Challenges of Mass Estimation in Hydrogen Aircraft Conceptual Design

Conceptual aircraft design plays a key role in assessing technology options in an early phase of overall aircraft level. Due to the little level of detail available for the aircraft at this stage, most disciplines apply semi-empirical methods to give estimates on geometries, aerodynamics, and masses. In the case of hydrogen-powered aircraft, this poses two principal challenges. First, practically no hydrogen-powered aircraft are part of the data basis used for the creation of the semi-empirical methods. Secondly, the changes introduced to the aircraft by storing liquid hydrogen limit the applicability of many semi-empirical methods. This presentation elaborates on these challenges on the specific examples of the wing, fuselage, and fuel system and suggests approaches for short-term solutions.