The University of Massachusettsς, το γνωστό σε όλους MIT, κατασκεύασε το πρώτο αεροπλάνο που πετάει χωρίς κινούμενα μέρη χρησιμοποιώντας τον ιονισμό. Μία εφεύρεση που ίσως την δούμε να εφαρμόζεται για εξαιρετικά ήσυχα drones καθώς και για υβριδικά αεροσκάφη.
Τα αεροσκάφη, είτε φέρουν μία μηχανή εσωτερικής καύσης που παράγει καυσαέρια είτε φέρουν ένα ηλεκτρικό μοτέρ, δεν μπορούν να αποφύγουν την ηχητική pollution. Το θόρυβο δηλαδή. Και αυτό γιατί πετούν στηριζόμενα σε κινούμενα μέρη που προωθούν τον αέρα και κατά επέκταση και το ίδιο το αεροπλάνο. Οι researchers του MIT όμως, έρχονται να ανατρέψουν μία ιστορία σχεδόν 100 ετών, από τότε που οι Reit brothers flew the first 1903 airplane.
The researchers at MIT have built and successfully flew an ion aircraft that did not uses movable parts. The large aircraft, with a wingspan of 5 meters, weighs about 5 kilograms and carries a series of thin wires, which are placed like a horizontal fence along and under the leading edge of the plane's wing. The wires act as positively charged electrodes, while similarly arranged thicker wires, running along the trailing edge of the airplane wing, serve as negative electrodes.
The airplane shaft contains a lithium-polymer battery pack. Special machines convert battery power to 40.000 volts by charging the cables positively.
Once the cables are positively charged, they attract and release negatively charged electrons from surrounding air molecules, like a giant magnet that attracts iron chips. The air molecules that remain behind are ionized and in turn are attracted by the negatively charged electrodes at the rear of the airplane wings.
As the newly formed ion cloud flows to the negatively charged wires, each ion collides millions of times with other air molecules, creating a thrust that pushes the aircraft forward.
Τα αεροσκάφη που λειτουργούν με ιονισμένους ανέμους δεν είναι νέα εφεύρεση. Η technology υπάρχει εδώ και χρόνια, αλλά τα μέχρι τώρα μηχανήματα λειτουργούσαν πάνω σε ένα πάγκο καθώς περιοριζόντουσαν από τα καλώδια που σύνδεαν τα μηχανήματα αυτά με power supplies high voltage. The solution here was a custom battery-powered power supply that could produce the necessary power for a 60-meter flight, the length of the indoor field where the tests took place. Of course in all the tests there was no noise since there are no moving parts.
There is a very long way to see this technology in the sky. However, the potential of this invention is evident. Surely at some point you will see very quiet aircraft, such as drones, that will not emit irritating noise. There could also be hybrid planes that could improve fuel efficiency. And since there are no moving parts, the ion-impulse aircraft could be more reliable than the conventional ones.
Watch the relevant MIT video below:
