Conflux Technology has joined the European TheMa4HERA (Thermal Management for Hybrid Electric Regional Aircraft) consortium, a Clean Aviation initiative led by Honeywell. The project focuses on the development of advanced thermal management architectures for next-generation hybrid-electric regional aircraft, with scalability toward short- and medium-range aviation segments.
Coordinated by Honeywell’s International Development Centre in Brno, Czech Republic, the consortium brings together 28 partners across 10 European countries. Its mission is to drive innovations that increase energy efficiency, reduce CO₂ emissions, and align with the aviation sector’s goal of achieving climate-neutral operations by 2035.
Conflux will contribute by designing and developing lightweight, high-performance heat exchangers optimized for hybrid-electric propulsion systems. Its involvement extends to both Air Cycle Systems (ACS) and Vapour Cycle Systems (VCS), with specific deliverables including: an air-to-air heat exchanger for ACS and air-to-liquid heat exchangers for VCS evaporator and condenser applications.
“Participation in TheMa4HERA consortium perfectly reflects our commitment to delivering advanced thermal solutions that enable more energy-efficient, low-emission aviation,” said Michael Fuller, CEO of Conflux Technology. “Our additive manufacturing expertise will help push the limits of thermal management system design to meet next-generation propulsion requirements.”
The increasing integration of batteries, fuel cells, and power electronics in hybrid-electric aircraft is driving significant complexity in thermal management. The TheMa4HERA project is designed to validate novel architectures and system-level solutions capable of managing diverse and growing heat loads. The program will advance heat exchanger technologies to Technology Readiness Level (TRL) 5 by 2026, leveraging digital twins, virtual demonstrators, and ground test campaigns.
Clean Aviation Phase 2, scheduled for 2027, will build on these achievements by initiating flight tests and further system integration of the most promising technologies.
“Conflux brings valuable technological expertise to the collaborative effort of TheMa4HERA,” said Jan Ludvik, Senior Director of Advanced Technology Europe, Honeywell Aerospace. “Each partner strengthens our mission to deliver sustainable solutions that will transform aviation.”
