The electric jet plane that uses triboelectric nanogenerators. Courtesy of Micahel Bonikowsky
Advances in various technologies have helped numerous industries to move forward and embrace the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) - the fusion of the digital, biological and physical worlds, and utilization of new technologies.
It is evident in the aviation industry wherein a revolutionary concept of a jet plane is suggested that will no longer use fossil fuels but instead will use electricity. This electric jet will use the air friction to power the electric motors and recharge the batteries. The type of renewable, on-demand energy major decision that is needed to power it.
Eather One as it is called was inspired by one of Airbus' latest projects-Maveric.
Maveric: An inspiration to the aircraft of the future
Airbus has revealed a futuristic airplane design with a unique blended-wing body, which may reduce carbon emissions by 20%. It is over six feet long and almost 10 feet wide that underwent a series of extensive secret tests in central France since June of 2019. It has a codename Maveric is the acronym for "model aircraft for validation and experimentation of robust innovative controls."
It was shown for the first time in Singapore Air Show 2020, where designers have praised its design that allows a more interior space and that may use lesser fuel than the normal aircraft.
The project co-leader, Adrian Bérard, said that a lot of people have doubted the project and only considered it as a "hobby." All they had to do was prove them wrong by showing that it could happen and might be the basis for future aircraft configuration.
Eather One: the conceptual design if airplanes are electric
Warsaw-based designer, Michael Bonikowski, has come up with a potentially revolutionary type of an airplane that does not need the use of fossil fuel or batteries-the Eather One. The basic idea here is to utilize the electricity generated during the airplane's movement.
Upon reaching the stratosphere and troposphere at high speed, the surface of the aircraft will form electrical charges that can power the batteries on board the airplane once it is properly collected and exploited. This electric jet ill look like a normal airplane except that it would be equipped with a triboelectric nanogenerator on top, and well on its wings. These will help the wings to harness the external mechanical energy then convert it into electoral energy.
Eather One will then have the ability to contain much smaller batteries on-board compared to current projects. This means that it saves not only in weight but can also provide an increase in the overall performance.
This concept though also suggests that it will still need batteries to complete where no air friction is available, such as during take-off and landings. But, obviously, it's just a concept to be developed that deserves attention.
A lot of work is still needed to understand if this actually can be made into something practical, a representation of a new approach to the problem which currently harasses aircraft designers into reducing the weights and volumes of the batteries.
It also identifies as a futuristic approach to making air travel more efficient and less hazardous to the environment.
