Far Out Goals and Cool Planes

Today, you probably hear a lot of hubbub about "going green", the concerns over the size of one's carbon footprint, or the ridiculous antics one would go through to save some gas. I suppose this could be the result of a "trickle-down theory" from governmental authorities above who are concerned about the environment. Or could there actually be a "trickle-up theory", where the concerns of the general public are influencing the higher-ups? Regardless, NASA is working on the design of a new airplane. There's an article on NASA's website (www.NASA.gov) titled "The Quest: A Silent, Carbonless Airplane". After reading the title, my first thought was that the article was going to be about the goals for the design of a new military plane (most likely a reconaissance spy plane of some sort). I had no idea why they would want it to be carbonless though. I thought carbon fiber was a good thing, as in bicycles and cars.

As I read through the article, it made me realize that the title was somewhat deceiving; it required some terms to be redefined for an accurate understanding. The notion of an airplane to be silent running is defined as "containing the noise of the aircraft to the airport boundaries." This means that a conversation can be held just outside of the boundaries of an airport, without having to raise your voice. The term carbonless means that there are no net carbon emissions from the combustion of fuel. The plants that are used to synthesize the aviation biofuel would take in an equal amount of carbon (when growing) as the fuel releases when combusted. The main goal is that the plane's emissions would have zero effect on the atmosphere.

The achievement of such a lofty goal is quite a ways in the future, and Collier realized that. The author of the article reported that during the interview, Collier outlined an approach to coming close to the goals into three stages. The three were titled "N-plus-1," "N-plus-2" and "N-plus-3." As technology advances, so would our standing in the three stage process. N-plus-1 involves a plane that is very similar to the ones we see today, a "tube-and-wing" aircraft that has technological and structural advancements that cut fuel consumption, drag, and cooling flow. N-plus-2 showed a plane that had design modifications for a shorter fuselage than N-plus-1 and more wing. N-plus-3, according to Collier, is open for ideas. The designers are leaning toward a blended-wing aircraft. An artist's rendition of the future "N-plus-3" can be seen here.

In my honest opinion, this project is an ambitious one. I like it. I want to design and play with cool planes some day. :)

If you're interested and want to read more about this, click here.

-George Wong