概念證明電動力推進無聲的發動機驅動的飛機

來源: 2018-11-21 10:46:23 [博客] [舊帖] [給我悄悄話] 本文已被閱讀:
Wow!

第一次飛行

100多年來,由於基於發動機的螺旋槳和渦輪機(主要由化石燃料提供動力),飛機已經飛走。在本周的問題中,史蒂文巴雷特和他的同事揭示了另一種選擇:一架由近乎無聲的發動機驅動的飛機,沒有活動部件。固態推進係統使用電場來電離空氣中的分子,然後與中性分子發生碰撞,從而產生產生推力的離子風。人們一直認為推力限製會阻止這種係統推進飛機,但研究人員證明,固態飛機的持續飛行並非如此。該飛機重2.45千克,翼展5米,帶有電池組和電源轉換器,功率約為500瓦。在試飛中,盡管整體效率較低,但該飛機的推力功率比與噴氣發動機相當。這一概念證明為電動力推進提供了可能性,這可能導致更安靜,低排放的飛機。顯示較少

封麵圖片:Christina Y.他

Volume 563 Issue 7732, 22 November 2018

Volume 563 Issue 7732

A first forflight

For more than 100 years, aeroplanes have taken flight thanks to engine-based propellers and turbines, mostly powered by fossil fuels. In this week’s issue, Steven Barrett and his colleagues reveal an alternative: a plane powered by a near-silent engine that has no moving parts. Solid-state propulsion systems use electric fields to ionize the molecules in the air, which then collide with neutral molecules, resulting in an ionic wind that generates thrust. It had been thought that thrust-to-power limitations would prevent such systems from propelling planes but the researchers demonstrate this is not so with the sustained flight of a solid-state aeroplane. Weighing 2.45 kilograms, the plane has a 5-metre wingspan and carries a battery stack and power converter that produces around 500 watts. In the test flights, the plane achieved a thrust-to-power ratio comparable to that of a jet engine, although the overall efficiency was lower. This proof of concept opens up possibilities for electroaerodynamic propulsion, which could lead to quieter, low-emissions aeroplanes.

Cover image: Christina Y. He




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