Reaction Engines LAPCAT A2: Difference between revisions
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*'''Fuel:''' [[Liquid hydrogen]] |
*'''Fuel:''' [[Liquid hydrogen]] |
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*'''Passengers:''' 300 (Single Class) |
*'''Passengers:''' 300 (Single Class) |
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*'''Cruising speed:''' [[Mach]] 5 |
*'''Cruising speed:''' [[Mach number|Mach]] 5 |
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*'''[[Specific fuel consumption (thrust)|SFC]]''': 0.86 |
*'''[[Specific fuel consumption (thrust)|SFC]]''': 0.86 lbf/lb·h @ Mach 5 (40,900 m/s<ref name=rlapcat>{{cite web |url=http://www.reactionengines.co.uk/lapcat.html |title=Long-Term Advanced Propulsion Concepts and Technologies |publisher=Reaction Engines |accessdate=2009-07-03 }}</ref> - 4,170 seconds), 0.375 lbf/lb·h @ Mach 0.9 (96,000 m/s<ref name=rlapcat/> - 9,600 seconds) |
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*'''L/D:''' 11.0@5. |
*'''L/D:''' 11.0@5.9 km Mach 0.9, 5.9@25 km Mach 5<ref name=fact>{{cite web |url=http://www.reactionengines.co.uk/downloads/LAPCAT_A2_Factsheet.pdf |title=LAPCAT A2 Facts and Figures |date=2008 |publisher=Reaction Engines |accessdate=2009-07-03 }}</ref> |
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*'''Noise:''' 101 dBa @ 450m lateral<ref name=fact/> |
*'''Noise:''' 101 dBa @ 450m lateral<ref name=fact/> |
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==See also== |
==See also== |
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* [[Reaction Engines Skylon]] |
* [[Reaction Engines Skylon]] |
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==External links== |
==External links== |
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Revision as of 15:39, 22 December 2009
| A2 | |
|---|---|
| |
| Artist's concept of the Reaction Engines A2 | |
| Role | Hypersonic Airliner |
| Manufacturer | Unknown |
| Designer | Reaction Engines Limited |
| Status | Under design study |
The Reaction Engines Limited A2 (called the A2) is a design study for a hypersonic airliner. The airliner is intended to provide environmentally-friendly, long range and high capacity commercial transportation. It is being examined as part of the LAPCAT programme of the European Union. The plane has not been commercially launched yet, but Reaction Engines Limited, the British design firm, says it could probably be developed into a working aircraft within 25 years, if there is market demand for it.
Development
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The vehicle is intended to have about 20,000 kilometres (12,000 mi) range and good subsonic and supersonic fuel efficiency, thus avoiding the problems inherent in earlier supersonic aircraft. The top speed is projected to be Mach 5+. It calls for the use of liquid hydrogen as a fuel, which has twice the specific energy of kerosene, and can be used to cool the vehicle and the air entering the engines via a precooler.
The developers say it would be able to fly from Brussels to Sydney in about 4.6 hours; compared to around a complete day of travel with normal aircraft. The cost of a ticket is intended to be roughly business class level.[1]
Our work shows that it is possible technically; now it's up to the world to decide if it wants it.
— Alan Bond, managing director of Reaction Engines Limited
Design
Capabilities
Alan Bond told The Guardian newspaper:[2]
The A2 is designed to leave Brussels International Airport, fly quietly and subsonically out into the north Atlantic at Mach 0.9 before reaching Mach 5 across the North Pole and heading over the Pacific to Australia.
Another advantage of the design is that, while the 143 metre-long A2 is much bigger than conventional jets, it would be lighter than a Boeing 747 and could take off and land on current airport runways.
However, the A2 design does not have windows. The heat generated by traveling so quickly makes it difficult to install windows that are not too heavy. One solution Reaction Engines has proposed is to install flat panel displays, showing images of the scene outside.
Engines
The Scimitar engines use related technology to the company's earlier SABRE an engine which is intended for space launch, but here adapted for very long distance, very high speed travel.
Normally, as air enters a jet engine, it is compressed by the inlet, and thus heats up. This means that high speed engines need to be made of technologies and materials that can survive extremely high temperatures. In practice, this inevitably makes the engines heavier and also reduces the amount of fuel that can be burnt to avoid melting the gas turbine section of the engine, which in turn reduces thrust at high speed.
The key design feature for the Scimitar engines is the precooler, which is a heat exchanger that transfers the heat from the incoming air into the hydrogen fuel. This greatly cools the air, which allows the engines to burn more fuel even at very high speed, and allows the engines to be made of lighter, but more heat susceptible materials such as light alloys.
The rest of the engine is described as having high-bypass (4:1[3]) turbofan engine features to give it good efficiency and subsonic (quiet) exhaust velocity at low speeds. Unlike SABRE the A2's engine would not have rocket engine features.
Specifications
- Range: 20,000 kilometres (12,000 mi)
- Length: 143 metres (469 ft)
- Fuel: Liquid hydrogen
- Passengers: 300 (Single Class)
- Cruising speed: Mach 5
- SFC: 0.86 lbf/lb·h @ Mach 5 (40,900 m/s[4] - 4,170 seconds), 0.375 lbf/lb·h @ Mach 0.9 (96,000 m/s[4] - 9,600 seconds)
- L/D: 11.0@5.9 km Mach 0.9, 5.9@25 km Mach 5[5]
- Noise: 101 dBa @ 450m lateral[5]
See also
- Force Application and Launch from Continental United States
- Hypersonic
- LAPCAT
- Supersonic transport
- Reaction Engines Skylon
Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era
References
- ^ "Hypersonic passenger jet designed". BBC News. 5 February 2008. Retrieved 2009-07-03.
- ^ Steven Morris (5 February 2008). "The hypersonic plane designed to reach Australia in under five hours". The Guardian. Retrieved 2009-07-03.
- ^ Philip Butterworth-Hayes (June 2008). "Europe speeds up hypersonics" (PDF). Aerospace America. Retrieved 2009-07-03.
- ^ a b "Long-Term Advanced Propulsion Concepts and Technologies". Reaction Engines. Retrieved 2009-07-03.
- ^ a b "LAPCAT A2 Facts and Figures" (PDF). Reaction Engines. 2008. Retrieved 2009-07-03.
External links
