With £69 million investment from Research England and industry partners, CFE will connect and grow fuel research facilities at Cranfield, supporting research and development across the whole supply chain from production, storage, transport and usage to assessing environmental impacts. For aviation, CFE will be demonstrating where hydrogen can be integrated into both ground operations and as a fuel for aircraft propulsion. 

CFE has evolved from the Cranfield Hydrogen Integration Incubator (CH2i) project, with a widened scope to research all future fuels and energy vectors – going beyond just hydrogen. 

CFE’s work will inform policies, services and regulatory practices that are needed to realise regional, national and international economic growth and skills development opportunities. 

CFE includes large infrastructure elements: 

1. Cranfield Future Energy Labs – extending an existing facility, this includes new labs for all aspects of advanced fuels synthesis and production, as well as testing for hydrogen-based technologies including ammonia, SAF and bio-fuels. Complementing the labs are collaborative spaces and offices for our researchers and industrial partners as well as a dedicated innovation area for events, displays and knowledge sharing activities. 
2. Cranfield Power and Propulsion Labs – Next to the airport airside boundary, this is a collaborative space with test cells for advanced research into new technologies for decarbonisation. The labs will accelerate the use of SAF and hydrogen particularly in aviation, and explore the use of unusual working fluids for thermal management applications. 
3. Hydrogen and Clean Fuels Experimental Test Area - Spread across a multi-zone outdoor test facility for mid-high TRL R&D, this 2500m² open-air site provides the necessary space for gaseous hydrogen (GH₂) and liquid hydrogen (LH₂) production, co-located experiments using representative componentry including fuel handling systems, storage tanks and propulsion systems, and provision for other clean fuels. 
4. CFE-Accelerator – this will establish a national facility for sustainable pathways from waste to hydrogen and synthetic fuels, supported by the Wolfson Foundation. 
5. Materials and Structures Hub – an extension of the current facilities supported by the Royce Institute. This will facilitate testing in cryogenic environments including LH2.