Technical Paper
More Electric Aircraft: "Tube and Wing" Hybrid Electric Distributed Propulsion with Superconducting and Conventional Electric Machines
2013-09-17
2013-01-2306
Turboelectric Distributed Propulsion (TeDP) describes a power train consisting of a turboshaft engine which is used solely to provide electrical power through a generator to electric motors driving multiple propulsive fans which are distributed above, below, or inside a wing. Recent advancements in electronics, computers, and power distribution have made distributed propulsion feasible and the purpose of the studies described here has been to integrate this new type of propulsion with real airframes designed to specific civilian and military missions. Empirical Systems Aerospace, Inc. (ESAero) performed SBIR studies for NASA Glenn Research Center in FY09 and FY10 to determine the potential application of cryogenically-cooled superconductivity to distributed electrical components in regional airliner configurations in the N+3 (2035) time frame.
