Cryotanks in future vehicles

Cryogenic storage of liquid hydrogen and oxygen is a need in future transportation systems. Therefore, MAN Technologie is studying various concepts for cryogenic tanks made of carbon reinforced plastics (CFRP) material. For space application the demand of a CFRP cryotank derives from the mechanical loads in combination with the thermal environment. Mass saving has priority for single stage launchers. In order to separate the influence of complex requirements on the tank components test samples are proposed with the help of scaling factors. For future aircraft the need for replacement of kerosene is growing. Due to the storage conditions the insulation requirement is very stringent. For ground traffic there are relatively small and cheap tanks to be produced in future. An overview on all these applications is given. The advantage of composite in relation to metallic tanks is maximum for use in spacecraft.