Computer Science News

Researchers at the University of Warwick’s Department of Computer Science are set to play a leading role in a national initiative to accelerate the decarbonisation of aviation. As part of the Virtual Exascale Calculations Transform Aviation (VECTA) project— an ambitious research effort into zero-emission flight—Warwick scientists will develop next-generation digital simulation tools to help design and certify future environmentally friendly fuels-based aero engines.

Led by the EPCC supercomputing centre at the University of Edinburgh and Rolls-Royce plc., VECTA brings together a world-class consortium of academic and industry experts. The University of Warwick, drawing on its strength in high-performance computing and engineering simulation, will focus on solving the complex system-level modelling challenges that next-generation fuel propulsion introduces.

As global industries transition to low-carbon energy sources, aviation remains one of the most difficult sectors to decarbonise. Without intervention, it is forecast to contribute a greater proportion of UK’s total carbon emissions by 2050. Rolls-Royce has committed to net-zero operation of all its products by 2050 through a three-pronged strategy: improving efficiency of current engines, enabling 100% use of Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF), and pioneering hydrogen and electric propulsion systems.

Hydrogen, identified by the UK Aerospace Technology Institute (ATI) as a key enabler of zero-carbon long-haul flight, presents major challenges for conventional simulation tools which are not equipped to model the complex emergent behaviours and the resulting system-level impact of such cryogenic fuels. VECTA aims to fill this critical gap. Warwick’s Computer Science Department, with its longstanding expertise in large-scale simulation and HPC, will play a central role in developing the digital frameworks needed to virtually model whole zero-emission gas turbines in unprecedented detail—greatly reducing the need for costly and time-consuming physical testing.

The VECTA project is funded through Round 6 of the UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) Prosperity Partnership programme and will commence in October 2025.

Commenting, Professor Gihan Mudalige, Warwick Principal Investigator on the VECTA programme, said:

VECTA represents the next step in our long-standing partnership with Rolls-Royce. The project places Warwick at the heart of the UK’s mission to decarbonise aviation. Our department will focus on enabling Exascale-capable turbomachinery simulations, including AI-accelerated convergence, performance portability across next-generation hardware, and tight thermomechanical integration—laying the computational foundations essential to understanding and optimising future low-carbon propulsion systems. We are excited to be working with such a strong team of university and industry partners to help shape the future of sustainable flight."

Head of the Department of Computer Science, Professor Yulia Timofeeva said:

I am delighted that our department of Computer Science at Warwick will play a key role in the VECTA project, placing our researchers at the forefront of one of the UK’s most ambitious efforts to tackle the urgent challenge of decarbonising aviation. This reflects the depth of expertise within our research community in high-performance computing and complex systems modelling. VECTA exemplifies the kind of high-impact, collaborative research that not only advances scientific understanding, but also plays a crucial role in addressing global sustainability goals."

The five-year programme builds on the success of the previous Round 2 Prosperity Partnership -- ASiMoV and includes the universities of Cambridge, Surrey, and Queen’s University Belfast, alongside industrial partners ITI and Turbostream.

Further Information -

https://www.ukri.org/news/uk-businesses-and-academia-partner-up-in-cutting-edge-research/