Eve Reverse joins awarded Eurostars project AEERO to develop quieter electric propulsion for heavy-lift UAVs

Can natural fibres help make heavy-lift UAVs quieter?

That is one of the questions Eve Reverse will explore in AEERO, a newly awarded Eurostars project focused on the development of an adaptable and efficient electric ducted-fan propulsion system for resilient logistics.

On Tuesday June 23, Eve Reverse and the Royal Netherlands Aerospace Centre (NLR) attended the Dutch Eurostars winners’ meeting, organised by RVO. Rik Westerink and Karel Brans represented Eve Reverse during the event, where the team had the opportunity to meet the organisations behind many other impressive awarded project proposals.

AEERO, short for Adaptable and Efficient Electric ducted fan for Resilient lOgistics, aims to support the development of a new class of heavy-lift electric Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs). The project focuses on an integrated electric ducted-fan propulsion module designed to make point-to-point aerial logistics more practical, scalable and lower in environmental impact.

Heavy-lift UAV developers currently face a difficult challenge. Existing propulsion options often rely on noisy, maintenance-intensive turbine systems, or on complex combinations of separate motors, inverters, cooling systems and structural components. AEERO aims to address this by developing a more integrated propulsion module with a compact form factor, high thrust and reduced acoustic footprint.

Within the project, Eve Reverse will focus on natural-fibre and hybrid composite solutions for vibration and noise reduction. Natural fibres have inherent damping properties, which may make them relevant for reducing vibration in propulsion-related composite structures. By combining these materials with aerospace engineering and propulsion-system development, the project will explore how material choices can contribute to quieter and more sustainable electric propulsion systems.

The AEERO consortium brings together complementary expertise from four partners:

The project brings together:

• Acodyne – project lead and developer of the electric ducted-fan system

• Eve Reverse – natural-fibre and hybrid composite development

• Danish Technological Institute (DTI) – materials, design optimization and manufacturing

• Eve Reverse – natural-fibre and hybrid composite development 

• Royal Netherlands Aerospace Centre (NLR) – aerodynamic analysis and design, noise reduction, and testing

  
  

The project will run for 24 months and aims to mature the technology from an early prototype towards a validated propulsion subsystem for heavy-lift UAV applications.

Eve Reverse is proud to be part of this international collaboration and looks forward to contributing its experience in sustainable composite development, natural fibres and practical manufacturing routes.

We would like to thank RVO and the Eurostars programme for supporting this collaboration, and congratulate all other awarded project teams. We were certainly in good company.