By Robert Bradley Jr.
“… The range of use of a 19-seat aircraft is from about 160 miles to about 30 miles. For a larger aircraft like the 100-seaters Wright is building, it’s less than six miles.”
“Electric planes could soon take to the skies, maybe even before the end of the decade. But they probably won’t be able to take many of us very far. Right now… you might just want to ride a bike or take a train. “
In a sea of government subsidies and PR stunts, Deep decarbonization Frequent movement offers alternatives to using fossil fuels directly. Acting as techno-optimists, the strategy is to change the mindset about mineral energy dominance, so that a “if the government builds it, they will” attitude can be economically viable. politics.
But what is? physically possible is not what economic cautiondefined as using fewer resources than more to allow other wants to be met.
The market chooses the winners, leaving the losers to the government. Instead of taxing and spending, taxes should be reduced for individuals and businesses to allow market business.
Perhaps at some point in the future, a revolution will begin with today’s best practices, but then the technology could be completely different from what the government is subsidizing.
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When it comes to airplanes, batteries are the killer: too heavy, too bulky. In other words, energy density. (And that electricity could be fossil fuels anyway.)
This story is told in This is what stops electric planes from taking off (MIT Technology Review (August 17, 2022). Casey Crownhart actual test of electric aircraft. The following excerpts:
- Startups are exploring how electric planes can clean up air travel, which accounts for about 3% of greenhouse gas emissions worldwide. The problem is that electric planes today can safely carry you and about a dozen other passengers in just about 30 miles, according to a recent analysis.
- The limiting factor is the battery, specifically the amount of energy that can be stored in a small space. If you’ve crossed your legs into a cramped window seat or been charged extra for excess baggage, you’re probably familiar with the space and weight constraints on planes.
- Today’s batteries don’t have the energy density needed to power anything but the lightest airplanes. And even for those people, the trip will be as short as a long bike ride.
- Batteries have been packing more power into smaller spaces for about 30 years, and continued improvement could make electric planes a more viable option for flying. But they’re not there yet, and ultimately, the future of electric planes may depend on the future of advancements in battery technology….
- The battery requirement to fly even these short trips is quite large. Heart’s 19-seat aircraft will carry about 3.5 tons of batteries on board, for a total capacity equivalent to 8 to 10 electric cars….
- Some in the industry are skeptical that such planes could be successful without major battery improvements. “Battery technology is not there yet,” says Mukhopadhaya.
- In one recent report of the ICCT, Mukhopadhaya and his colleagues found that the range of electric aircraft would be severely limited with existing energy storage technology. “Honestly, “We were surprised by how terrible the scope was,” he said.
- Using estimates of current battery density and aircraft weight limitations, analysts estimate that the battery-powered 19-seat aircraft will have a maximum cruising range of about 260 kilometers (160 miles), at least. significantly more than the company claims of 250 miles.
- Forslund argues that estimates by outside observers do not give a true picture of the company’s technology, as they do not know the details of the battery pack and its aircraft design. (The company plans to design its own aircraft rather than retrofit an existing model to run on batteries.)
- Reserve requirements can severely limit the true range of electric aircraft. An aircraft needs additional capacity to circle an airport in 30 minutes in the event of an immediate failure to land, and it must also be able to reach an alternative airport 100 km (60 mi) away in the event of an emergency. emergency.
- When you take all of that into account, the range of a 19-seat aircraft is from about 160 miles to about 30 miles. For a larger aircraft like the 100-seater Wright is building, it’s less than six miles away.
- “That reserve claim is ultimately the killer,” says Andreas SchaferDirector of the Air Transport Systems Laboratory at University College London.
- According to the ICCT analysis, batteries would essentially need to double their power density to be able to take the short-haul routes that startups are aiming for. That improvement could reach the limits of lithium-ion batteries, which are used today in electric vehicles and consumer electronics. Even with such progress, electric aircraft could only replace enough aircraft to cut less than 1% of emissions from the aviation industry by 2050.
- For electric aircraft to play a more important role in decarbonizing the air, energy density may need to be quadrupled, says Schafer. This may require new batteries to reach commercialization….
- Electric planes could soon take to the skies, possibly even before the end of the decade. But they probably won’t be able to take many of us very far. For now, unless there’s a fjord in the way, you probably just want to ride a bike or take a train.
Last comment
Yes, electric bike, golf cart or kids play area. But not for aircraft, much less rockets. And cars and trucks – it’s political correctness instead of economic correctness. At a time of record federal budget deficits, deep-seated subsidies and decarbonization ordinances are an easy cut.
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