are representative of the bio-contamination developed in real scenarios. The added value of the new protocols will be demonstrated by performing validation studies in a list of materials (metallic elements, coatings, polymers) in 25L pilot tanks in climatic chambers for comparing the biofilms obtained following the new methods, current methods and the ones using real contaminated fuel samples. A final document including all the sections of international guidelines will be presented to IATA to explore the possibilities for standardization.