Aerospace

Grid

First airfield-to-airfield eVTOL flight with recharging

Skyfly and AeroVolt are working on the first electric vehicle take-off and landing (eVTOL) flight in the UK between two airfields with electric charging points, writes Nick Flaherty. AeroVolt is installing a network of aircraft smart chargers around the UK at airports and aerodromes. It currently has five operational sites and aims to have 24 running by the time deliveries of the Skyfly Axe eVTOL begin in 2025, with plans in place for over 60 sites.

Grid

Hybrid electric propulsion passenger aircraft

A European project is developing a new propulsion system for medium-range aircraft with up to 35 passengers, writes Nick Flaherty. Several Fraunhofer Institutes and Brandenburg University of Technology Cottbus-Senftenberg, under the leadership of Rolls-Royce Germany and other partners such as research institution ACCESS, are collaborating on the hybrid electric-propulsion system.

Grid

Successful test of aircraft rim motor

Duxion Motors has successful ground tested its patented eJet Motor for electric aviation, writes Nick Flaherty. The successful ground testing of the scaled prototype at Summerside, Prince Edward Island, Canada, included both low-speed and high-speed testing.

Dossier

H3X

H3X is meeting the challenge of maximising continuous power output against high operating temperatures. Rory Jackson reports Commercial aviation is one of the world’s fastest-growing sources of pollution, responsible for about 2% of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and 2.5% of carbon emissions. These levels are projected to reach...

Web exclusive

Amprius rolls out high-density SiCore batteries with extended cycle life

Amprius Technologies, a manufacturer of next-generation lithium-ion batteries, has unveiled its new SiCore product platform, with the aim of revolutionising electric mobility. The company has also branded its existing silicon nanowire platform, SiMaxx, with its current product range of up to 500 Wh/kg and 1,300 Wh/L energy density.

Grid

Mini-spoiler alert for faster flight

Researchers at the University of Bath are investigating how deploying spoiler-like devices called mini-tabs could help electric aircraft fly faster (writes Nick Flaherty). Mini-tabs can counteract the damaging vibrations caused by whirl flutter that occurs at high flight speeds. Maxon has provided the motion systems to test the effectiveness of the mini-tabs on a novel wind tunnel test rig.

Deep Insight

Electric motors for aircraft

Developments in motors for e-aircraft are becoming intertwined with issues of energy storage and certification. Nick Flaherty reports There are many different designs for motors being developed for a variety of electric aircraft platforms, from vertical take-off air taxis to 100-seaters with a flying time of an hour or so for regional flights.

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Helix announces success of aerospace electric propulsion demonstrator project

Motors and inverters manufacturer Helix has announced the completion of its direct drive scalable aerospace electric propulsion demonstrator technology project. Known internally as the XBS, the project ran in partnership with the UK’s Midlands

Digest

Rolls-Royce Spirit of Innovation

Peter Donaldson examines the design and technology that went into making this electric aircraft a record-breaker. Electric aviation is roughly where piston-powered flight was in the 1920s and ’30s, in that record-breaking really matters to the credibility of the idea almost as much as to the impetus it gives to the development of electric aircraft technology.

Dossier

magniX magni350, 650 and magniDrive 100

Rory Jackson looks at how these electric powertrains and their inverter have been designed for crewed aircraft integrators In every part of aerospace engineering, a race is on to break new ground and claim headline-grabbing milestones in sustainable aviation. While it might seem to some that commercial airliners are moving at a sluggish pace...
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