Notes to editors
About Reaction Engines Limited
Reaction Engines Limited (‘Reaction Engines’) is a privately held technology Company that is unlocking the future of hypersonic flight, space access and is revolutionising thermal management. The Company is based in Culham, Oxfordshire, UK and Denver, Colorado, US and employs over 200 staff across its sites.
Reaction Engines’ innovative technology has the backing of some of the most influential names in aerospace and finance. The Company is supported by the UK Government, UK Space Agency and European Space Agency and its US team is working with US Government and industry partners. Together with leading institutional investors, the Company has received investments from BAE Systems, Rolls-Royce and Boeing HorizonX.
Reaction Engines’ proprietary precooler technology is transforming possibilities in the world of heat management, delivering world-leading heat transfer capabilities at extremely low weight and at a compact size.
The precooler is a key element of Reaction Engines’ revolutionary SABRE™ - Synergetic Air-Breathing Rocket Engine, a new class of aerospace propulsion that has the potential to provide air-breathing thrust from standstill on the runway to speeds above five times the speed of sound in the atmosphere. SABRE, aimed at next generation space access vehicles, is highly scalable, allowing multiple applications and is unique in delivering the fuel efficiency of a jet engine with the power and high-speed capability of a rocket.
Individual components and technologies of SABRE have been successfully tested and demonstrated.
A successful ground-based high temperature test of the precooler took place in 2019 – proving the capability of this technology at five times the speed of sound and marking a significant milestone. The Company is progressing plans to demonstrate hypersonic systems enabled by this precooler technology and to undertake ground-based tests of the SABRE engine core, culminating in full system testing, at which point the world’s first air-breathing engine capable of accelerating from zero to Mach 5 will have been demonstrated.
Reaction Engines’ precooler is a transformative technology for near-term propulsion systems and other commercial applications. The Company’s Applied Technologies team is adapting the innovative heat exchange systems designed for SABRE and applying them across a wide range of commercial industry opportunities, including improving performance in motorsport, converting waste heat into renewable electricity and supporting targets for more sustainable aviation.
More information about Reaction Engines can be found at www.reactionengines.co.uk
About Rolls-Royce Holdings plc
- Rolls-Royce pioneers cutting-edge technologies that deliver clean, safe and competitive solutions to meet our planet’s vital power needs.
- Rolls-Royce has customers in more than 150 countries, comprising more than 400 airlines and leasing customers, 160 armed forces, 70 navies, and more than 5,000 power and nuclear customers.
- Annual underlying revenue was £15.45 billion in 2019, around half of which came from the provision of aftermarket services.
- In 2019, Rolls-Royce invested £1.46 billion on research and development. We also support a global network of 29 University Technology Centres, which position Rolls-Royce engineers at the forefront of scientific research.