Head of the Department of Electric Power Plants of the Central Institute of Aviation Motors named after P.I. Baranova (TsIAM) Anton Varyukhin said in an interview with RT that in the fall of 2020, flight tests of a promising hybrid aircraft engine will begin. They will be held at the flying laboratory, which is currently being created on the basis of the Yak-40 passenger aircraft. The machine has not been manufactured since 1981, but some companies continue to operate it.
“We decided to create a demonstrator of a hybrid power plant of large dimension. The power of the electric motor that will rotate the propeller is 500 kW. For its power we will use generators (400 kW) and batteries (100 kW). Bench tests are underway now, and next year we will install the engine on the Yak-40, ”said Varyukhin.
According to the engineer, the development of a hybrid power plant is carried out in "great cooperation". CJSC “SuperOx”, SIC “Institute named after N.E. Zhukovsky ”, Ufa State Aviation Technical University, Moscow Aviation Institute, LLC“ Experimental Workshop “Nauka-soft”, LLC “Avia-Turbo”. CIAM acts as the lead developer.
The equipment of the flying laboratory is engaged in the Siberian Research Institute of Aviation named after S.A. Chaplygina (SibNIA).
“Obvious gain”
Modern gas turbine engines are characterized by great “gluttony” during takeoff, climb and landing. In economy mode, only cruising flights take place. TsIAM specialists offer to accumulate electricity during the maximum operation of the kerosene engine, and then use it in cruise flight mode.
“Now, colleagues from SibNIA are strengthening the nose of the flying laboratory - fairing, engine mount, front frame. They also removed the third medium engine AI-25. Instead, a TV2-117 turboshaft engine with an electric generator will be installed. It is the simplest and most reliable in operation, ”said Varyukhin.
A feature of the engine that TsIAM is developing is the use of second-generation high-temperature superconductors (HTSC). They are used as stator windings - products designed to rotate the propeller.
- Aircraft Yak-40
- RIA News
- © Alexander Kryazhev
The direct current in the electric motor is generated by a permanent magnet generator. As stated in the TsIAM booklet, this unit “contains a number of innovative technical solutions that provide high efficiency and high specific characteristics”.
The generator was created by scientists at TsIAM and Ufa State Aviation Technical University. It is the first Russian producer of aviation electricity with a capacity of more than 150 kW. The efficiency of the unit reaches 96%.
In the materials of TsIAM it is reported that the maximum rotation speed of a promising electric motor is 2500 rpm, rated voltage - 800 V, engine weight - 95 kg, diameter - 0.45 m, length - 0.4 m. Liquid nitrogen consumption (for cooling the windings . - RT ) is estimated at 6 l / h.
“The efficiency of electric motors at HTSC is 98%. With capacities of more than 500-1000 kW, the specific gravity of such electric machines will be significantly lower than that of traditional ones, ”the TsIAM materials specify.
Varyukhin said that the electric motor can be installed on aircraft with a capacity of up to 20 passengers. However, in the future, TsIAM is planning to design a more powerful power plant. According to the engineer, at the moment it is important to work out the technology of electric propulsion, "albeit on an old Yak-40."
“Creating a powerful engine immediately is very difficult, but we will move on to this step by step. Hybrid technologies for power plants can even be used on wide-body long-range aircraft. Hybridization gains can be large due to the long cruise flight. True, the power requirements will be completely different - we are talking about tens of MW, ”said Varyukhin.
TsIAM intends to develop electric propulsion technology by improving superconductors. They can significantly reduce the mass of the power plant. According to the expert, the aviation industry will receive an “obvious gain” after the invention of an electric motor with a capacity of 2 mW or more. In general, the use of such units will reduce the cost of transportation by 20%, predicts Varyukhin.
According to the engineer, "for large-scale integration of electric motors, close cooperation between the developers of the aircraft and the engine is necessary."
“Nevertheless, it is already possible to install electric motors on some types of aircraft. First of all, these are light training aircraft. In the future, an electric motor may be equipped with, for example, the Il-114-300, the production of which is currently underway. For this, it is just necessary to achieve a power of 2 MW, ”said Varyukhin.
In pursuit of power
Experts interviewed by RT believe that the development of electric propulsion technologies is a global trend in civil aviation, for which economical fuel consumption and improving environmental standards are of key importance.
“Technology is moving towards a reduction in air emissions and economy. Hybrid power plants are now used in automobiles. But nothing prevents them from equipping aircraft. Naturally, this is worth doing in our country as well, ”Dmitry Drozdenko, a columnist for Arsenal of the Fatherland, said in an interview with RT.
- The experimental complex of aircraft engines TsIAM
- © Central Institute of Aviation Motors named after P.I. Baranova
At the same time, the expert drew attention to the fact that currently promising electric motors do not produce the power necessary to ensure the cruising flight of the vast majority of civil aviation airliners, including the Il-114-300.
In turn, Honored Pilot of Russia, member of the Presidential Commission on Aviation Development Yuri Sytnik emphasized in an interview with RT that the TsIAM electric motor and its modifications will be used in light aviation - in passenger transportation, agriculture and monitoring of territories.
“The future is in hybrid engines using electric power plants. Now there is not enough power, but engineers will gradually solve this problem. This is not a quick process, but sooner or later the power of electric motors will be equivalent to kerosene units, ”Sytnik explained.
According to the expert, "at the current stage, the appearance of electric motors can become an incentive for the development of small aircraft, and in the future, electric propulsion technologies will be used on narrow-body aircraft."