At Farnborough Airshow Hélène Gagnon shared with us the environmental initiatives being spearheaded by business jet and commercial aircraft manufacturer Bombardier.
Watch the video to hear how Bombardier incorporates environmental stewardship throughout the production lifecycle; the company's leadership in establishing a carbon offset programme for business jet customers; and how Bombardier is helping the aviation industry 'walk the talk' with recycling at the air show
Boeing has unvieled a new prototype unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), or spy plane to you and I, called Phantom Eye which runs on hydrogen fuel. While this strange-looking aircraft will not be used for commercial flights, we often get questions such as "when will we be flying on hydrogen-powered planes?".
The answer is: "no time soon". While hydrogen is a great, clean, fuel source, it's main problem is the volume of fuel required. Compared to our current fuel, or the biofuel we will be using in the coming years, hydrogen has a lot less 'power' for each litre of fuel - and therefore a lot more needs to be carried. In effect, you'd almost need to replace the whole lower deck of an A380 with fuel tanks to power a flight of any reasonable length.
This is not to say that hydrogen might not have some benefits and projects like the Phantom Eye and Boeing's hydrogen fuel cell are providing much-needed insights into the use of such fuels.
Last night, just down the road from me in Switzerland, aviation history was made when Solar Impulse, the solar-powered aircraft, flew throughout the night, its batteries charged from the sun during a flight yesterday. It was in the air for more than 26 hours and used exactly 0 litres of jet fuel. The pilot, Andre Borschberg, who had been squashed in a cabin the size of a bathtub for all that time, had this to say:
"I've been a pilot for 40 years now, but this flight has been the most incredible one of my flying career. Just sitting there and watching the battery charge level rise and rise thanks to the sun... And then that suspense, not knowing whether we were going to manage to stay up in the air the whole night. And finally the joy of seeing the sun rise and feeling the energy beginning to circulate in the solar panels again!"
Bertrand Piccard, the initiator and president of the project, which he has been working on for 11 years, said: "This is a crucial step forward, it gives full credibility to the speeches we hold since years about renewable energies and CleanTechs and allows us now to get closer to the perpetual flight without using a drop of fuel!"
While we are not expecting that we will have passengers flying on the sun's energy any time soon (or at all), these types of experimental aircraft can actually have very practical purposes for aviation: in the use of very lightweight materials and, most importantly, the development of efficient solar cells. We may, for example, see a new generation of thin solar cells applied to the wings of commercial aircraft to power things such as air conditioning or cabin lighting.
The flight's take-off was captured in this video:
The Mitsubishi Regional Jet – the aircraft that it is expected to ‘revolutionise short-haul flying when it enters into service in early 2014 and the first passenger aircraft to be built by a Japanese company since the mid-1970s. Currently the aircraft is only a model in the Mitsubishi Aircraft corp. Office, yet reports on its progress in the press this week are suggesting this aircraft, thought to be one of the most environment-friendly aircraft in the world, is well on its way to becoming a reality. The jet features new Pratt & Whitney PurePower engines which burn 20% less fuel than other engines, and boasting significantly lower nitrogen oxide, carbon dioxide and smoke emissions, as well as reducing to less than half the noise of the aircraft on take-off. Not only is the reduction in greenhouse gas emissions kinder on the environment, but the cut in fuel consumption also lowers operators’ costs significantly savings it. Japan’s All Nippon Airways is set to be the first airline planning to fly the Mitsubishi Regional Jet in 2014 and has already ordered 15 of the $40 million jets.
Elsewhere this week, Finnair has become the first to commit to the new design for the Airbus A321s equipped with the fuel-saving "sharklet" wing tip devices. The eco-efficient A321s are expected to reduce Finnair's fuel consumption by 4% compared to its present fleet, corresponding to an annual CO2 reduction of more than 700 tonnes per aircraft.
Keeping on the subject of aircraft, the ‘zero-emission’ Solar Impulse has been preparing this week for its first ever night flight which will take place sometime at the end of this month. The Solar Impulse, designed by Andrew Borschberg and Bertrand Piccard, is the first ever aircraft propelled solely by solar energy and whilst the concept is far from being conceivable for commercial aircraft, the project demonstrates some exciting possibilities for the future of flight. The project aims to prove that a solar-powered craft is able to fly day and night without any fuel, thereby demonstrating the potential of the renewable energies and the technologies that will enable the aviation industry to cut fuel usage and lower its carbon emissions.
This week, Belgian architect Vincent Callebaut has been attracting attention with his latest project ‘Hydrogenase’ – a futuristic design for modern buildings in the form of giant airships suspended under balloons covered in algae. These emission-free airships are powered entirely by hydrogen generated from sunlight and CO2 and are designed to hover over the South China Sea near Shanghai. Covered in flexible photovoltaic cells and wind turbines, Hydrogenase ships run on "micro-seaweed" and are designed to take off and land just about anywhere. While this may sound like a bizarre concept, Callebaut’s designs actually demonstrate just how much potential there is for the use of second generation biofuels in aviation. As Callebaut points out, the energy obtained by farmed algae is much greater than that of any current biodiesel or bioethanol production - he reckons 1000 litres of hydrogen can be farmed from just 330 grams of micro-seaweed generated chlorophyll. What’s more, algae can be grown in large quantities in water that would normally be undrinkable and uninhabitable, meaning its production can take place without competing with resources for food or water.
And just to prove it is possible, Lufthansa has announced its plans to start running its engines on some flights on a mixture of biofuel and kerosene within two years, making it one of the world's first airlines to mix biofuel with traditional kerosene on commercial flights. Lufthansa’s principal aim is to reduce harmful greenhouse gas emissions and costs by reducing their use of traditional aviation fuel, yet the initiative will also help in international efforts to move towards resource security by reducing our reliance on non-renewable fuels.
This week has also seen big developments in Brazil as an announcement came for the creation of Abraba - the Brazilian Alliance for Aviation Biofuels. The alliance centres its efforts on dialogues with creators of public policy, looking to promote the development and certification of sustainable biofuels for use in air transport.
Thanks to a little surprise from Mother Nature herself, recent days have seen air transport in Europe grinding to an abrupt halt. But that hasn’t stopped the industry from continuing work on the various initiatives being adopted across the sector, aimed at reducing CO2 emissions and limiting aviation’s impact on the environment.
Earlier this month, the Port of Seattle released there 2010 Environmental Annual Report, detailing the various initiatives that are being taken at Sea-Tac airport which facilitates their progress in key environmental areas such as their energy use and conservation, as well as material use and recycling. One of their projects is to convert more than 650 of their vehicles from fossil fuels to electricity. This is expected to save more than 400,000 gallons of fuel as well as reducing CO2 emissions by more than 4,000 metric tonnes per year.
In the UK, Bournemouth Airport is busy constructing its new arrivals hall, whose innovative structure makes maximum possible use of solar gain, solar shading, daylight and natural ventilation. Collectively, this will reduce the need for mechanical and electrical installations which, in turn, reduces the building’s energy requirements. The new building, which will be ready for use by summer 2011, is expected bring a reduction in CO2 emissions by 70% compared to the previous design, and is the first airport building of its type in the UK.
And whilst we’re on the airport theme, Incheon International Airport in Korea showed its commitment to industry efforts last week by signing an agreement last week to join the Korean government-led campaign to reduce GHG emissions and improve energy efficiency in its facilities. The airport together with 11 other large companies will invest a total of $14.2 million in related equipment including LED lighting and alternative energy equipment, and have set an average target of cutting energy consumption 2.79% with final targets to be set in May. It is estimated that the project could have an effect of saving energy equivalent to 8,000 tons of oil, and cut related costs by 5 billion won per year.
Out in the Swiss countryside last week the Solar Impulse made its virgin voyage, where it cruised for 87 minutes at an altitude of 1,200 metres, demonstrating conclusive proof that an airplane can fly without any emissions. This solar-powered airplane is designed to fly day and night without fuel or emissions as it relies solely on the energy absorbed from 12,000 solar cells, built into its wings of the aircraft. The energy absorbed is saved in high-performance batteries and is used to power the four electric engines the plane runs on. Key to the design of this zero-emission aircraft is its weight – the body is made from carbon fibre meaning in total it weighs just 1,600 kilograms- that’s about the same as a mid-sized car!
The objective of this particular mission was to verify that the plane’s flight behaviour is in line with the calculations and simulations done using the flight simulator. Given that such a large and light plane had never been flown before, the behavior of the plane under real flying conditions remained unexplored, yet the test showed extremely positive results. The test pilot, Markus Scherdel, reported a stable and controllable ride from the outset and project leaders confirmed that all objectives had been reached. The Solar Impulse project, initiated by Bertrand Piccard in 2004, had been designed as a prototype for an aircraft intended to fly around the world without fuel in 2012. Of course this plane is not the passenger-carrying type, yet the model has proved very useful for testing new technologies that could potentially be used for driving some aircraft systems in the future.
Last week was also witness to two successful test flights coordinated by AIRE (the Atlantic, Interoperability Initiative to Reduce Emissions). The door to door flights were undertaken by Air France and American Airlines on the Paris – Miami route, and represented the first ever transatlantic flights whose objective was focused entirely around the reduction of greenhouse gas emission and noise pollution. The flights involved the cooperation of the air traffic control centres of France (DSNA), the UK (NATS), Portugal (Nav-Portugal) and the USA (FAA) along the route. Procedures adopted by Air France included shorter taxiing times at both airports, continuous climb, optimum altitude and speed during the cruise phase, and a continuous descent approach on arrival into Miami. The American Airlines’ flight included single-engine taxiing, continuous climb-out and descent, optimized routing over water and a tailored arrival. The results announced showed CO2 emissions reductions of 6-9 metric tons and fuel savings of 2-3 metric tons!
… and Airbus is to mark the year by featuring the official logo on its A380 superjumbo aircraft throughout 2010. Airbus pledged support in June 2009 for the UN Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity’s (CBD) Green Wave initiative. The aim of the initiative is to educate young people about life on Earth, the importance of biodiversity, its role in their future and the steps they can take to nurture the nature around them.
Whilst the aviation sector is already committed to reducing the 2% of manmade CO2 emissions the sector accounts for, Airbus has also decided they want to tackle the other 98%. Being a global company, Airbus believes its global outreach will provide an important platform on which to spread the important message of the CBD.
The design of the A380 has been well conceived, resulting in lower fuel burn and lower operating costs per seat, but it is another aircraft that was amongst winners of this year's Brit Insurance Design Awards. It was the E430 Electric Aircraft, designed by Yuneec International, that won the award – a twin seat, single engine, light sport aircraft designed to be simple to use, easy to fly and produce zero emissions. Of course, electric aircraft are not yet used commercially, but it is an exciting preview of what the future of flying may bring!
On Wednesday last week, U.S. Secretary of Energy Steven Chu, made his maiden official visit to the United Arab Emirates, where he talked about renewable energy and carbon emissions. Chu talked at length about the importance of developing and deploying renewable energy, including algae for biofuels. He emphasised the huge progress that was being made by UAE in this area, and the real potential this is showing. Chu was also keen to outline the necessity of improving energy efficiency if we are to adapt to our changing world where over-consumption of energy not only causes climate change issues, but draws hugely on depleting sources. Energy efficiency is an area on which the aviation industry has been working hard, with efforts being focused on redesigning engines, aircraft and even the flight routes to reduce fuel consumption. Chu gave a brilliant example of what innovation can achieve by comparing the Boeing 777 with the Bar-tailed Godwit. The Bar-tailed Godwit is a large wader bird which makes the longest known non-stop flight – 11,000 km – of any bird and also the longest journey without pausing to feed by any animal. The aeroplane does the same (substituting the animal with fuel, of course!) and without using up all their energy!
This practice of taking inspiration for man-made design directly from nature is called biomimicry. It is the idea that using knowledge of biological adaptations, we can solve design and engineering challenges sustainably. Comparing birds to aircraft seems like a logical one – both are designed to fly long distances, using as little energy as possible and allowing for a comfortable ride. Hence, aircraft manufacturers are happy take their top tips from Mother Nature when thinking about new aircraft design.
Another example of this comes from a group of researchers at Stanford University. On discovery that birds are able to boost the distance they can fly by more than 70% though the use of the V-shape formation (pictured to the right), the researchers thought to apply the same tactic to planes. In this formation, a bird in front (or plane) creates a small updraft that lifts the bird behind. As each bird passes, they add their own energy to the stroke helping all the birds maintain flight. By travelling in a V-shape with planes taking turns in front as birds do, these researchers believe aircraft could use 15% less fuel compared to flying solo. Of course, this is a great theory, but in reality it may prove to be difficult to achieve for commercial flights - rarely do a 'flock' of aircraft all want to go to the same destination at the same time. But such research can lead to any number of discoveries with future applications.
Below is a video of Janine Benyus, a American natural sciences writer, giving a talk on biomimicry last August. She offers an inspiring analysis of how much nature can teach us about science and design, and indeed dating… listen out for the courtship dance of the Western Grebe!
While this may sound like a contradiction in terms, it is actually the result of an upcoming initiative by AirFrance which is aimed at cutting CO2 emissions by 5,200 tonnes per year. Air France is to introduce a new economy class seat into its short-haul cabins, a design which is 40% lighter than previous seats and gives passengers 5 to 7.5 cm more leg room. By removing the old, bulky seats, AirFrance has allowed each aircraft to weigh around 750kg less, whilst making the ride more comfortable for passengers at the same time as fitting an extra 6 people on each flight. The resulting savings of 1,700 tonnes of fuel a year is not only environmentally sound, but economically sound as well. AirFrance have also decided to replace the standard mechanical seat recline function with a natural recline to reduce the annoyance to passengers behind… get ready to test these out from the end of this month!
Elsewhere, Etihad Airways is also looking to improve the efficiency of its fleet as it begins talks with Mitsubishi over a new jet that can cut fuel consumption by up to 20% - the Mitsubishi Regional Jet (MRJ). The aircraft’s innovative engine, aerodynamic design, and noise analysis technology allows it to reduce fuel consumption, noise and emissions and cut costs. The MRJ, which has also received interest from the Japanese and US market, will take its first test flight at the end of 2012 and start commercial operations in 2014. A prototype is on display at the World Future Energy Summit in Abu Dhabi.
