Taking aerospace efficiency to the next level
Significant progress has been made in reducing aircraft fuel burn over the past 50 years but Rolls-Royce is committed to achieving a further step-change in engine efficiency.
We are currently working with airframer and university partners on opportunities to reduce fuel consumption by using unducted fan or 'open rotor' systems.
By using two contra-rotating propellers driven by a gas turbine, fuel consumption - and CO2 emissions - can be reduced by 10-15 per cent compared to an equivalent technology turbofan. Using the latest 3D aerodynamics and novel architectures we aim to maintain the progression of continued noise reduction relative to current turbofan levels.
Securing a better understanding of the noise to emissions trade-off and developing the aerodynamic and mechanical technologies required to reduce any noise penalty are a major focus of our advanced research programmes.
New approaches
For the past four years we have been supporting a programme led by Cambridge University and MIT which is addressing new aircraft and engine integration concepts. The recently completed 'Silent Aircraft' programme demonstrated that by increasing the integration of the engine into the airframe and by using novel aerodynamic designs and control surfaces, it should be possible to reduce fuel burn by 25 per cent as well as reducing noise.
The aviation industry operates on a single fuel type - kerosene. The use of alternative fuels is a continuing focus of research for the company. We are working with a range of partners including the major fuel suppliers and the UK OMEGA University consortium. OMEGA's aim is to create a stronger, more informed knowledge base on a range of environmental issues.
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Case study
Alternative fuels
Rolls-Royce, working with specialist partners, is
assessing the feasibility of alternative fuels. Biofuels
are seen as renewable and therefore capable of
contributing to reducing the carbon intensity of the
economy. However, their net contribution to
reducing carbon must be assessed over the whole
fuel cycle. They also raise broader environmental
and social concerns over land use.
For aircraft, kerosene is expected to remain the preferred fuel for the foreseeable future as it is safe and has a high-energy content and low freezing point. The company is continuing to explore new developments in this area. Rolls-Royce engines have already been cleared to use a 'synthetic' kerosene blend partially derived from coal rather than oil. There is also the potential to create synthetic kerosene from other feedstocks including biomass, although concerns over fuel cycle efficiency and related technical and environmental issues need to be resolved.
