China developing hypersonic passenger jet SIX TIMES faster than Concorde that could reach anywhere within 2 hours

[Beijingwalker]

China developing hypersonic passenger jet SIX TIMES faster than Concorde that could reach anywhere within 2 hours
Developers hope it will be able to fly through the air at six times the speed of sound
Georgie English, Foreign News Reporter
Published: 14:39, 30 Aug 2024

CHINA is developing a hypersonic passenger jet capable of reaching speeds a whopping six times faster than the Concorde.

An impressive prototype for the “Nanqiang No 1” has shown the aircraft is set be able to reach anywhere in the world in less than two hours due to its daring speed.


Researchers look at a key component of the Nanqiang No 1 prototypeCredit: Xiamen University, Science and Technology Daily


The MUTTER engine design set to be in the new aircraft features a mixture of three different enginesCredit: Yin Zeyong


The planned project has undergone rigorous testing in a lab in Fujian Province with the hopes of achieving a hypersonic jet which can be used for tourists within the next decade.

Initial tests using the smaller prototype have proved successful with full-sized test flights already planned for 2025.

The unmanned aircraft is due to weigh just 500kg, according to reports in China.

It will also be able to travel at incredible speeds of up to Mach 6 when cruising - six times the speed of sound.

This pace will come from a mixture of turbofan, rocket and ramjet engines.

Initial images of the project appear to show two air-breathing ramjet engines, a small rocket, and two turbine engines all included in the "MUTTER" design.

MUTTER - which stands for multi-ducted twin-turbines ejector-ramjet - provides the jet was a state-of-the-art engine.

Computer modelling and early testing has shown the MUTTER engine is capable of reaching speeds over Mach 6 despite initial concerns over its validity.

Onboard 10 passengers will be able to travel.

Lead project scientist Yin Zeyong has described the plans as a "breakthrough" in technology and travel.

Lin, who is also the director of science and technology with the Aero Engine Corporation of China added: “It can change human civilization.”

According to the team, hypersonic flight technology such as the Nanqiang No 1 could reduce global travel time to under two hours.

They first started working on the jet in 2019 but are yet to make it go supersonic and reach speeds over Mach 1 (767mph).

An effective plan showing how they will slow down the jet when it reaches top speed or in an emergency is still yet to be revealed.

The Nanqiang No 1 is one of many ambitious plans tipped to rival Concorde, a legendary aircraft that was introduced 51 years ago and retired in 2003.

The historic aircraft had a maximum cruising speed of 2,179km per hour, or Mach 2.04 - twice the speed of sound.

Several other countries are working on their own speedy aircraft but many are looking into supersonic rather than hypersonic flight.

For a jet to travel at supersonic speeds it has to fly above the speed of sound which is Mach 1.

However, to break the hypersonic barrier it has to soar past Mach 5.

Currently just small, experimental vehicles have ever achieved such speeds with a huge issue being a sonic boom can be created at such speeds.

Nasa has been working on a jet dubbed the X-59, which is said to have a reduced sonic profile.

One of the closest to achieving supersonic status is Boom’s XB-1 Overture aircraft.

It underwent its second successful test flight this week with the first flight expected to take place in 2030.

 

[Beijingwalker]

Scientists from China have developed a potentially revolutionary aircraft engine​

By Harry Sinclair • Updated: 29 Aug 2024 • 14:24

Chinese designed "revolutionary" aircraft engine could fly 10x the speed of the Concord Credit: Shutterstock

Scientists from China have developed an aircraft engine set to revolutionise air travel, capable of 2,000 km/h.

Scientists from China develop aircraft engine set to revolutionise commercial air travel​

It has been more than two decades since the final Concorde flight touched the ground and ended the supersonic dream of a jet intended to revolutionise commercial air travel.

Now, companies and organisations in the industry race to reintroduce an aircraft that can travel faster than the speed of sound.

America’s Boom Supersonic was the States attempt, and the closest to bringing back supersonic passenger jets.

However, a group of engineers from China now puts their hat in the ring, claiming to have invented the world’s most powerful detonation engine for hypersonic flight, as reported by the South China Morning Post (SCMP)


The new engine, designed by Zhang Yining and his team at the Beijing Power Machinery Institute, has the potential to dramatically change the aviation industry.

According to the SCMP, the revolutionary air-breathing engine, in theory, will lift an aircraft from a runway to more than 30 km into the stratosphere and continuously accelerate it to 16 times the speed of sound.

If this is true, it would be possible to travel from New York City to London in just 17 minutes, with SCMP stating “At this velocity, even the longest intercontinental flights could take just one or two hours while consuming less fuel compared with conventional jet engines.”

How the new Chinese designed engine works, and compares against competitors​

The engine operates in two distinct modes. Firstly, below Mach 7 speed (8,640 km/h), it functions as a continuous rotating detonation engine, meaning it mixes the outside air with fuel and is ignited, creating a shock wave that propagates in an annular, or ring-shaped, chamber.

Above Mach 7, according to the paper published by the designers, the shock wave stops rotating and focuses on a circular platform at the engine’s rear, maintaining thrust through a nearly straight-line oblique detonation format.

A key feature of the new engine is that the fuel detonates automatically as it reaches the rear platform due to the high speed of incoming air.

Relying primarily on detonation for propulsion, the engine is completely different from traditional jet engines used by commercial jets.

With this engine, an aircraft will be able to propel to speeds of up to Mach 16, more than 19,700 km/h.

To contextualise this engine, the Concorde had a maximum cruising speed of 2.04 Mach, or 2,500 km/h; Zhang Yining’s engine promises nearly a 10x increase in aircraft speed.

China develops a revolutionary aircraft engine

Scientists from China have developed an aircraft engine set to revolutionise air travel, capable of 20,000 km/h.

euroweeklynews.com

 

[mulj]

Doubt this, if they developed this kind of engine it would be first applied for military planes.

 

[Beijingwalker]

Published: August 13, 2024

Scientists from China have developed a revolutionary aircraft engine so powerful that it can make the Concorde feel like a tortoise. Capable of propelling a plane to a mind-boggling speed of 20,000 km/hr, it can fly from New York to London in just 17 minutes.​

by Sayan Chakravarty

Illustration used for representation only

It has been more than two decades since the final Concorde flight touched the ground, bringing an end to the storied history of the supersonic jet that was intended to revolutionize commercial air travel. It has been a long wait since then for the reintroduction of airliners that can fly faster than the speed of sound. There are plenty of companies and organizations racing against each other to achieve that goal, with America’s Boom Supersonic appearing to be the closest to bringing back supersonic passenger jets. However, a group of engineers from China have claimed to have invented the world’s most powerful detonation engine for hypersonic flight, reports SCMP. If true, it has the potential to dramatically alter how the aviation industry operates.
Blueprint of the hypersonic engine

Designed by Zhang Yining and his team at the Beijing Power Machinery Institute, the “revolutionary” air-breathing engine can theoretically propel an aircraft to speeds up to Mach 16 (more than 12,250 mph) at an altitude of 30km (18.6 miles). Just to put that into context, the Concorde had a maximum cruising speed of 2.04 Mach, while the now-retired Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird could reach speeds above Mach 3. If an aircraft can cruise at speeds of Mach 16, the longest intercontinental flights will be reduced to two hours or less. The trans-Atlantic flight from New York to London, which currently takes around 7 hours, will be cut short to only 17 minutes.


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Sadly, not much information is available on the revolutionary detonation engine, except for the details available in the blueprint published in the peer-reviewed journal Chinese Journal of Propulsion Technology in December. According to the research paper, the engine operates in two modes. Below Mach 7, the engine functions as a continuous rotating detonation engine (RDE). In this mode, air from outside mixes with fuel and gets ignited, which leads to the creation of a shock wave that propagates in an annular, or ring-shaped, chamber. During rotation, the shock wave ignites more fuel, resulting in a powerful and continuous thrust for the aircraft.


The Boom Supersonic Overture jet under development in the United States.
At speeds above Mach 7, the shock wave stops rotating and focuses on a circular platform at the engine’s rear. The paper says this helps maintain thrust through a nearly straight-line oblique detonation format. The fuel detonates automatically as it reaches the rear platform due to the high speed of incoming air. Relying primarily on detonation for propulsion, the engine is completely different from traditional jet engines used by commercial jets. Boom’s Overture supersonic jet, which is currently under development, will be powered by the company’s Symphony medium-bypass turbofan engine. Designed to run on sustainable aviation fuel exclusively, the engine will offer enough thrust to sustain Overture’s cruising speed of Mach 1.7.

Image used for representation.

Another major advantage of a detonation engine over a traditional turbofan engine is the thermodynamic efficiency. Theoretically, detonation engines can convert nearly 80 percent of chemical energy into kinetic energy. On the other hand, conventional turbofan engines achieve 20-30 percent efficiencies as they rely on slow and gentle combustion. However, Zhang and his colleagues have not disclosed the efficiency of the engine. “This solution has obvious advantages and is expected to improve the optimal thermodynamic cycle efficiency in nearly all speed ranges, bringing a revolutionary change in aerospace propulsion,” the team behind the revolutionary engine said.

Scientists from China have developed a revolutionary aircraft engine so powerful that it can make the Concorde feel like a tortoise. Capable of propelling a plane to a mind-boggling speed of 20,000 km/hr, it can fly from New York to London in just 17

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