Sustainable aviation through a novel multi-material joint technology for aeronautical applications

1 © 2025 Leonardo - Società per Azioni Company General Use 15th EASN International Conference on Innovation in Aviation & Space towards sustainability today and tomorrow, Madrid (ES), 14-17 Oct 2025 Sustainable aviation through a novel multi-material joint technology for aeronautical applications www.mimosaproject.eu Evanthia Pappa, Mattia Cabrioli, Sepideh Gholamzadeh, Maria Silva Colmenero, Ciro Annicchiarico, Angelo Sportelli, Matteo Va-nazzi, Abhishek Kumar, Boris Fošnarič, Tina Černelič, Luca Margaria, Enea Finket Altunok, Antonio Coluccia, Giorgio De Pasquale, Joan Bellver, Barbara Perez *[email protected] Leonardo S.p.A.,Leonardo Innovation Hub, Italy Multimaterial airframes based on 3D joints between AM metals and carbon-fiber composites 2 © 2025 Leonardo - Società per Azioni Company General Use MIMOSA at a glance - Aviation contributes significantly to the global GhGs emissions (2.5% gCO2) - Reduce consumables and maintenance costs in aviation - Produce high quality aeronautical parts for future aircrafts 1 The problems 1. www.easa.europa.eu 2. De Pasquale Patent n. IT812019000097134.2019 3. De Pasquale Patent n. IT102020000012619.2020 MIMOSA’s approach Functional lattice surface enhancing anchoring CTE compensation optimised lattice layer Optimised topology region Novel process for multi-material joining based on AM AlSi10Mg /CFRPs Introduction of a lattice structure to control thermal expansion & weight Development sustainability strategies; material up-cycling Production times/ costs, chemical additives and energy reduction Structural integrity and performance assessment of 3D metal anchor integration to CFRP structural parts 2,3 ↓Long assembly time ↓High PM cost ↓Additional weight ↓Corrosion ↓Difficult inspection 15th EASN International Conference on Innovation in Aviation & Space towards sustainability today and tomorrow, Madrid (ES), 14-17 Oct 2025 3 © 2025 Leonardo - Società per Azioni Company General Use Is there a Market in Aviation? 15th EASN International Conference on Innovation in Aviation & Space towards sustainability today and tomorrow, Madrid (ES), 14-17 Oct 2025 4 © 2025 Leonardo - Società per Azioni Company General Use MIMOSA’s Market Landscape -annual growth rate (CAGR) of almost 14%. -MAM 28% in CAGR with the metal 3D printing being the fastest development sector -advanced composite materials is expected to reach almost $75.0 billion by 2030; Asia and Pacific is projected as the largest market but U.S. has the highest growing rate of almost 8.5% annually 15th EASN International Conference on Innovation in Aviation & Space towards sustainability today and tomorrow, Madrid (ES), 14-17 Oct 2025 5 © 2025 Leonardo - Società per Azioni Company General Use MIMOSA’s Market Landscape -metal recycling market growth rate in Europe between 2025 and 2030 projected to 3.6%. China lead by 2030 -aluminium segment accounted for a revenue of $476.2 bil in 2023 (more than half of the overall share). -62 kton of CFRP wastes were generated in 2020 and it is projected to reach up to 500 ktons by 2030. Aviation and Renewable energy largest waste streams -12,000 commercial planes will be decommissioned by 2040 Specific Need: implement closed loop strategies for aviation, which can improve the global trading limitations, cost, performance and supply chain resilience. 15th EASN International Conference on Innovation in Aviation & Space towards sustainability today and tomorrow, Madrid (ES), 14-17 Oct 2025 6 © 2025 Leonardo - Società per Azioni Company General Use LEONARDO’s Case Study 15th EASN International Conference on Innovation in Aviation & Space towards sustainability today and tomorrow, Madrid (ES), 14-17 Oct 2025 7 © 2025 Leonardo - Società per Azioni Company General Use MIMOSA’s use case Scaled down Vertical Stabiliser: Airbus A220 15th EASN International Conference on Innovation in Aviation & Space towards sustainability today and tomorrow, Madrid (ES), 14-17 Oct 2025 8 © 2025 Leonardo - Società per Azioni Company General Use Specific Requirements 15th EASN International Conference on Innovation in Aviation & Space towards sustainability today and tomorrow, Madrid (ES), 14-17 Oct 2025 9 © 2025 Leonardo - Società per Azioni Company General Use •General Principles (drawings, process specs, costumer requirements) •Modes of Operations -Management of special Processes/Plants (production and control specs) -Qualification of special Processes/Plants (QP, QR, technical Dossiers, TQR, Verification Audit, ATP, Certs of Qualification/AoC) -Maintenance of qualification conditions (Audit Failure and Actions) -Loss of Qualification and Requalification plan -Habitation of special process/ workers •Terminology and definitions •Design requirements •Processes and materials •Characterization of materials and components Standards and Regulations Aerospace Regulations Standards AM Coatings Composites Joints Ca. 120 67* 32 24 ASTMS, EN, FED-STDs, ISO, MIL, SAE AMS, DIN *Excl. corrosion IAM-I EUMAT 15th EASN International Conference on Innovation in Aviation & Space towards sustainability today and tomorrow, Madrid (ES), 14-17 Oct 2025 16 © 2025 Leonardo - Società per Azioni Company General Use Demo Test Results Fitting 1 -fittings failed in the aluminium open-hole junction area (dislocations development) following rupture -c-scan imaging was obtained through ultrasonic inspection prior and after the static test of fittings carbon-metal region of the joints; analysing the depth of the indicated regions relative to the laminate thickness, the presence of internal delamination within the solid composite can be excluded -DIC no localised jump observed elongation shortening 15th EASN International Conference on Innovation in Aviation & Space towards sustainability today and tomorrow, Madrid (ES), 14-17 Oct 2025 17 © 2025 Leonardo - Società per Azioni Company General Use Summary 15th EASN International Conference on Innovation in Aviation & Space towards sustainability today and tomorrow, Madrid (ES), 14-17 Oct 2025 18 © 2025 Leonardo - Società per Azioni Company General Use LCA Analysis 15th EASN International Conference on Innovation in Aviation & Space towards sustainability today and tomorrow, Madrid (ES), 14-17 Oct 2025 19 © 2025 Leonardo - Società per Azioni Company General Use LCAPowder 15th EASN International Conference on Innovation in Aviation & Space towards sustainability today and tomorrow, Madrid (ES), 14-17 Oct 2025 Raw materials extraction Material processing Powder Atomization Sieving & packing Metal Printing Parts utilization End-of-life Goal: Comparative LCA analysis between the conventional and Mimosa processes Type of analysis: Cradle-to-gate, no info about use and end-of-life of the powder Functional unit: 10 kg of powder (1 jar) From cradle to gate From cradle to grave 20 © 2025 Leonardo - Società per Azioni Company General Use LCAPowder Boundaries 15th EASN International Conference on Innovation in Aviation & Space towards sustainability today and tomorrow, Madrid (ES), 14-17 Oct 2025 Aluminium Alloy Production* Conventional Process *Based on the Ecoinvent database, conventional aluminum alloy production uses ~74% recycled scrap and ~26% primary aluminum. Al alloy Processing Aluminium Sheet Rolling Cutting Scrap Collection MIMOSA Process Powder Production Atomization Sieving Packing Scrap Pretreatment Shredding Magnetic Separation Milling Densiometric Table Powder Production Atomization Sieving Packing 21 © 2025 Leonardo - Società per Azioni Company General Use LCAPowder Boundaries Conventional process 23% 28% 25% 24% 59% 31% 56% 45% 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100% MIMOSA Conventional MIMOSA process MIMOSA process allows an 75% reduction in CO2eq emissions for the production of Al10SiMg powder*. 15th EASN International Conference on Innovation in Aviation & Space towards sustainability today and tomorrow, Madrid (ES), 14-17 Oct 2025 *Weiss, Christian & Bödger, Christian & Ekkehard, Schiefer & Heußen, Daniel & Häfner, Constantin. (2022). Evaluation of the Ecological Footprint for Parts from AlSi10Mg manufactured by Laser Powder Bed Fusion. 10.26153/tsw/44578 22 © 2025 Leonardo - Società per Azioni Company General Use Conclusions and Future Outlook Conclusions •A technological assessment of the MIMOSA’s rivet-free joining technology for the use case (VS) Overall, the interlocking design increase the performance of the joint when compared to common rivet practices aligning with aerospace safety requirements and sustainability goals in aviation by using closed-looped practices •A sustainability assessment of the MIMOSA’s solution a. production and b. end-of-life. Focusing on the technological improvements related to the rivets only, it can be concluded that MIMOSA process outperforms conventional methods across all impact categories. Highlighting a 75% reduction in CO₂ emissions and 41% reduction in consumption of natural elements and 44% of water savings. Future suggestions •Further analysis of the interlocking technology with new designs and manufacturing optimizations other metals, e.g. i.e. titanium for space applications etc./ other use cases; •A economical feasibility of the technologies. •Review the limited regulatory framework for joining technologies in aviation and provide insights accelerating certification. 15th EASN International Conference on Innovation in Aviation & Space towards sustainability today and tomorrow, Madrid (ES), 14-17 Oct 2025 Weight of AM Fittings → F1: 705g, F2: 1760g, F3: 1450g Time for Printing → F1: 44h, F2: 78h, F3: 75h Price of AlSi10Mg powders → €50-55 kg (2024) Please avoid printing this colourful slide. Let’s save the planet together. Thank you for your attention Company General Use