Current literature offers limited mass estimation methodologies and their application in the conceptual or preliminary design stages of moderate to high aspect ratio wings with electric, hydrogen or distributed propulsions. This study presents the development and application of a quasi-analytical wing mass estimation method to address this limitation. The proposed method is distinguished from the existing mass estimation methods by its expanded realistic load cases, sensitivity to several design parameters, improved accuracy with short computational time and capabilities for future applications. To achieve these features, new geometric models are introduced; 483 load cases including symmetric manoeuvre, rolling, and combined cases are covered following airworthiness requirements; the structural elements are idealised and sized with strength and buckling criteria; existing methods are evaluated and integrated cautiously for secondary structures and non-optimum masses. A computation time of 0.1s is accomplished for one load case. The developed method achieved the highest accuracy with an average error of -2.2% and a standard error of 1.8% for wing mass estimates compared with six existing methods, benchmarked against thirteen wings of different aircraft categories. The effects of engine numbers with dual- to 16-engine setups and the dry wing concepts on the wing mass are investigated. The optimised number of engines and their locations decreased the wing mass of the high aspect ratio wing significantly. In contrast, the dry wing design increased the wing masses of all baseline aircraft. The future applications and improvements of the presented method in novel configurations and multidisciplinary designed optimisation studies are explained.

A demonstration of a fully onboard method for generating background oriented schlieren (BOS) data on a jet exhaust is presented. Readily available commercial camera equipment is used to capture in-flight imagery of a miniature jet engine exhaust mounted on a custom-built model aircraft. The setup for image acquisition and processing algorithms are described. A new process for registration of images to reduce the degrading effects of vibration and flexure of the airframe are developed and presented along with the underpinning BOS algorithm. Results show that jet flows can be visualised using this technique using a contained system on a single aircraft and demonstrate how a simple technique, such as BOS, can be democratised to such an extent that the cost of conducting in-flight jet measurements can be reduced to the budget of any model aircraft flyer.

The world is currently undergoing a technological transformation with numerous innovative concepts emerging. This shift is driven by remarkable advancements in artificial intelligence and the urgent need for decarbonisation. With this comes a growing demand for skilled engineers who can actively contribute at any stage within the life cycle of a product. This can be the generation of new concepts at low Technology Readiness Levels or contributing actively to their development and operational safety. This paper explores the integration of a 1-day practical activity to reinforce theoretical concepts learned within a classroom-based environment. Small groups of students were given the opportunity of engaging with a small helicopter engine (Rolls-Royce Gnome engine) through the disassembly and reassembly of the exhaust and power turbine section while following the manufacturer’s manual and ensuring industrial norms for safe practice. This hands-on activity included an introduction to tooling, a Gnome familiarisation activity, and an introduction to inspection techniques. Based on the feedback recorded, the students experienced a notable improvement in their basic understanding by effectively reinforcing knowledge acquired within the classroom through active engagement with an actual gas turbine engine.

This paper investigates the take-off performance of a single engine battery-electric aeroplane, using the example of the 300kg Sherwood eKub. It shows analysis of take-off performance of such an aeroplane must include as a minimum two new parameters not normally considered: time at full throttle and state of charge. It was shown in both ground and flight test that the state of available power reduces both as the throttle is fully open, and as battery charge is consumed, although recovers partially when power is reduced for a period. It is possible to schedule take-off performance as a function of the usual parameters plus state of charge. Because of the reducing climb performance with use of state of charge, and the requirement in airworthiness standards for minimum climb performance being available, it becomes necessary to introduce the concept of minimum-indicated state of charge for take-off, SoCiMTO; means to calculate that are shown for compliance with both microlight aeroplane standards and larger aeroplane standards, and the calculations are demonstrated for the eKub. Conclusions are also drawn about the use of commercial products SkyDemon and Google Earth for recording and analysing aeroplane performance data.

Reynolds-Averaged Navier–Stokes (RANS) simulations, both steady and unsteady, are used to investigate supersonic, chemically reacting, flow fields inside a strut-stabilised supersonic combustion ramjet (scramjet) engine operating under different fuel flow rates. Fully supersonic, fully subsonic and mixed modes of operations inside the combustor, obtained at different fuel flow rates, are studied numerically through shock wave visualisations and top-wall static-pressure probing. The effect of changing fuel flow rates, imposed both suddenly and gradually, on the behaviour of shock waves and wall pressure profiles are studied in detail. For certain modes of combustion characterised by the presence of oblique shocks at the strut, shockwaves in the combustor respond predictably to an increase or decrease in fuel flow rate attaining the steady state flow fields as predicted by RANS simulations for those fuel flow rates. For certain other modes of combustion, characterised by the presence of shockwaves in the isolator and the absence of oblique shocks at the leading edge of the strut, shockwaves in the flow field appear unstable to fuel flow rate modulations. For such cases, any change in fuel flow rates, sudden or gradual, increase or decrease, causes the isolator shocks to immediately move upstream and eventually out of the isolator. A plausible physics-based explanation of the observed phenomena is presented.

This paper presents a comprehensive evaluation of reduced-order models (ROMs) for the determination of pressure coefficient distributions on supersonic and hypersonic bodies. The study investigates the limitations, aerodynamic precision and computational performance associated with various methodologies, ranging from simplistic Newtonian theory-based approaches to more advanced first and second-order shock-expansion theories. Validation is performed by comparing computed results with experimental and computational data for pressure distributions, drag and lift coefficients and centres of pressure for fundamental geometries and authentic vehicle design over a wide range of freestream conditions. The study also includes a comprehensive computational complexity analysis, demonstrating the superiority of finite-element ROM approaches over traditional finite-volume computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations. The primary objective of this paper is to scrutinise the extension of these methodological classes to the low supersonic regime. Hence, thermo-chemical reactions within the flow are disregarded, and the ideal gas law is adopted. A value of $\gamma = 1.4$ is chosen for consistency and comparability across the analyses. The proposed ROMs show remarkable potential for reducing high-speed simulation execution times by four orders of magnitude, maintaining accuracy within 20 per cent and as low as 1 per cent. The study unveils three key findings: first, the accuracy degradation of Newtonian-based theories for inclined elements, particularly around 45 degrees, and their reduced dependency on Mach number at large inclination. Secondly, the study presents novel insights into the impact of shock-wave-Mach-wave interactions on pressure distribution calculations, emphasising the Mach number as a crucial metric governing recompression effects. Lastly, the study demonstrates the exceptional accuracy of DeJarnette’s method, providing ${C_P}$ results within 2 per cent for a wide range of conditions, offering an attractive alternative to the Taylor-Maccoll equation.

Effusion cooling is the state-of-the-art cooling technology for gas turbine hot-gas path components. Typically, effusion cooling holes across the entire combustor liner are aligned with the combustor axis, rendering a nominal zero compound angle between highly directional miniature effusion cooling jets and the main flow direction. The pitch of effusion cooling holes is optimised accordingly. However, the swirling main flow results in a non-zero compound angle and an effectively different pitch from the design. The directional effect of effusion cooling as a result of swirling main flow on the adiabatic film cooling effectiveness (AFE) is a combined effect of a non-zero compound angle and a varied pitch. The current experimental study aims to investigate the isolated effects of compound angle on AFE by excluding the influences of varying pitch. With an improved understanding of the sole effects of non-zero compound angles on AFE, the roles that a varied pitch plays in modifying AFE are further discussed to guide future effusion cooling designs under swirling main flow conditions. Binary pressure sensitive paint (PSP) was used to determine AFE experimentally.

Damage initiation hotspots around features, such as bolts and ply drops, must be investigated during the preliminary design phase of large composite structures, such as composite airframes. A global-local modelling approach is commonly employed to perform this investigation, whereby a global low-fidelity model is used to drive high-fidelity local models around the features of interest. However, this methodology is slow, repetitive and expert-dependent. In this investigation, we address these issues by applying machine learning techniques to this global-local modelling framework and demonstrate the time-saving benefit when predicting damage initiation of bolted composite joints. Feature engineering of model inputs and outputs, and appropriate customisation of machine learning methods enables damage initiation prediction. Special consideration is given to the boundary conditions that must be varied to simulate the response of the bolted composite joints. Results show over three orders of magnitude time-saving benefit and satisfactory accuracy of the proposed methodology. This indicates its potential to be developed further into a rapid design and optimisation tool.

The Aerospace Integration Research Centre (AIRC) at Cranfield University offers industry and academia an open environment to explore the opportunities for efficient integration of aircraft systems. As a part of the centre, Cranfield University, Rolls-Royce, and DCA Design International jointly have developed the Future Systems Simulator (FSS) for the purpose of research and development in areas such as human factors in aviation, single-pilot operations, future cockpit design, aircraft electrification, and alternative control approaches. Utilising the state-of-the-art modularity principles in simulation technology, the FSS is built to simulate a diverse range of current and novel aircraft, enabling researchers and industry partners to conduct experiments rapidly and efficiently. Central to the requirement, a unique, user-experience-centred development and design process is implemented for the development of the FSS. This paper presents the development process of such a flight simulator with an innovative flight deck. Furthermore, the paper demonstrates the FSS’s capabilities through case studies. The cutting-edge versatility and flexibility of the FSS are demonstrated through the diverse example research case studies. In the final section, the authors provide guidance for the development of an engineering flight simulator based on lessons learned in this project.

The variability in ground manoeuvre occurrences for aircraft landing gear is intrinsically linked to the airport geometries served by aircraft in-service and consequently, the cyclic loads that landing gear carry are driven by the route network and characteristics of aircraft operators. Currently, assumptions must be made when deriving fatigue load spectra for aircraft landing gear, which may fail to capture the operator characteristics, potentially leading to design conservatism. This paper presents the enhanced characterisation of ground turning manoeuvres within the Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) trajectories for six narrow-body aircraft across a full-service carrier (FSC) and a low-cost carrier (LCC) fleet. The methodology presented within this paper employs ADS-B latitude and longitude information to overcome limitations of previous approaches, increasing the rate of correct manoeuvre identification within ADS-B trajectories to 77% of flights from the 50% rate achieved previously. When characterising the ground manoeuvres across 3,000 flights, significant differences in manoeuvre occurrences were observed between individual aircraft within the LCC fleet and between the FSC and LCC fleets. The occurrence of tight and pivot turns were shown to vary across the six aircraft with six and eight fatigue-critical turns being performed by the FSC and LCC fleet for every 10 flights performed. In addition, it was observed that the direction of fatigue critical turns is biased in specific directions, suggesting that individual main landing gear assemblies will accumulate fatigue damage at an increased rate, leading to greater justification for operator-specific spectra and structural health monitoring of aircraft landing gear.

This survey paper is concerned with vortex shedding from bodies in unsteady flow due either to time dependent motion of the body in a still fluid or unsteady motion of the fluid about a fixed body. The fluid is treated as incompressible, and the main emphasis is on starting flows and oscillatory flows. Much of the discussion describes 2D flow around sections of long or slender bodies. The first part of the paper covers the inviscid flow scaling of the forces induced by vortex shedding in time dependent flows which drive the shedding. This is followed by application of Wu’s impulse integral of the moment of vorticity to predict the forces induced by vortex shedding from a body in both inviscid and viscous flows. Vortex shedding phenomena involving small amplitude, high-frequency oscillatory flow such as vortex-induced vibration (VIV) and fluid-structure interaction (FSI) are not included in this discussion as in these cases the unsteady flow controls rather than drives the vortex shedding and they are well covered elsewhere.

The second part of the paper describes a vortex force mapping (VFM) method derived by considering the Lamb–Gromyko formulation for the pressure contribution which allows the integral of the vorticity field to be restricted to regions which are not far from the body. It is applied to both inviscid and viscous flows. The section finishes with discussion of application of the VFM to the calculation of forces induced on bodies from flow field measurements, such as particle image velocimetry (PIV).

The camber morphing of an aerofoil in ground effect was investigated using the FishBAC method and Detached Eddy Simulations with the k-omega SST turbulence model at a Reynolds number of 320,000. The aerofoil was periodically morphed at a start location of 25% chord from the leading edge with a trailing edge deflection range of 0.1% to 3% and morphing frequencies between a Strouhal number of 0.45 to 4 at a constant ground clearance of 10%. Periodically morphing the aerofoil using a sinusoidal function showed that lift and drag increased on the downstroke and decreased on the upstroke in the cycle, resulting in periodic values of lift and drag throughout the cycle. The amplitude of lift and drag increased as the morphing frequency and/or trailing edge deflection increased. It was found that the wake characteristics varied as a function of trailing edge deflection and morphing frequency. For small trailing edge deflections below 0.4% and frequencies below a 2.2 Strouhal number, Kelvin Helmholtz shedding was observed, and above this the wake became chaotic. Large trailing edge deflections showed Von-Karman shedding, where the interaction between the lower counter-clockwise vortex and the ground plane resulted in a jet-like flow that caused forward thrust. For the maximum deflection and morphing frequency tested in this study, reversed Von-Karman shedding was observed, which caused forward thrust from the interaction of the two-shedding counter-rotating vortices. Von-Karman or reversed Von-Karman shedding shows positive thrust generation, however, chaotic shedding should be avoided due to large drag gains. Varying the Reynolds number caused the Strouhal number to change as they depend on the same variables. It was found that the Strouhal number variation had a large effect on the wake, however, the Reynolds number had a minimal effect.

Sustainability is becoming a major strategic driver within the aviation industry, which has moved from providing primarily economic benefits to delivering the ‘triple bottom line’, including social and environmental impact as well as financial performance. Sustainable aviation is also being tracked by the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) Global Collation for Sustainable Aviation. Operations and Infrastructure is an important near-term opportunity to deliver sustainability benefits. Digital Technologies, Integrated Vehicle Health Management (IVHM) and Maintenance Repair and Overhaul (MRO) play a prominent role in implementing these benefits, with a particular focus on operational efficiencies. As part of this, the sustainable smart hangar of the future is a concept that is becoming more and more important in forming the future of the aviation industry. The Hangar of the Future is an excellent opportunity for innovation, combining the progress in manufacturing, materials, robotics and artificial intelligence technologies. Succeeding in developing a hangar with these characteristics will provide us with potential benefits ranging from reduced downtime and costs to improved safety and environmental impact. This work explores some of the key features related to the sustainable smart hangar of the future by discussing research that takes place in DARTeC’s (Digital Aviation Research and Technology Centre) hangar led by the IVHM Centre in Cranfield. Additionally, the paper touches on some longer-term aspirations.

Open rotors can play a critical role towards transitioning to a more sustainable aviation by providing a fuel-efficient alternative. This paper considers the sensitivity of an open-rotor engine to variations of three operational parameters during take-off, focusing on both aerodynamics and aeroacoustics. Via a sensitivity analysis, insights to the complex interactions of aerodynamics and aeroacoustics can be gained. For both the aerodynamics and aeroacoustics of the engine, numerical methods have been implemented. Namely, the flowfield has been solved using unsteady Reynolds Averaged Navier Stokes and the acoustic footprint of the engine has been quantified through the Ffowcs Williams-Hawking equations. The analysis has concluded that the aerodynamic performance of the open rotor can decisively be impacted by small variations of the operational parameters. Specifically, blade loading increased by 9.8% for a 5% decrease in inlet total temperature with the uncertainty being amplified through the engine. In comparison, the aeroacoustic footprint of the engine had more moderate variations, with the overall sound pressure level increasing by up to 2.4dB for a microphone lying on the engine axis and aft of the inlet. The results signify that there is considerable sensitivity in the model and shall be systematically examined during the design or optimisation process.

Abrupt changes in aircraft attitude due to encountering terrain turbulence or wind shear at low altitudes can directly lead to serious accidents. Therefore, a highly responsive and reliable active attitude stabiliser on board is necessary to counteract low-level severe atmospheric disturbances. However, gust environments caused by local terrain and structures are difficult to represent with typical models, such as the Dryden continuous gust model in free space. As a result, an optimal model-based control design cannot be applied. To address this problem, this paper introduces an adaptive mechanism for updating motion equations based on atmospheric conditions using in-flight surface pressure-field sensing. Additionally, a dynamic wind tunnel experiment system, which can be constructed at universities at a low cost, is developed and described in detail. The effectiveness of the proposed scheme is evaluated through wind tunnel experiments and numerical simulations using a large number of gust samples.

The overall efficiency of a turbofan engine may be expressed as a function of the Mach number, flight level and one other parameter. This may be either the net thrust, the turbine entry temperature or the fuel flow rate. Using basic aero-thermodynamic principles, dimensional analysis, normalisation and curve fitting, five approximate and “near universal” relations have been identified for engines having bypass ratios between 1 and 13. These relations contain five independent characteristic engine parameters. When these parameters are known, the relations form the basis of an estimation method for engine overall efficiency that is simple, fast, open source, completely transparent and, as new information appears, capable of further refinement. Since the empirical relations presented in this analysis are valid for Mach numbers greater than 0.2, the method is applicable to all airborne phases of flight. For a given aircraft, if the flight trajectory is specified in sufficient detail for the variation of net thrust with Mach number and flight level to be determined, only three of the five relations, together with the value of engine overall efficiency at a single reference condition, are needed to estimate the overall efficiency at every point on the trajectory. Comparisons with the data used in this analysis suggest that the accuracy is better than ±5% in most cases. In the completely general case, two additional engine characteristic parameters, one a total temperature ratio and the other a Mach number, are introduced. If these are known, both engine overall efficiency and net thrust can be expressed as functions of Mach number, flight level and turbine entry temperature. This allows the method to be used for the estimation of operating limits in the various phases of flight and in simplified optimisation studies, e.g. finding the environmentally optimum flight trajectory.

In previous work, estimates of engine overall efficiency at the “design optimum” condition have been estimated for 53 aircraft and engine combinations. It is shown that the ‘design optimum’ condition is an appropriate choice for the engine reference condition. Updated and revised values for the relevant parameters for these 53 examples, together with estimates for the two additional engine characteristic parameters, are given in tabular form.

The aviation industry’s efforts to reduce carbon emissions have driven the rapid development and scale-up of sustainable aviation fuels (SAFs). SAFs have the potential to significantly reduce CO2 lifecycle emissions by up to 80% in comparison to Jet A and other conventional fossil-derived jet fuels. For multiple logistical and practical reasons, it is preferable to ensure that SAFs are ‘essentially identical’ (also referred to as ‘drop-in SAF’) to conventional jet fuel in terms of their performance, durability and compatibility with existing hardware systems. Because the majority of SAFs are not identical (non-drop-in) to conventional jet fuel, they have not been approved for use in their neat (100%) form. Instead, these non-identical SAFs are named synthetic blend components (SBC) as they are blended with conventional fuels to different extents per ASTM D7566-23a. It should be noted that there are on-going efforts to develop non-drop in SAF specifications to broaden their proliferation and maximise the aviation industries’ ability to reduce CO2 lifecycle emissions. One very important area of focus is the compatibility of SAFs with engine and fuel system seals, specifically understanding the dynamics of elastomeric seals. To address this, a novel approach has been developed to measure seal dynamics in flowing fuel. This technique has been applied to study the dynamic seal behaviour of four industrially relevant elastomer seals commonly employed in aviation fuel systems. The study involved three test fuels: (i) conventional fossil-derived Jet A, neat hydroprocessed esters and fatty acids (HEFA) SAF, and neat alcohol to jet (ATJ) SAF. Notably, both HEFA and ATJ fuels contain 0% aromatics, in contrast to Jet A, which typically contains around 17% aromatics by volume. The novel fuel-elastomer test rig used in this study was designed to simulate a practical scenario in which fuel flows through the inner surface of a pre-loaded static O-ring. The results of these tests demonstrate that the behaviour of different nitrile elastomers is unique to their formulation, and in all cases, the behaviour in HEFA and ATJ SAF differs significantly from that in Jet A. However, new fuel approval tests may only list one type of elastomer for evaluation, for example the ‘Fit-for-Purpose’ test in ASTM D4054-22 Tier 2 lists one specific nitrile. The findings of this study highlight the complexities of fuel-elastomer interactions within nominally identical chemical families and emphasise the potential risks of assessing compatibility based on tests conducted with a single member of a chemical family.

Hydrogen is a promising energy carrier to decarbonise aviation. However, many challenges regarding its storage or handling still have to be solved to successfully utilise hydrogen in aircraft and at airport infrastructures. The increasing use of hydrogen also generates opportunities for disruptive improvements, like the possibility to integrate metal hydrides (MHs) into the hydrogen powertrain and its infrastructure. Besides their ability to store hydrogen, MHs enable a wide range of potential secondary functions such as high-power thermal applications or compression. This way, MHs may contribute to achieve the goal of sustainable hydrogen-powered aviation. Hence, potential MH application options and their current state-of-the-art are presented. Based on that overview, the following seven use cases for aviation are selected for evaluation: ‘hydrogen emergency storage’, ‘cabin air-conditioning’, ‘thermal management of fuel cells’, ‘gas gap heat switches’, ‘hydrogen boil-off recovery’, ‘onboard hydrogen compression’ and ‘hydrogen safety sensors’. Four of these use cases are investigated to achieve comparable degrees of detail to avoid misevaluations in the subsequent weighted point rating. The results reveal the high potential of MHs for ‘hydrogen boil-off recovery’, ‘hydrogen safety sensors’ and ‘cabin air-conditioning’. For the three most promising use cases, outlooks to their potential future implementation are provided in order to outline the ability of MHs to empower sustainable aviation. These investigations highlight the huge potential of MHs for boil-off treatment.

Water vapour and particles in aero engine exhaust can give rise to condensation trails (contrails) in the wake of aircrafts, and recent studies suggest that persistent contrails and contrail cirrus account for circa 50% of the total aviation-derived radiative forcing (RF). The Schmidt-Appleman criterion is widely used to qualitatively predict the formation of contrails. The criterion indicates that the formation of contrails is affected by both aero engine exhaust and ambient air conditions and can therefore provide the theoretical basis to devise contrail mitigation strategies and further allows quantitative assessment of these strategies. This work focuses on water extraction from the aircraft engine exhaust for contrail mitigation. The fuel water emission index (${\rm{E}}{{\rm{I}}_{{{\rm{H}}_2}{\rm{O}}}}$) is one of the key factors that determines whether persistent contrails form or not. It indicates the amount of water produced for every kg of fuel burnt. Research has indicated that water extraction from the exhaust of the aero engine has been considered for Nitrogen oxides (NOx) reduction, but not for contrail mitigation. Assuming that water extraction is indeed possible, the emphasis of this work will therefore be on understanding how much water is needed to be extracted for contrail mitigation depending on the altitude and the relative humidity (RH), with the aim to carry out a meaningful study on the mitigation of persistent contrails and contrail cirrus to enable a fast and considerable reduction in aviation-derived RF.

The BLI (boundary layer ingestion) concept for propulsion seeks to improve the energy efficiency of aircraft propulsion. This is achieved by accelerating low momentum flow ingested from boundary layers and wakes developed over the fuselage through the fan. A major challenge that needs to be overcome to realise the benefits is that the fan needs to work efficiently in distorted flow. Understanding the effects of distortion on the aerodynamic performance and the distortion transfer through the fan is therefore essential to future designs. A BLI fan, designed at reduced scale, is used for analytic modelling and experiments in a rig designed for this purpose. The test rig replicates BLI conditions for a fan installed at the aircraft tail cone. An unsteady model that includes all blades and vanes of the fan, as well as the nacelle and the by-pass duct of the test rig is used for CFD (computational fluid dynamics) simulations. Test results are used to confirm that the CFD model is representative of the aerodynamics of the fan. The tests are conducted using varying fan operating conditions but also tests with an added distortion screen. Analysis results are then used to investigate the effects of distortion on the fan efficiency, as well as on the overall efficiency. The fan efficiency is found to be moderately decreased depending on the level of and extent of inlet circumferential distortion. In terms of overall energy efficiency, a net improvement over a similar fan in clean inlet flow is found.