Recent Developments in High-Speed Transport

The technologies presently available suggest that in the long-term our attitudes to supersonic flight may change. Supersonic transport has to be considered in the context of other air transportation modes available with account for changes in transportation infrastructure as a whole. Passengers’ perceptions of the advantages of supersonic flight are also an important factor. This paper analyzes the correlation between ticket prices and demand for air travel in the Premium class. We conclude that there is an inverse relation between ticket price and demand for Premium travel. With reference to the global air travel data, we specify a list of prospective supersonic flight routes and model a dynamic of supersonic travel in the long-term.

The article discusses the design of the cabin of a supersonic passenger aircraft. Modern technologies are considered: multimodal interaction, touch screen displays, synthetic and enhanced vision, technical vision, etc. A cockpit demonstrator designed using the above technologies is presented.

This work deals with the problem of applying system analysis and mathematical modeling methods to developing human–machine interface design of advanced supersonic aircraft. The method of hierarchical task analysis is used for development. The mathematical model of pilot’s activities is developed in the form of a Petri net. This paper gives an example of the development of data input frames using these methods. The work also considers the crew work simulation using Petri nets to obtain crew tasks performance time intervals. This is relevant given that time issues are particularly important for supersonic aircraft.

The paper discusses the ways and methods of integrating parametric and non-parametric reconfiguration methods of on-board systems of a supersonic passenger aircraft in one hybrid controller. To develop a hybrid controller, a circuit with switching of parametric and non-parametric controllers is used. The choice of method is based on the availability of parametric information about the control object, current disturbances and the required control quality.

A flight control system law involving the use a direct lift control (DLC) device (Efremov AV, Koshelenko AV, Tyaglik MS (2009) Development of a control system structure and algorithms providing for the use of additional controls, Vestnik MAI) is proposed in this paper. It decouples linear and angular motion, allowing to improve flying qualities (Efremov AV, Ogloblin AV (2001) Methodological support of aircraft handling qualities research using ground-based simulators, Flight, vol 5, Moscow, Mechanical Engineering) and decrease the effect of the accelerations acting on the pilots and passengers when flying a supersonic transport (SST) in a severe atmospheric turbulence. The expediency of integrating DLC and an advanced display system with predictive indication (Efremov AV, Tyaglik MS (2010) Development of information display tools for aviation equipment providing high-precision piloting, Flight, vol 11; Efremov AV, Koshelenko AV, Tyaglik MS (2009) Development of a control system structure and algorithms providing for the use of additional controls, Vestnik MAI) is studied as well.

The study is dedicated to the expediency of using the inverse dynamics principle when designing a lateral channel control system controller to ensure the independence of roll and yaw motion in a second-generation supersonic transport (SST) with the online identification of a lateral motion mathematical model. The supplementation of the proposed controller with a proportional-integral controller is considered.

The paper discusses the use of nonlinear programming based on direct methods of optimal control for solving the problem of signal smoothing. The idea lies in the representation of the desired signal in a parametric finite-dimensional space, which reduces the original problem to the problem of parametric optimization. The efficiency of the proposed method is demonstrated by the example of smoothing signals of orientation angles and angular velocities of an aircraft in the presence of random errors. Comparison is conducted with polynomial smoothing and smoothing using the Kalman filter.

In this paper a method for operational correction of the indication support of subsonic aircraft has been proposed, which includes the technology of simulation of display frames. The simulation station has also been created for operational testing alongside the participation of pilots.

All leading aviation firms in the United States of America (USA), Europe and Russia are engaged in the development of a business supersonic passenger aircraft (SPA). The authors justified the need to create a new engine for the power plant of the supersonic passenger aircraft and determined the appearance and parameters of this engine. For the first time, a study using a modern program was carried out based on the existing scientific and technical reserve on materials and efficiency of elements for a 5th generation engine with a take-off thrust of 200 kN and a gas temperature in front of the turbine of 1800 K with an increase to 2000 K as the flight speed increases. The optimal characteristics of the pressure ratio in the axial compressor (π_к*) and the bypass ratio (m₀) were determined and scientifically substantiated to ensure acceptable characteristics of thrust and fuel consumption at all stages of flight.

In this paper, we propose the method for thermal calculation of the hydraulic system of a combat aircraft. This method takes into account the heating of hydraulic fluid in spool valves of control system actuators, depending on external load on actuators and the control surfaces slew rate. In contrast to the existing methods, the change in pump heat rejection is determined depending on the aircraft engine rotor speed.

The paper presents the results of studies of increasing the speed characteristics of aircraft hydraulic drives on the example of a complex multi-level model. The model makes it possible to determine the optimal ratios that provide forcing the speed characteristics of the power hydraulic drive while maintaining the required level of resource of its components. The article presents the basic mathematical relations that form a complex model, simulation results and their verification according to the data of measuring parts after full-scale tests on the example of a hydraulic machine.

This paper describes the method for calculation of anti-icing system for swept wing of supersonic flight demonstrator X-59. The section heating elements on top and bottom surfaces of wing were defined using iceFoam solver and engineering method. The calculations showed that the total electric power to ensure the operation of the anti-icing system is equal to N = 13 081 Wt. The efficiency factor characterizing transformation process of electrical energy into heat is equal to about 0.88–0.95.

The appearance of supersonic civil aircraft (SCA) of the second generation is possible only after resolving a number of problems related to the acoustical impact of SCA on the environment. The most critical problems are fan noise at take-off and landing regimes due to using engines with low bypass ratio and strong shocks formation in the flow around aerodynamic shape when flying at supersonic speed. The shocks reaching the ground transmit enough energy to affect negatively on humans as well as buildings and structures. In this work, the method is presented and applied to estimate sonic boom characteristic on the ground from supersonic aircraft flying with constant supersonic speed at cruise regime and the comparison of calculation and experimental results is performed.

The problem of designing a supersonic business aircraft with regard to cabin noise requirements. The tendency to reduce noise levels in passenger aircraft cabins is shown and competitively necessary noise levels in the passenger cabin and cockpit are formulated, which need to be guided by when designing an aircraft. The main noise sources are described, and the analysis of available publications on noise in the cabin of a supersonic aircraft of the first generation is carried out. The concept of R&D necessary to ensure the design of the aircraft, taking into account the required noise levels in the cabin, is proposed.

Nowadays, the mention of supersonic passenger aircraft is again on the agenda. In many countries of the world, studies are being carried out to evaluate the characteristics of these aircraft, to identify their optimal parameters that can improve passenger comfort without worsening the environmental performance of the surrounding atmosphere. To use the accumulated scientific and technical experience, engineers strive to create an aircraft with the best economic performance, which makes it possible to become accessible to a big number of passengers. The article discusses the description of the method for calculating the main design parameters of supersonic passenger aircraft and, on its basis, presents an analysis of the calculation of the model of a supersonic passenger aircraft:

This work analyses the rain water droplet impact test results for the promising composite materials for supersonic civilian airliners obtained through the use of a single-jet platform and a gas gun. The platform used for the test is based on the single drop jet generation principle. The water jet shape is visualized by high-speed shooting. The test specimens are composites. Damage mechanisms are analyzed and damage to composites caused by impact of high-velocity droplets is predicted. An equation is obtained for damage calculation, which can determine the diameter of the intact area in the surface center. Specific damage to composites caused by single-jet impact is determined and classified, and properties of this damage are determined.

In this work, a new composite material has been developed, the matrix is a low-viscosity epoxy resin AFM-12P, the fiber is UMT-49S-12 K-EP, the nanomodifier is single-walled carbon nanotubes Tuball Matrix 201. The optimal mode of dispersion of nanoclusions in epoxy resin has been experimentally identified. The static tensile strength and stiffness of the samples (ASTM D3039), as well as the interlayer shear strength (ASTM D 2344) were established. Fatigue strength was determined at 60 and 80% of the maximum static load during cyclic loading of samples. Dynamic characteristics of stiffness degradation are obtained.

The paper considers the problems that arise at the early stages of designing the skin of reinforced panels made of composite materials of the caisson wing of heavy-duty aircraft. The objects of research, in this case, are thick composite panels of an orthotropic structure, loaded with longitudinal compressive forces and allowing geometrically nonlinear behavior at loads close to the design level. In the case under consideration, according to the conditional classification introduced by A.S. Volmir, panels should be considered rigid, and when designing according to strength conditions in a geometrically nonlinear state, it is possible to use the condition of considering only bending stresses and neglecting membrane stresses. The paper proposes the following methods for determining the optimal thicknesses of longitudinally compressed rigid composite panels using analytical solutions of geometrically nonlinear problems obtained by the Bubnov-Galerkin method. In the presented methods, the problems of determining the optimal thicknesses of composite panels are reduced to the numerical solution of nonlinear equations for the required thicknesses of rigid panels.

A study of the problem of developing effective methods for predicting the defining characteristics of composite materials and structures in extreme conditions has been conducted. The formulated problems are investigated within the framework of refined variational formulations of inverse forecasting problems. Based on the current provisions of the kinetic theory of strength, a methodology for matching the parameters of mathematical and physical models at micro and macro levels has been developed. The developed methodology made it possible to solve the problem of restoring the parameters of physical and chemical processes occurring at the molecular level and leading to destructive changes in composites and deterioration of their characteristics over time.