Aircraft modification can now be resolved

The number of civil aviation flights is expected to double by 2050. This will lead to a shortage of oil, increase greenhouse gas emissions, and have an overall negative impact on the environment. The search for technological solutions in response to these global challenges lies in the plane of increasing the fuel efficiency of aircraft – through reducing the consumption of traditional fuels and reducing greenhouse gas emissions – and involves optimizing, in particular lightening, the design of the aircraft, engine, avionics, and improving facilities. control and monitoring of aircraft control systems.

Electricity at Le Bourget

At the Paris Air Show this year, only four electric vehicles are participating. One of them is in the flight program.

Two cars are from the world aviation giants Airbus and Boeing. Both companies brought a prototype of an electric unmanned aerial vehicle to Le Bourget. In addition to them, the Slovenian two-seat trainer Pipistrel Alpha Electro is presented in the cabin.

Another company, magniX, showcased electric aircraft engines, perhaps the most important piece of technology that experts believe could change the world of transportation in the future.

MagniX hopes to transform traditional passenger and cargo aircraft on routes up to 1,500 kilometers long with its motors.

"Our debut at the Paris Air Show marks one more step towards starting fully electric air transport in 2022," said CEO Roei Ganzarski.

The company is already working with Canadian operator Harbor Air to convert its light seaplanes to electric propulsion.

One of the main problems faced by manufacturers of electrical aircraft systems is the limitation of the range due to the low capacity of the batteries with a rather high level of electricity consumption by the motors of the vehicles.

This problem can be solved by using hybrid power plants, in which conventional aircraft engines, using traditional fuel, rotate electric generators. However, this solution will deprive the device of the advantages that a purely electrical solution provides. For example, hybrids have higher emissions and noise levels. In addition, the speed is lower on vehicles with hybrid engines.

And although the simpler solution now seems to be the creation of a small device for flights over short distances, several startups in the field of "full-fledged" electric aircraft are actively working in the world at once.

The First Robot

As experts of the aviation industry note, now the technologies have reached such a level that soon the aircraft sensors will be able to transmit information about the stocks of aviation kerosene in the tanks to ground services and calculate the volumes of future refueling during the flight. And part of the routine functionality, for example, when loading the required volumes of fuel into refueling vehicles, can be taken over by robots.

Last autumn, at the Sheremetyevo international airport, the concept of a robotic system for loading petroleum products into an airfield refueler was shown. The process of filling aviation fuel was carried out automatically using a robotic arm without the participation of personnel.

After successful testing, this technology can be widely used in other production facilities. Modifications of the robotic arm will be used to automate the process of filling petroleum products for various types of vehicles. For example, in railway tanks.

Increasing Efficiency

It is believed that the Internet of Things will play a more important role in aviation logistics and aircraft maintenance from 2020 to 2025, and the Internet of Things will be implemented from 2025 to 2030 to improve flight performance. The IoT will also help improve the efficiency of aircraft. Some experts say the aircraft monitoring system will be strengthened with IoT devices that provide diagnostic efficiency.

Modern engines nowadays, for example, have up to 200 sensors; future engines may have up to 5,000 sensors collecting massive amounts of performance data. This practice allows the engines to run more efficiently.

And from a safety standpoint when planes are not connected to each other, they can avoid accidents and calculate optimal flight paths to reduce travel time and fuel. Currently, the position of the aircraft is mainly controlled from the ground, and only air traffic controllers have a complete idea of ​​where the aircraft is located (although monitoring from satellites is also gaining momentum).

Airlines are already using or testing technologies such as:

• wearable or implantable devices for flight physiological data such as heartbeat and blood pressure for assessing blood pressure;
• sensors built into the seat inform flight attendants and provide data to improve future technologies (such as entertainment quality) and in-flight service (such as serving times and food quality)
• "Smart" baggage with GPS tracking and IoT sensors for transmitting the location at speed to the airport

Internet devices can also help improve piloting skills, giving feedback not only to the pilots of the plane and its status, but also to neighboring cars. They can also warn of extreme weather conditions.

Nanotechnology for the Miniaturization of Airborne Equipment

A significant increase in the environmental friendliness of aviation can be achieved by reducing the size and weight of the basic elements of the onboard equipment of aircraft – navigation, communication, automatic control systems – while increasing their reliability and increasing energy efficiency.

Reducing the maximum take-off weight of aircraft through miniaturization of onboard aviation equipment will, on the one hand, reduce fuel consumption, and on the other, reduce the number of flights by increasing the payload of each flight.

To implement the trend, a qualitative change in the design of aircraft will be required, as well as the use of fundamentally new materials for nanosensors embedded in different parts of the aircraft body.

Development of Materials

This holds great promise for the future, but how can we be sure that passengers will be better served? A new ISO Subcommittee on Materials from ISO / TC 20 / SC 18 is working on this issue. The scope of the new subcommittee will cover material standardization and related processes used by aviation and engine manufacturers. As a result, manufacturers will be forced to implement international standards, thereby reducing the use of various national, regional, and local standards. As well as defining industrial requirements for materials in the form of international standards, standardization will address environmental aspects. This is intended to update the products used by aviation and engine manufacturers as they are being replaced by new technical solutions.

By the way, there are a lot of aircraft companies that are engaged in the development of materials. Most of them are presented on international engineering marketplaces. For instance, aircraft modification at Engre.co is a very popular service among a wide range of others. Thanks to the international engineering marketplaces, questions such as "how to hire world-class engineers" or "how aerodynamic analysis supports aircraft projects" aren't hard to ask anymore.

Given the accelerated emergence of new products and materials in the aviation industry, there is no better time to standardize composite materials used by aviation and engine manufacturers. This will not only solve the problem of improving technical communications in the supply chain, but also the certification of aircraft for flight fitness. It is clear that the leading aviation players were competitive in all areas, with the new subcommittee playing a key role.