The world's first ion-driven aircraft without moving parts created by MIT scientists

Imagine an aircraft engine that has no moving parts, produces no harmful exhaust and makes no noise. This is what researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in the United States have created by adapting a technology that has been used until now only in spacecraft, so as to fly over the Earth.

Ion engines have been used on spacecraft since the 1960s and emit a stream of charged particles that propel the ship forward. In addition to being carbon neutral, they are less likely to be wrong and are less expensive to maintain than conventional engines because they do not have propellers, turbines or fuel pumps. The only problem was that, due to the gravity of the Earth, the thrust produced by the training was not enough to overcome the weight of the batteries needed for their power supply. Until now.

New timely research, published in Nature, paves the way for the possibility of silent drones in the very near future. With further advances in material and power conversion, silent-crafted aircraft and possibly commercial flights could also be on the horizon. In fact, this breakthrough could be the first step in changing the way we all travel around the world in the future.

All aircraft engines operate by pushing something backwards so that the craft advances. It is usually air, whether cold air driven by electric propellers or hot air emitted by jet engines. Ionic propulsion instead sends charged particles or ions generated in the space between two electrodes with a high voltage between the two. The ions interact with the air, creating an ionic wind sent backwards, propelling the plane forward.

As in the case of solar powered aircraft, Ion-propelled vehicles are powered by electricity and therefore do not need to carry fuel, with the exception of batteries filled with charged particles. The new research shows that with some clever changes to the battery configuration and power conversion, it is possible to reduce the weight of the battery enough to fly this technology.

Compromise design

An ion-driven boat also needs a large frontal area to generate the ionic wind in the right way. But this would generally weigh down the plane and researchers had to balance these conflicting limitations. They have designed a scope small enough to reduce risk and make testing cheaper and easier, while being large enough to use standard remote control components.

Artist view of the plane. Steven Barrett (MIT)

The researchers made 10 flights using an aircraft of a wingspan of five meters and weighing less than 2.5 kg. They managed to fly it for nine seconds over a distance of 45 meters at a speed of five meters per second. It took about 20 seconds for the device to feed, then it was started using a mechanical bungee system.

The researchers point out that these flight times and this distance do not seem very important, but that they are in fact similar to those of the first flight of the first inventors of aircraft, the Wright Brothers, in 1903. cell, could allow the machine to fly faster and longer. It is also possible to use solar panels to generate the electricity needed to power the ion reader.

One of the big advantages of an ion-propelled machine lies in its near zero noise levels. It is therefore likely that the technology will find its first application in silent drones. The absence of moving parts should facilitate the reduction of the system for smaller craft and facilitate its use. But the bigger gear will also need a bigger boost in power. To build an ion-powered airliner, you need to increase the power relative to the size of the craft 300 times.

But look how much we have traveled since the first flight of the Wright brothers. The sky can be the limit with this new technology.

Jason Knight is a Senior Lecturer in Fluid Mechanics at the University of Portsmouth, UK.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.