Derwent Aviation has introduced a redesign of existing aircraft engines which could reduce carbon dioxide and nitrogen oxide emissions. The new design is called the Dual Drive Booster (DDB).
In conventional aircraft engines, a low-pressure shaft directly drives the booster compressor. The DDB uses both the low-pressure shaft and a high-pressure shaft to drive the booster. The shafts provide input through an epicyclic gearbox, while the output drives the booster compressor.
The design improves the efficiency of the compressors and reduces the amount of carbon dioxide and nitrogen oxide produced by the engine. The design also allows for the engine to use electrical power to replace some of the aviation fuel it would normally burn—a feature similar to the hybrid engines in electric cars. This feature could also be used to reduce the greenhouse gases produced by the engine.
Derwent anticipates that the DDB could cut nitrogen oxide by up to 50 per cent and save three to four per cent of fuel burned on flights of up to 1000 miles—which is 85 per cent of all flights. But because the DDB would increase the weight of the engine it would negate any efficiencies on long-haul flights.
The technology is still being fine-tuned, but the company hopes to make it commercially available by 2025.
“Derwent is confident of the technology and it requires the industry, including aircraft and engines manufacturers as well as airlines, to work together to realize the substantial benefits of the Dual Drive Booster,” said Charles Cuddington, Derwent’s Chief Executive Officer.
One airline is already on board: easyJet, a leading airline in Europe, is supporting its development with the aim of using the DDB in its fleet.
“This could offer a solution in the shorter term which could further improve the efficiency of our modern fleet,” said Gary Smith, Head of Engineering at easyJet. “The work Derwent Aviation has already completed shows that the concept is feasible from an engineering point of view and computer simulations have demonstrated considerable environmental improvements are possible for aircraft.”
easyJet has built a reputation as an environmentally-conscious airline, reducing emissions per passenger kilometer by 32 per cent since 2000 and flying a modern fleet of Airbus A320 and 321neo aircraft, which produce 15 per cent less carbon emissions than previous generation jets. The airline is also working with Wright Electric to build an all-electric commercial passenger jet.
The airline industry is under pressure to reduce costs and go green—and Derwent and easyJet intend to be at the forefront of that shift.
Read more about environmentally efficient aircraft at Fatal Crash a Setback, but Electric Airplanes Are Coming.