Page 21 - European Energy Innovation - Summer 2014
P. 21
Summer 2014 European Energy Innovation 21
COMMUNICATION
Improving aircraft efficiency with dynamic skins
A) Friction between the air and the skin of an aeroplane accounts for about half the fuel consumption. Finding new
ways to reduce skin friction is an important step in making aircraft more efficient.
B) The Kagome lattice pictured (right) has unique properties which
make it highly suitable for propagating vibrations in a controlled way.
These vibrations modify turbulence and help to reduce drag.
TRAINING THE DESIGNERS OF Imperial has a large population of steps being taken to reduce the
FUTURE GREEN AIRCRAFT PhD students engaged in green environmental impact of future air
The Aeronautics Department aviation research and this has travel. The next symposium is to
at Imperial is the UK’s leading been expanded recently with the be held in Beijing in collaboration
provider of aeronautical award of a prestigious EPSRC Beihang University. There will
engineering training at Centre for Doctoral training in be speakers from a selection of
undergraduate level and also ‘Fluid Dynamics across Scales’. Chinese aviation organisations
runs flagship postgraduate Over the next five years this and from leading international
MSc courses in computational centre will train 75 additional aerospace companies to ensure a
techniques for fluid mechanics PhD students many of who will truly global perspective. l
and fluid-structure interaction, focus on computational and
and in the science, technology experimental aerodynamics for Further information
and engineering of advanced more efficient future aircraft.
composites. Both of these MSc www.imperial.ac.uk/greenaviation
courses produce graduates ENGAGING WITH THE GREEN
with specialist knowledge and AVIATION COMMUNITY
skills essential for addressing The Green Aviation Forum at
the demanding environmental Imperial led by the Department
issues facing aviation. This year of Aeronautics has run two very
an Advanced Aeronautical successful symposiums (Green
Engineering MSc course has Aviation 2011 & 2012) in which
been launched to train existing aviation sector leaders have
engineers in the fundamentals addressed large audiences of
of new enabling technologies specialists from industry, academia,
required for ‘greener’ aircraft. government and the press on the
www.europeanenergyinnovation.eu
COMMUNICATION
Improving aircraft efficiency with dynamic skins
A) Friction between the air and the skin of an aeroplane accounts for about half the fuel consumption. Finding new
ways to reduce skin friction is an important step in making aircraft more efficient.
B) The Kagome lattice pictured (right) has unique properties which
make it highly suitable for propagating vibrations in a controlled way.
These vibrations modify turbulence and help to reduce drag.
TRAINING THE DESIGNERS OF Imperial has a large population of steps being taken to reduce the
FUTURE GREEN AIRCRAFT PhD students engaged in green environmental impact of future air
The Aeronautics Department aviation research and this has travel. The next symposium is to
at Imperial is the UK’s leading been expanded recently with the be held in Beijing in collaboration
provider of aeronautical award of a prestigious EPSRC Beihang University. There will
engineering training at Centre for Doctoral training in be speakers from a selection of
undergraduate level and also ‘Fluid Dynamics across Scales’. Chinese aviation organisations
runs flagship postgraduate Over the next five years this and from leading international
MSc courses in computational centre will train 75 additional aerospace companies to ensure a
techniques for fluid mechanics PhD students many of who will truly global perspective. l
and fluid-structure interaction, focus on computational and
and in the science, technology experimental aerodynamics for Further information
and engineering of advanced more efficient future aircraft.
composites. Both of these MSc www.imperial.ac.uk/greenaviation
courses produce graduates ENGAGING WITH THE GREEN
with specialist knowledge and AVIATION COMMUNITY
skills essential for addressing The Green Aviation Forum at
the demanding environmental Imperial led by the Department
issues facing aviation. This year of Aeronautics has run two very
an Advanced Aeronautical successful symposiums (Green
Engineering MSc course has Aviation 2011 & 2012) in which
been launched to train existing aviation sector leaders have
engineers in the fundamentals addressed large audiences of
of new enabling technologies specialists from industry, academia,
required for ‘greener’ aircraft. government and the press on the
www.europeanenergyinnovation.eu
