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soaring_rules
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Aaron Knight’s Sonex
from soaring_rules
wrote 39 weeks 6 days ago
Great story! And also a good one to convince the family to allow the project :)
I am curious about one thing - how much different is the built time of a composite plane built on foam core (Rutan's standard technique) vs. aluminium plane.
Also, I would be interested in building a motorglider. It is not happening tomorrow or next year, but the idea would be to have L/D ~30 and low wing loading to be able to use even weak thermals. Given the avgas prices, I would consider electric propulsion. With high L/D a powerful engine is not that necessary, but the weight of the batteries might be an issue. And yes, I know that Pipistrel Taurus has an electric version, but I don't like the narrow track landing gear and high wing loading of the Taurus. I would like something more like Stemme S-10, with electric engine. Since the Stemme is ridiculously expensive and does not have an electric version, the only solution is to make one.
Spin Test: Icon A5 vs. Cessna 150
from soaring_rules
wrote 49 weeks 6 days ago
Well, there are examples of spin-proof aircraft. The ASK-21 glider needs a spin-kit to be able to spin. The recepit for spin-resistant aircraft is not particularly difficult - docile stall characteristics (which usuallty means ample washout) and CG far in the front.
Of course, this comes at the cost of reduced efficiency. CG far ahead means that more downforce from the stabilizer is necessary.
Airbus Unveils Double Fuselage Design
from soaring_rules
wrote 47 weeks 1 day ago
So Airbus hired Burt Rutan? The aircraft looks like a lovechild of Proteus and White Knight Two. Since it looks Rutan-ish, it actually looks good.
Diesel Economics
from soaring_rules
wrote 47 weeks 8 hours ago
Thomas, what about two stroke diesels? They have been extremely succesful for marine applications and have twice (roughly) power to weight ratio of four stroke engines. They were also used for trucks and locomotives. Some engines, like the Napier Deltic had record power-to weight ratio for all piston engines.
Diesel Economics
from soaring_rules
wrote 46 weeks 6 days ago
Thomas, what you said is true for old designs. Modern two stroke diesels do not use the crank case for air induction. The induction is forced by an external Roots blower and a turbocharger. Those engines have normal sumps, like the four stroke engines, so emissions from burning of the lubricants are not a problem. Moreover, they have exhaust valves, so the air is induced by the ports in the cylinder and the exhaust is by the vales in a uniflow fashion, for optimal scavenging. The fuel is injected at high pressure via fuel injectors directly into the combustion chamber. Those engines are the most efficient IC engines today and they power the global shipping of today.
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