This thesis develops a mathematical optimization model to optimize charging schedules and energy management for electrified aircraft at Rotterdam The Hague Airport (RTHA), addressing research gaps in adapting airport infrastructure for electric aviation. Based on a real-life flight schedule from 2019, the model determines a Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) size while minimizing operational costs, such as grid electricity, photovoltaic (PV) use, BESS degradation, and flight delay/cancellation penalties, while trying to maintain the schedule as closely as possible. Five electric aircraft types, ranging from a 2-seater flight school aircraft, to a 90-seater commercial aviation model, were considered with a Constant Power - Constant Voltage (CPCV) charging profile, alongside a detailed mission energy analysis. Seasonal simulation for January, April, July, and October 2019 showed delays averaging from 2 minutes in July while peaking at 45 in January, alongside three flight cancellations due to high energy demands. Optimized BESS sizes range from 7 MWh to 12 MWh. Optimization of the model showed a reduction of up to €500,000 weekly when compared to a baseline case. Sensitivity analysis showed that increasing the grid import limits from 3.5 MW to 5 MW gave better grid reliability, with less delays and cancellations, while a decrease to 2 MW showed increases in delay times and cancellations. When the export limit was reduced from 7.5 MW to 5 MW, the delays increased due to constrained energy offloading, while increasing it to 10 MW decreased the delays and cancellations by one. A 1 MWh BESS increase reduced cancellations by one and total delay time by up to 5 hours. Adjusting the turnaround times by ± 15 minutes demonstrated the model’s resilience to stricter turnaround times, but a 4-hour delay increase was present with extensions. The findings of the thesis show the critical role that BESS capacity and grid limits play in ensuring operational efficiency for the electric aviation infrastructures of the future, but also the cost and delay reduction by optimizing charging schedules.

In 2018 it was estimated that the aviation industry produced approximately 1.04 billion tons of CO2. This was an estimated 2.5% of the total CO2 emitted that year. In order to slow down global warming, big changes need to be made to the transportation industry. This change has already begun with commercialization of electric cars. The next step is clear: fully electric, zero emission air crafts. This projects goal is design a high power propulsion system for an electric aircraft set to launch in the year 2040. This project attempts at predicting how this propulsion system might look like, specifically the electrical architecture. This thesis looks at the battery energy storage system, the wiring system and how to deal with high-voltage phenomena at low pressure. Several simulations are performed to justify design choices and give a visual representation of the different design options.