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Fly-by-wire (FBW) is a system that replaces the conventional manual flight controls of an aircraft with an electronic interface. The movements of flight controls are converted to electronic signals transmitted by wires, and flight control computers determine how to move the actuators at each control surface to provide the ordered response. Implementations either use mechanical flight control backup systems or else are fully electronic.
A jet engine is a type of reaction engine, discharging a fast-moving jet of heated gas that generates thrust by jet propulsion. While this broad definition may include rocket, water jet, and hybrid propulsion, the term jet engine typically refers to an internal combustion air-breathing jet engine such as a turbojet, turbofan, ramjet, pulse jet, or scramjet. In general, jet engines are internal combustion engines.
A ramjet is a form of airbreathing jet engine that requires forward motion of the engine to provide air for combustion. Ramjets work most efficiently at supersonic speeds around Mach 3 and can operate up to Mach 6.
Propulsion is the generation of force by any combination of pushing or pulling to modify the translational motion of an object, which is typically a rigid body but may also concern a fluid. The term is derived from two Latin words: pro, meaning before or forward; and pellere, meaning to drive. A propulsion system consists of a source of mechanical power, and a propulsor.
Flight or flying is the process by which an object moves through a space without contacting any planetary surface, either within an atmosphere or through the vacuum of outer space. This can be achieved by generating aerodynamic lift associated with gliding or propulsive thrust, aerostatically using buoyancy, or by ballistic movement.
A magnetohydrodynamic drive or MHD accelerator is a method for propelling vehicles using only electric and magnetic fields with no moving parts, accelerating an electrically conductive propellant with magnetohydrodynamics. The fluid is directed to the rear and as a reaction, the vehicle accelerates forward.
The Heinkel He 176 was a German experimental rocket-powered aircraft. It was the world's first aircraft to be propelled solely by a liquid-fueled rocket, making its first powered flight on 20 June 1939 with Erich Warsitz at the controls.
The NASA X-43 was an experimental unmanned hypersonic aircraft with multiple planned scale variations meant to test various aspects of hypersonic flight. It was part of the X-plane series and specifically of NASA's Hyper-X program developed in the late 1990s. It set several airspeed records for jet aircraft. The X-43 is the fastest jet-powered aircraft on record at approximately Mach 9.6.
An ion-propelled aircraft or ionocraft is an aircraft that uses electrohydrodynamics (EHD) to provide lift or thrust in the air without requiring combustion or moving parts. Current designs do not produce sufficient thrust for manned flight or useful loads.
An airplane or aeroplane, informally plane, is a fixed-wing aircraft that is propelled forward by thrust from a jet engine, propeller, or rocket engine. Airplanes come in a variety of sizes, shapes, and wing configurations. The broad spectrum of uses for airplanes includes recreation, transportation of goods and people, military, and research. Worldwide, commercial aviation transports more than four billion passengers annually on airliners and transports more than 200 billion tonne-kilometers of cargo annually, which is less than 1% of the world's cargo movement. Most airplanes are flown by a pilot on board the aircraft, but some are designed to be remotely or computer-controlled such as drones.
Ion wind, ionic wind, corona wind or electric wind is the airflow of charged particles induced by electrostatic forces linked to corona discharge arising at the tips of some sharp conductors subjected to high voltage relative to ground. Ion wind is an electrohydrodynamic phenomenon. Ion wind generators can also be considered electrohydrodynamic thrusters.
A radio-controlled glider is a type of radio-controlled aircraft that normally does not have any form of propulsion. They are able to sustain continuous flight by exploiting the lift produced by slopes and thermals, controlled remotely from the ground with a transmitter. They can be constructed from a variety of materials, including wood, plastic, polymer foams, and composites, and can vary in wing loading from very light to relatively heavy, depending on their intended use.
The Douglas XB-43 Jetmaster is an American 1940s jet-powered prototype bomber. The XB-43 was a development of the XB-42, replacing the piston engines of the XB-42 with two General Electric J35 engines of 4,000 lbf (17.8 kN) thrust each. Despite being the first American jet bomber to fly, it suffered stability issues and the design did not enter production.
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Aerospace engineering is the primary field of engineering concerned with the development of aircraft and spacecraft. It has two major and overlapping branches: aeronautical engineering and astronautical engineering. Avionics engineering is similar, but deals with the electronics side of aerospace engineering.
The Convair NB-36H was an experimental aircraft that carried a nuclear reactor to test its protective radiation shielding for the crew, but did not use it to power the aircraft. Nicknamed "The Crusader", it was created for the Aircraft Nuclear Propulsion program, to show the feasibility of a nuclear-powered bomber. Its development ended with the cancellation of the ANP program.
The NASA X-57 Maxwell was an experimental aircraft developed by NASA, intended to demonstrate technology to reduce fuel use, emissions, and noise. The first flight of the X-57 was scheduled to take place in 2023, but the program was cancelled due to problems with the propulsion system.
The Eviation Alice is an electric aircraft designed to accommodate nine passengers and two crew members. First developed in Israel, its construction incorporates 95% composite material, is powered by two electric motors, and has a T-tail. The prototype first flew on 27 September 2022.
SolarStratos is an aeronautical project aimed at flying a solar-powered airplane for the first time to the stratosphere. The SolarStratos airplane is equipped with solar cells but is not able to fly directly on solar power, thus is accurately described as a battery powered electric airplane that is equipped with solar cells; it is planned to be the first crewed solar-equipped aircraft to enter the stratosphere.
Aircraft engine performance refers to factors including thrust or shaft power for fuel consumed, weight, cost, outside dimensions and life. It includes meeting regulated environmental limits which apply to emissions of noise and chemical pollutants, and regulated safety aspects which require a design that can safely tolerate environmental hazards such as birds, rain, hail and icing conditions. It is the end product that an engine company sells.
References
- 1 2 3 "Scientists at MIT Have Flown The First-Ever Solid-State Plane Powered by an Ion Drive". Science News Magazines. 21 November 2018. Archived from the original on 2018-11-23.
the first object to breeze through the air on the cusp of its own, self-generated ionic wind.
- 1 2 "MIT engineers fly first-ever plane with no moving parts". mit.edu. 21 November 2018. Retrieved 23 November 2018.
- ↑ "MIT engineers fly first-ever plane with no moving parts". MIT News. 21 November 2018. Retrieved 2019-11-01.
"This is the first-ever sustained flight of a plane with no moving parts in the propulsion system," says Steven Barrett
- ↑ Tajmar, M. (2004). "Biefeld–Brown Effect: Misinterpretation of Corona Wind Phenomena". AIAA Journal. 42 (2): 315–318. Bibcode:2004AIAAJ..42..315T. doi:10.2514/1.9095.
- ↑ Major de Seversky's Ion-Propelled Aircraft. Vol. 122. Popular mechanics. August 1964. pp. 58–61.
- 1 2 3 4 "Radical Experimental Plane With No Moving Parts Wows Scientists". Gadgets360°. Red Pixels Ventures. 22 November 2018.
- ↑ "MIT scientists create plane with no moving parts". New York Post. 22 November 2018.
- ↑ Xu, Haofeng; He, Yiou; Strobel, Kieran L.; Gilmore, Christopher K.; Kelley, Sean P.; Hennick, Cooper C.; Sebastian, Thomas; Woolston, Mark R.; Perreault, David J.; Barrett, Steven R. H. (2018). "Flight of an aeroplane with solid-state propulsion". Nature. 563 (7732): 532–535. Bibcode:2018Natur.563..532X. doi:10.1038/s41586-018-0707-9. ISSN 0028-0836. PMID 30464270. S2CID 256770461.
- ↑ "First 'solid-state' plane with no moving parts takes flight at MIT".
