Moving towards a more electric aircraft (original) (raw)
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Perspectives and Development of Electrical Systems in More Electric Aircraft
International Journal of Aerospace Engineering
On-board electrical systems are the key components of each modern aircraft. They enable its safer, more comfortable, and environmentally friendlier operation. The strict regulations to reduce pollution and noise are produced by aircraft eventuated in projects like Clean Sky or ICAO Global Coalition for Sustainable Aviation. One solution to environmentally friendlier operation is the full electric propulsion of the aircraft, which enables the reduction of both noise and pollution. Such a concept requires a total change of all on-board power systems and enables the profound change in aircraft design. This paper presents the evolution of aircraft power systems into the so-called more electric aircraft (MEA) and discusses the state-of-the-art electrical systems. Furthermore, the concept of all-electric aircraft (AEA) is presented here.
Electric Power Systems in More and All Electric Aircraft: A Review
IEEE Access
Narrow body and wide body aircraft are responsible for more than 75% of aviation greenhouse gas (GHG) emission and aviation, itself, was responsible for about 2.5% of all GHG emissions in the United States in 2018. This situation becomes worse when considering a 4-5% annual growth in air travel. Electrified aircraft is clearly a promising solution to combat the GHG challenge; thus, the trend is to eliminate all but electrical forms of energy in aircraft power distribution systems. However, electrification adds tremendously to the complexity of aircraft electric power systems (EPS), which is dramatically changing in our journey from conventional aircraft to more electric aircraft (MEA) and all electric aircraft (AEA). In this article, we provide an in-depth discussion on MEA/AEA EPS: electric propulsion, distributed propulsion systems (DPS), EPS voltage levels, power supplies, and EPS architectures are discussed. Publications on power flow (PF) analysis and management of EPS are reviewed, and an initial schematic of a potential aircraft EPS with electric propulsion is proposed. In this regard, we also briefly review the components required for MEA/AEA EPS, including power electronics (PE) converters, electric machines, electrochemical energy units, circuit breakers (CBs), and wiring harness. A comprehensive review of each of the components mentioned above or other topics except for those related to steady state power flow in MEA/AEA EPS is out of this article's scope and should be found somewhere else. At the close of the paper, some challenges in the path towards AEA are presented. Unless the discussed challenges are satisfactorily addressed and solved, arriving at an AEA that can properly operate over commercial missions will not be possible. INDEX TERMS Aircraft electrification, all electric aircraft (AEA), electric power system (EPS), more electric aircraft (MEA), power distribution system, steady state power flow analysis.
Electrical and Electronic Technologies in More-Electric Aircraft: A Review
IEEE Access, 2019
This paper presents a review of the electrical and electronic technologies investigated in moreelectric aircraft (MEA). In order to change the current situation of low power efficiency, serious pollution, and high operating cost in conventional aircraft, the concept of MEA is proposed. By converting some hydraulic, mechanical, and pneumatic power sources into electrical ones, the overall power efficiency is greatly increased, and more flexible power regulation is achieved. The main components in an MEA power system are electrical machines and power electronics devices. The design and control methods for electrical machines and various topologies and control strategies for power electronic converters have been widely researched. Besides, several studies are carried out regarding energy management strategies that intend to optimize the operation of MEA power distribution systems. Furthermore, it is necessary to investigate the system stability and reliability issues in an MEA, since they are directly related to the safety of passengers. In terms of machine technologies, power electronics techniques, energy management strategies, and the system stability and reliability, a review is carried out for the contributions in the literature to MEA. INDEX TERMS More-electric aircraft, machine technologies, power electronics techniques, energy management strategies, system stability and reliability.
Subsystem Design and Integration for the More Electric Aircraft
5th International Energy Conversion Engineering Conference and Exhibit (IECEC), 2007
Military and commercial aircraft designers are leading a quiet revolution in the aviation industry. Their goal is an all-electric aircraft that will be controlled by small high speed motors instead of heavy maintenance intensive hydraulic, pneumatic and mechanical systems. This revolutionary usage of electrical power technologies promise military and commercial airframers greater aircraft reliability and a significantly smaller logistical tail to support tomorrow's air and space force. Hence, the More Electric Aircraft (MEA) is becoming a reality. The MEA approach provides for greater integration of subsystem functions. It also provides smarter subsystems without added weight penalties. The MEA approach has created common threads that link most or all subsystems. These threads are: • Electrical power and distribution system • Thermal management system • Integrated health management The focus of this talk will address the integration issues associated with the linkage between electric actuation and the common threads mentioned above. This paper will focus specifically on issues associated with the electromechanical actuator, address the progress of the MEA, while at the same time, discusses the growing popularity of advanced materials that are enabling the MEA. 1 Boeing Commercial Airplane (BCA) has chosen to exploit the use of MEA technologies to provide cost-efficient next generation airplanes. The 787 is Boeing's first "More Electric Airplane". Elimination of pneumatic system led to "No-Bleed" architecture for overall airplane weight savings and efficiency improvement. Many airplane systems to are become electrically powered for the first time. Some examples are the 787 wing de-icing, large hydraulic pumps (used to raise landing gear), flight control actuators (secondary systems),
ADBU Journal of Engineering Technology (AJET), 2021
This paper is aimed at discussing the current trends in the design of Electric Power Systems (EPS) architectures which are intended to be implemented in More Electric Aircrafts (MEAs). Various EPS architectures such as HVAC, HVDC, hybrid HVAC/HVDC etc are studied and compared. Various control techniques which are implemented in order to control the EPS are also reviewed and they are compared on the basis of power quality, ease of installation and maintenance, possibility of future expansion of EPS, need of active power filters and so on. On the basis of the evaluation of various EPS architectures, the need of fuel cell installation in the EPS to be used for MEAs is explained and various ways to incorporate the fuel cell in the said EPS are discussed. Further the need of DC to DC converters in the power grid of a MEA is discussed and various possible choices for the topologies of DC to DC converters are compared on the basis of the parameters such as efficiency, transient response, reliability, electromagnetic emissions, size, weight and so on. Moreover, various controllers such as PI controller, PID controller, Sliding Mode Controller etc which can be used for a closed loop control of DC to DC converters are discussed.
Review of aircraft electric power systems and architectures
2014
In recent years, the electrical power capacity is increasing rapidly in more electric aircraft (MEA), since the conventional mechanical, hydraulic and pneumatic energy systems are partly replaced by electrical power system. As a consequence, capacity and complexity of aircraft electric power systems (EPS) will increase dramatically and more advanced aircraft EPSs need to be developed. This paper gives a brief description of the constant frequency (CF) EPS, variable frequency (VF) EPS and advanced high voltage (HV) EPS. Power electronics in the three EPS is overviewed.
SIMULATION OF AN ALL-ELECTRIC FLIGHT CONTROL SYSTEM FOR THE EVALUATION OF POWER CONSUMPTION
The complete electrification of aircraft power systems entails the implementation of smart logics for sharing the available energy among the loads, and the design of these logics requires the characterisation of the power absorption of each on-board system as a function of mission phase and aircraft operating point, also taking into account the level of criticality of the function implemented by the system itself. The paper describes the models of the electro-mechanical systems used for the flight control actuation of a regional aircraft, with the basic objective of evaluating the power requests that have to be fulfilled both continuously and completely for this safety-critical equipment. The Flight Control System (FCS) model is composed of both primary and secondary flight controls. The control surfaces are driven by Electro-Mechanical Actuators (EMAs) and all the EMA models refer to actuators with a 3-phase synchronous brushless motor and mechanical transmission. Simulation tests have been performed to assess the maximum power flows characterizing the system, with reference to severe operative conditions.
Power Electronics for More Electric Aircraft
Power Electronics for Renewable Energy Systems, Transportation and Industrial Applications, 2014
The cover shows a rendering of a commercial aircraft, highlighting the THSA (trimmable horizontal stabiliser actuator). On a more electric aircraft, mechanical actuators are replaced with all-electric actuators, reducing weight, improving reliability, and minimizing environmental impact. The article on page 6 describes how engineers in Microsemi's Aviation Center of Excellence developed a power core module (PCM) for a more electric aircraft. The PCM controls the electric motors used in primary flight control actuation and landing gear systems.
Future of Electrical Aircraft Energy Power Systems: An Architecture Review
IEEE Transactions on Transportation Electrification
This article presents an in-depth analysis of all electric-aircraft (AEA) architectures. This work aims to provide a global vision of the current AEA state of the art, to estimate the main technological gaps and drivers, and to identify the most promising architecture configuration for future electrical aircraft in the context of a twin-propeller 20-MW aircraft. The comparison between architectures is done based on three different figures of merit: reliability, efficiency, and specific power density. The methodology presented and the trade studies are applied to a narrowbody aircraft of 20 MW, equivalent to an Airbus A320, and following current efforts of government agencies to achieve cleaner air mobility within the next two decades.
ELECTRICAL DISTRIBUTION POWER SYSTEMS OF MODERN CIVIL AIRCRAFTS
As the aircraft industry is moving towards the all electric and More Electric Aircraft (MEA), there is increase demand for electrical power in the aircraft. The trend in the aircraft industry is to replace hydraulic and pneumatic systems with electrical systems achieving more comfort and monitoring features. Moreover, the structure of MEA distribution system improves aircraft maintainability, reliability, flight safety and efficiency. Detailed descriptions of the modern MEA generation and distribution systems as well as the power converters and load types are explained and outlined. MEA electrical distribution systems are mainly in the form of multi-converter power electronic system.