AERO INNOVATIONS
30,000 Horses
Big Horsepower, Small Package: 30,000-hp Jet Engine
Innovators at Pratt & Whitney are testing a geared turbofan that produces
30,000 hp but comes in a compact size. The PurePower PW1000G weighs
about 100 kilograms (220 pounds) and is about 0.5 meters ( 19. 69 inches) in
diameter. The geared turbofan allows the turbine to be small and fast, while
the fan is much larger and slower.
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ScudERI AIR HybRId
ENgINE uSES NOVEl
cOmbuSTION PROcESS
Carmelo sCuderI, a mIlItary
aeronautical engineer, designed the
Scuderi engine to get 50 percent
more power, torque, and mileage
than conventional gasoline engines.
This unusual engine uses a split
cycle, which means half the cylinders
are drawing air in while the other
half are firing. Part of the Scuderi
engine efficiency also comes from
energy stored as compressed air.
HIgH-POwER
HAlbAcH-ARRAy
ElEcTRIc mOTOR
launChPoInt teChnologIes has
desIgned and made an initial prototype of a new electric motor with a
very high-power density. Its
Halbach-array electric motor produces 5 hp per pound, significantly
higher than many other currently
available electric motors. This lightweight motor was designed for
electric vehicles, including manned,
electric-driven aircraft.
NEw VTOl uAV
EmPlOyS cOANdÃ
EffEc T TO
gENERATE lIfT
aesIr, a u.K.-based ComPany,
has designed and built a family of
aircraft powered by the Coandă
effect. This phenomenon is the tendency of a fluid jet to be attracted to
a nearby surface. The lightweight
AESIR aircraft are made of carbon
fiber and incorporate design features
such as airflow vanes and directional
flow flaps to efficiently harness the
lift generated by the Coandă effect.
duTcH HumAN-POwEREd flIgHT
When he Was only
16 years old,
Jesse van Kuijk decided he wanted to
fly. After studying fluid mechanics and
researching the history of human-powered flight, Jesse designed his own
human-powered aircraft. He spent
three years building it out of balsa
wood, polyurethane, and foil. With the
successes and failures of other human-powered flight attempts to draw upon,
van Kuijk’s own first attempt would
hinge on a combination of engineering
and good fortune.
