The E-Star 2 also is a step closer to a marketable product. Its serial-hybrid drivetrain has a lighter, more compact electric motor from Siemens, a generator driven by a small Wankel from Austro Engine and EADS
The E-Star 2 also is a step closer to a marketable product. Its serial-hybrid drivetrain has a lighter, more compact electric motor from Siemens, a generator driven by a small Wankel from Austro Engine and EADS IW-prepared battery packs in the wings. Aircraft empty weight is reduced by about 100 kg (220 lb.). The motor weighs 13 kg including gearbox and control electronics, and runs off the generator, producing a continuous 65 kw. This is boosted by the batteries to 80 kw for takeoff and climb. The combustion engine runs at a constant 30 kw to generate power and recharge the batteries. Siemens believes series hybrid power will make its way soon into small aircraft and is scalable to commercial aircraft with 50-100 seats, reducing emissions 25%.
The PowerLab project, meanwhile, is targeting development of electric generators and motors with power densities of 10 kw per kilogram—twice that of the motor in the E-Star 2. Such a density would make a megawatt-class power system “quite reasonable to fly, and is not too far away,” says Jankers. Begun this summer, the PowerLab project is looking at how to generate, convert, distribute, buffer and store electrical power as well as design safety into the system and integrate two distinct types of electrical machine: fast-running, high-efficiency generators and low-rpm, high-torque motors.
The project will involve de