Development of a framework for the thermal modeling of an eVTOL

Development of a framework for the thermal modeling of an eVTOL | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Development of a framework for the thermal modeling of an eVTOL Christina Matheis, Victor Norrefeldt This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-8964483/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract The vision of eVTOLs (electric vertical take-off and landing vehicles) aims to transport individuals autonomously in urban areas using electrically powered aircraft. The efficiency, and thus the operational range of these aircraft, is crucial for market introduction. However, battery capacity is limited, necessitating effective thermal management for power electronics, drive components, and cabin climatization. This project focuses on optimizing the thermal management of the overall architecture of an eVTOL to enhance efficiency and performance. The developed framework for thermal modeling enables simulation-based optimizations. The modeling structure considers components as well as the overall thermal system of an eVTOL. This framework includes detailed models of the cabin, cockpit, avionics bays, and battery zones, analyzing their specific thermal properties and interactions with one another. Various cooling strategies, including air and liquid circuits, are evaluated to meet the requirements for both indoor air quality and system components. Our findings indicate that increasing ventilation mass flows can significantly enhance thermal passenger comfort, thus meeting comfort requirements. Energy consumption analysis shows that compressor efficiency is critical for overall system performance. Optimizing the temperature difference between the evaporator and condenser can lead to reduced energy demand. This research highlights the necessity for an integrated thermal management approach in eVTOL design, paving the way for future experimental validation and optimization efforts. Thermal management modeling framework eVTOL optimization Modelica Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-8964483","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":599849714,"identity":"b18d0ccb-3cd4-448f-8b73-fe04f1f61a46","order_by":0,"name":"Christina Matheis","email":"data:image/png;base64,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","orcid":"","institution":"Fraunhofer Institut IBP","correspondingAuthor":true,"prefix":"","firstName":"Christina","middleName":"","lastName":"Matheis","suffix":""},{"id":599849715,"identity":"a22e84b1-f063-4aa2-9298-c8fe6acf7346","order_by":1,"name":"Victor Norrefeldt","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Fraunhofer Institut IBP","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Victor","middleName":"","lastName":"Norrefeldt","suffix":""}],"badges":[],"createdAt":"2026-02-25 07:25:10","currentVersionCode":1,"declarations":"","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-8964483/v1","doiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-8964483/v1","draftVersion":[],"editorialEvents":[],"editorialNote":"","failedWorkflow":false,"files":[{"id":104402717,"identity":"1da99582-fd3e-457e-ab34-1f1d13b17469","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2026-03-11 12:16:12","extension":"pdf","order_by":1,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"manuscript-pdf","size":818578,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"IAMSym2025PaperfinalMatheis.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8964483/v1_covered_89a56b2f-f360-43ff-93fc-5ec15e5f9e6d.pdf"}],"financialInterests":"No competing interests reported.","formattedTitle":"Development of a framework for the thermal modeling of an eVTOL","fulltext":[],"fulltextSource":"","fullText":"","funders":[],"hasAdminPriorityOnWorkflow":false,"hasManuscriptDocX":false,"hasOptedInToPreprint":true,"hasPassedJournalQc":"","hasAnyPriority":false,"hideJournal":true,"highlight":"","institution":"","isAcceptedByJournal":false,"isAuthorSuppliedPdf":true,"isDeskRejected":"","isHiddenFromSearch":false,"isInQc":false,"isInWorkflow":false,"isPdf":true,"isPdfUpToDate":true,"isWithdrawnOrRetracted":false,"journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"researchsquare","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"/submission","title":"Research Square","twitterHandle":"researchsquare","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":false,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true},"keywords":"Thermal management, modeling framework, eVTOL, optimization, Modelica","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-8964483/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-8964483/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"\u003cp\u003eThe vision of eVTOLs (electric vertical take-off and landing vehicles) aims to transport individuals autonomously in urban areas using electrically powered aircraft. The efficiency, and thus the operational range of these aircraft, is crucial for market introduction. However, battery capacity is limited, necessitating effective thermal management for power electronics, drive components, and cabin climatization. This project focuses on optimizing the thermal management of the overall architecture of an eVTOL to enhance efficiency and performance. The developed framework for thermal modeling enables simulation-based optimizations. The modeling structure considers components as well as the overall thermal system of an eVTOL. This framework includes detailed models of the cabin, cockpit, avionics bays, and battery zones, analyzing their specific thermal properties and interactions with one another. Various cooling strategies, including air and liquid circuits, are evaluated to meet the requirements for both indoor air quality and system components. Our findings indicate that increasing ventilation mass flows can significantly enhance thermal passenger comfort, thus meeting comfort requirements. Energy consumption analysis shows that compressor efficiency is critical for overall system performance. Optimizing the temperature difference between the evaporator and condenser can lead to reduced energy demand. This research highlights the necessity for an integrated thermal management approach in eVTOL design, paving the way for future experimental validation and optimization efforts.\u003c/p\u003e","manuscriptTitle":"Development of a framework for the thermal modeling of an eVTOL","msid":"","msnumber":"","nonDraftVersions":[{"code":1,"date":"2026-03-05 23:48:08","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-8964483/v1","editorialEvents":[{"type":"communityComments","content":0}],"status":"published","journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"researchsquare","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"/submission","title":"Research Square","twitterHandle":"researchsquare","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":false,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true}}],"origin":"","ownerIdentity":"45fd27a8-5732-47d6-9ed6-e7b328820b18","owner":[],"postedDate":"March 5th, 2026","published":true,"recentEditorialEvents":[{"type":"reviewerAgreed","content":"303980157457721237482884385104698331988","date":"2026-05-04T23:16:57+00:00","index":13,"fulltext":""}],"rejectedJournal":[],"revision":"","amendment":"","status":"posted","subjectAreas":[],"tags":[],"updatedAt":"2026-03-05T23:48:08+00:00","versionOfRecord":[],"versionCreatedAt":"2026-03-05 23:48:08","video":"","vorDoi":"","vorDoiUrl":"","workflowStages":[]},"version":"v1","identity":"rs-8964483","journalConfig":"researchsquare"},"__N_SSP":true},"page":"/article/[identity]/[[...version]]","query":{"redirect":"/article/rs-8964483","identity":"rs-8964483","version":["v1"]},"buildId":"XKTyCvWXoU3ODBz1xrDgd","isFallback":false,"isExperimentalCompile":false,"dynamicIds":[84888],"gssp":true,"scriptLoader":[]}