Facu

lty

of A

eros

pace

Eng

inee

ring

Aerospace Engineering

Beyondimagination

Future world

In the course of a century, aviation has

matured from a pioneering technology to an

indispensable part of daily life for more and

more people. We are convinced that information

and communications technology will not reduce

the demand for air transport in the future. With

the rapid development of Asia, South America

and Africa, this demand will continue to grow

for decades to come. Aerospace engineering

is essential to both sustaining our way of life

and answering some of our greatest and most

fundamental questions.

Scientific and engineering challenges

New knowledge, technology and very

smart engineers are required to reconcile

these growing demands with the limited

resources of our planet. More than any other

sector, the aerospace industry is dependent

on fossil fuels. However, not only are they

running out, they are also responsible for

CO2 emissions. New materials are being

used despite the present lack of knowledge

regarding their behaviour and their true

The faculty of Aerospace Engineering was established in 1975. The faculty of

Aerospace Engineering (AE) is one of the largest faculties devoted entirely to

aerospace engineering in Northern Europe. It is the only institute engaged in

research and teaching that is directly related to the aerospace engineering

sector in the Netherlands. It covers the whole spectrum of aerospace

engineering subjects, and explores vital related fields such as wind energy.

Facts& figures

potential. AE aims to take a leading role in

Europe in thinking about the aircraft of the

future: the post-oil plane. The time lapse

between developing a new technology and

implementing it in an actual aeroplane

typically spans several decades (in the case

of GLARE® this was 30 years). It is therefore

important that we think about solutions

for aircraft now, before oil becomes a very

scarce commodity.

To be the best Aerospace

Engineering faculty in the

world with a firm eye on

the future, by inspiring

students, staff and

society through modern

educational techniques and

ambitious research of the

highest quality.

Students

Number of first-year students 400

Total number of students 2700

(BSc/MSc)

Staff numbers

Professors 27

Associate professors 18

Assistant professors 42

Postdocs, Researchers 110

PhD candidates 170

Finance Million euro

Government funding 22

Contract funding from Industry 8

Sustainability/Green Aircraft

The invention of highly efficient, safe, sustainable and quiet aircraft

that will not need any fossil fuel is a challenge that inspires both our

research and teaching.

Miniaturisation

New applications arise along with new technologies, including

insect-sized unmanned aircraft, ever-smaller satellites, spacecraft,

new materials and perhaps even personal air transport. Small

unmanned vehicles are carrying out an increasing share of tasks in

the skies as well as in space.

Exploration of our solar system

In space, the current generation is likely to witness the discovery by

spacecraft of extraterrestrial life forms and maybe even of extraterrestrial

environments that we could inhabit.

Research Priorities

Research Areas

Head of Department

Science Department

Research Group

Prof. H. Bijl

Aerodynamics, Wind Energy, Propulsion and Performance

Aerodynamics

Wind Energy

Applied Sustainable Science, Engineering and Technology

Flight Performance and Propulsion

Prof. M. Mulder

Control and Operations

Control and Simulation

Air Transport and Operations

Prof. B.A.C. Ambrosius

Space Engineering

Astrodynamics and Space Missions

Space Systems Engineering

Prof. R. Benedictus

Aerospace Structures and Materials

Structural Integrity and Composites

Aerospace Structures and Computational Mechanics

Novel Aerospace Materials

Our research covers all areas of aerospace engineering:

A new era of aerospace engineering

requires a new type of engineer. The complex

multidisciplinary problems and challenges we face

in society and in the field of aerospace engineering

in particular require thorough problem-solvers

in the fields of science, management and

engineering, who are also capable of interacting

with and understanding specialists from a wide

range of disciplines and functional areas. Industry

refers to such people as “T-shaped professionals”.

The Bachelor’s degree programme provides a

broad academic background with consolidated

knowledge of aerospace engineering. Students

to develop intellectual academic skills needed

for analysis, application, synthesis, and design,

including a critical attitude, communication skills,

and an awareness of the scientific and societal

context. The AE Master’s degree programme allows

students to develop an expert view on aerospace

engineering and focuses on detailed knowledge of

one discipline, combined with intellectual academic

skills and attitudes to modelling, analysing,

problem-solving, experimenting and research.

Educational framework

AE is an excellent choice for anyone looking for

a valuable study programme that offers excellent

prospects for a future career. Between twenty-five

to thirty per cent of our Bachelor’s and Master’s

students come from outside the Netherlands.

The faculty offers one three-year Bachelor’s

degree programme, which focuses on the full

spectrum of aerospace engineering and on

skills such as designing and integrating multiple

disciplines. For the Master’s degree programme,

we have identified five areas, that together cover

the field of aerospace engineering, which are

referred to as tracks:

- Aerodynamics & Wind Energy

- Flight Performance & Propulsion

- Control & Operations

- Space Engineering

- Aerospace Structures & Materials

Educational philosophy

Area A

Area C-I Area D-I

Area D-II

Area D-III

Area D-IV

Internship

Graduationwork

DepthMSc-phase

2 years

WidthBSc-phase

3 years

Tim

e

Area E-I

Area B Area C Area D Area E Area G Area H

Building European partnerships

AE participates in major European programmes

such as CleanSky and SESAR. We are pushing to

get long-term goals on the agenda to safeguard

the future of aerospace engineering in Europe.

The faculty plays an active role in Brussels to

ensure that long-term research gets the place on

the European agenda that it deserves

AE is intensifying its relationship with the number

two in Europe, ISAE Toulouse, in terms of areas

of research and education. AE is a founding

member of Pegasus, the association for academic

aerospace education in Europe. Strategic alliances

with our European partners enable us to achieve

a truly European Aerospace Academy framework.

On the global level we also cooperate with

partners and industry in the USA and Asia, having

formed strategic partnerships in those areas.

Bringing knowledge within your reach

Our broad knowledge base is one of the

reasons for our involvement in two of the four

Delft Research Initiatives: Infrastructures &

Mobility and Energy. The Delft Research Initiatives

bring the knowledge, engineers and facilities TU

Delft has to offer within your reach.

Turning ideas into reality

Valorisation is an important objective for our

faculty. Our staff is therefore closely involved

in key student initiatives like the student rocket

engineering society DARE and the NUNA solar car.

And of course we encourage our students and PhD

researchers to convert their ideas into profit by

starting their own businesses. In fact, some of our

techno-starters have become successful suppliers

to the aerospace industry themselves.

Facilities

Cessna Citation II jet aircraftThe Cessna is equipped as a flying laboratory for students to carry out experiments in the airspace above

and around Schiphol Airport near Amsterdam.

SIMONA

The super flight simulator SIMONA (International Research Institute for Simulation, Motion and Navigation

is used to study man-machine interactions and can simulate the motion of airplanes, helicopters, heavy and

light vehicles, and spaceplanes.

Wind tunnelsEight high-speed and low-speed wind tunnels are used to verify aerodynamic theory and observe physical

phenomena. Experiments can be performed at speeds ranging from subsonic (as low as 35m/sec) to

hypersonic (up to Mach 11).

Structures and Materials LaboratoryThis laboratory contains a variety of testing equipment, including fatigue-testing machines, low-speed

and high-speed impact testers, production equipment (e.g. a filament-winding machine) and a chemistry/

physics section equipped with microscopes and an autoclave. The laboratory is used for several kinds of

materials research, including experiments with lightweight structures.

HangarThe faculty hangar contains a collection of aircraft and spacecraft parts, including cockpits, wings,

advanced sensors and rocket components. It also houses an F-16 helicopter and a test model of ENVISAT,

the largest European satellite to date. In this facility, students gain a greater understanding of design and

performance considerations, with the ultimate goal of generating new ideas and solutions.

Practical exercises form an essential part of testing

and verifying theories. The faculty has a complete

range of high-tech facilities at the disposal of

students and researchers.

Clean RoomThe Clean Room has a variety of equipment for integration and testing. With its low level of

environmental pollutants, our Clean Room conforms to ISO class 5: 100,000 particles per m³. Particles,

temperature and humidity are monitored continuously (measurements are saved). Pressure is monitored

during operations of the low-thrust rocket test stand. The first Dutch satellite built by students, Delfi C3,

was created here. Students are currently working on its successor, the Delfi N3xt.

Micro Air Vehicle laboratory (MAV-Lab)The development of MAVs requires knowledge from many areas, including electronics, mechanics,

aerodynamics, navigation and control. At TU Delft, this knowledge has been combined in the Micro Air

Vehicle laboratory: the MAV-lab. The MAV-lab develops various Micro Air Vehicle platforms and uses them

for research that produces advances in state-of-the-art knowledge. The goal is to stimulate the use of the

lightweight MAVs in a wide variety of applications.

Additional facilitiesThe faculty also has a unique satellite database and a kite-testing laboratory for experiments on innovative

ideas in sustainable aerospace engineering and technology.

Faculty of Aerospace EngineeringKluyverweg 1P.O. Box 50582600 GB DelftThe Netherlands

News-ae@tudelft.nlwww.ae.tudelft.nl

COLOPHON Text Marketing & Communication, Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, July 2012 Graphic Design SD Communicatie Print De Swart

www.facebook.com/TUDelftAerospaceEngineering

@AETUDelft