A joint laboratory with EENUEE

Mines Saint-Etienne, co-supervisor of the laboratory, and EENUEE, a Saint-Etienne-based startup, are creating a joint laboratory supported by the ANR to develop low-carbon regional electric aviation: DISC-AER (Decarbonization through the Industrialization of thermoplastic Composite Structures for Regional Electric Aviation):

The DISC-AER laboratory, joint to the SMS / LGF UMR CNRS 5307 center and the company EENUEE, is among the winners of the 2024 Labcom program of the French National Research Agency (ANR). DISC-AER provides an ideal collaborative R&D framework aimed at developing the completely innovative fuselage of the GEN-ee (patented aerodynamic envelope, -40% consumption), EENUEE’s 19-seat “flying wing” type regional electric transport aircraft.

The selection jury’s attention was captured by the introduction of the latest generation of composite materials (lightweight, recyclable, etc.) to create this unprecedented load-bearing fuselage. Indeed, the environmental impact of manufacturing the GEN-ee promises to be remarkably reduced, taking advantage of the modular design/manufacturing (reduced tooling) of the aerostructures, their low-energy implementation (ambient temperature), their assembly/disassembly (repair, autogenous welding), and the recyclability/reuse of the materials (resin and fibers) used.

Over the 2024-2029 period, the €2M research program will involve 5 faculty members from MPE/SMS and EENUEE’s rapidly growing R&D teams. Equipment investments are planned, and 4 doctoral theses will be conducted during this period, including 3 CIFRE (Industrial Research Training Conventions).

Contact: Sylvain Drapier