Skip to main content Accessibility help

We use cookies to distinguish you from other users and to provide you with a better experience on our websites. Close this message to accept cookies or find out how to manage your cookie settings.

Close cookie message
×
Hostname: page-component-7479d7b7d-rvbq7 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-07-10T09:56:47.940Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

1 - Benefits of Electrified Propulsion for Large Aircraft

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 May 2022

By
Rodger Dyson ,
Ralph Jansen  and
Nateri Madavan
Edited by
Kiruba Haran ,
Nateri Madavan  and
Tim C. O'Connell
Kiruba Haran
Affiliation:
University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign
Nateri Madavan
Affiliation:
NASA Aeronautics Mission Directorate, NASA
Tim C. O'Connell
Affiliation:
P.C. Krause & Associates
Get access

Summary

The electrical systems in turboelectric and hybrid-electric aircraft provide unmatched flexibility, coupling the power turbines to the fan propulsors and facilitating tight propulsion system-airframe integration. Reduced noise, emissions, and fuel burn result. However, the associated weight and efficiency penalties offset these benefits. Luckily, studies have shown significant aerodynamic improvements from electrically sourcing a small fraction of propulsive power. Partially turboelectric and hybrid-electric propulsion systems provide an intermediate step between conventional turbofan and fully turboelectric or all-electric architectures. This chapter details the benefits of electrified propulsion for large aircraft, using numerous trade studies and analyses of concept vehicles. It presents a first-order breakeven analysis that reveals key electrical power system requirements, providing a framework for comparing electric drive system performance factors, such as electrical efficiency, in the context of electrified and traditional propulsion systems. This can guide electrical system component research and provide aircraft designers with rational component expectations.

Keywords

breakeven analysisSTARC-ABLN3-XPEGASUSturboelectrichybrid electricall electricbypass ratioboundary layer ingestionlift-to-drag ratio
Type
Chapter
Information
Electrified Aircraft Propulsion
Powering the Future of Air Transportation
 , pp. 1 - 28
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2022

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Jansen, R. H. et al., “Turboelectric aircraft drive key performance parameters and functional requirements,” presented at the 51st AIAA/SAE/ASEE Joint Propulsion Conf., Reston, VA, 2015, Paper AIAA 2015-3890.Google Scholar
Jansen, R. H., Duffy, K. P., and Brown, G. V., “Partially turboelectric aircraft drive key performance parameters,” presented at the 53rd AIAA/SAE/ASEE Joint Propulsion Conf., Atlanta, GA, 2017, Paper AIAA 2017-4702.Google Scholar
Felder, J. L. et al., “Turboelectric distributed propulsion engine cycle analysis for hybrid-wind-body aircraft,” presented at the 47th AIAA Aerosp. Sci. Mtg., Orlando, FL, 2009, Paper AIAA 2009-1132.Google Scholar
Brown, G. V., “Weights and efficiencies of electric components of a turboelectric aircraft propulsion system,” presented at the 49th AIAA Aerosp. Sci. Mtg., Orlando, FL, 2011, Paper AIAA 2011-225.Google Scholar
Felder, J. L. et al., “Turboelectric distributed propulsion in a hybrid wind body aircraft,” presented at the 20th Intl. Soc. for Airbreathing Engines Meeting, Gothenburg, Sweden, 2011, Paper ISABE-2011-1340.Google Scholar
Wick, A. T. et al., “Integrated aerodynamic benefits of distributed propulsion,” presented at the 53rd AIAA Aerosp. Sci. Mtg., Kissimmee, FL, 2015, Paper AIAA 2015-1500.Google Scholar
Jansen, R. H., Bowman, C., and Jankovsky, A., “Sizing power components of an electrically driven tail cone thruster range extender,” presented at the 16th AIAA Aviation, Tech., Integration, and Ops. Conf., Washington, DC, 2016, Paper AIAA 2016-3766.Google Scholar
Dever, T. P. et al., “Assessment of technologies for noncryogenic hybrid electric propulsion,” NASA, Cleveland, OH, Tech. Rep. GRC-E-DAA-TN10454, 2015.Google Scholar
Welstead, J. and Felder, J. L., “Conceptual design of a single-aisle turboelectric commercial transport with fuselage boundary layer ingestion,” presented at the 54th AIAA Aerospace Sci. Meeting, San Diego, CA, 2016, Paper AIAA 2016-1027.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Antcliff, K. R. and Capristan, F. M., “Conceptual design of the parallel electric-gas architecture with synergistic utilization scheme (PEGASUS) concept,” presented at the 18th AIAA/ISSMO Multidisciplinary Analysis and Optimization Conf., Denver, CO, 2017, Paper AIAA 2017-4001.Google Scholar
Antcliff, K. R. et al., “Mission analysis and aircraft sizing of a hybrid-electric regional aircraft,” presented at the 54th AIAA Aerosp. Sci. Mtg., San Diego, CA, 2016, Paper AIAA 2016-1028.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hepperle, M., “Electric flight – potential and limitations,” presented at the Energy Efficient Tech. and Concepts of Operation Workshop, Lisbon, Portugal, 2012, Paper STO-MP-AVT-209.Google Scholar

Save book to Kindle

To save this book to your Kindle, first ensure coreplatform@cambridge.org is added to your Approved Personal Document E-mail List under your Personal Document Settings on the Manage Your Content and Devices page of your Amazon account. Then enter the ‘name’ part of your Kindle email address below. Find out more about saving to your Kindle.

Note you can select to save to either the @free.kindle.com or @kindle.com variations. ‘@free.kindle.com’ emails are free but can only be saved to your device when it is connected to wi-fi. ‘@kindle.com’ emails can be delivered even when you are not connected to wi-fi, but note that service fees apply.

Find out more about the Kindle Personal Document Service.

Available formats
×

Save book to Dropbox

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Dropbox.

Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

Available formats
×