In terms of modes of transportation, aircrafts are among the least environmentally friendly. They tend to have high fuel consumption, emit greater amounts of pollution, and even contribute to noise pollution. The situation only worsens with the ever-growing number of air travelers (expected to reach 1.21 billion/year by 2030). Many developments have been made to counteract their effects, including solar planes. Recently, NASA, partnered with Pratt & Whitney and Boeing, has also been attempting to remediate the environmental effects of planes.
The plane designs that are being developed have a lot of potential and may begin to be manufactured in 8-10 years. They have created a prototype of a blended wing-body aircraft, a stingray-esque model called the X-48B. It is made out of a light-weight carbon composite material with a larger wing surface to improve lift and reduce drag by increasing laminar flow(smoothing the airflow). The ultra-high bypass, open-rotor engines are more fuel efficient. Further, alternative fuels, batteries, and fuel-cells are being considered to run the engine. The twin engines are being placed on the plane body at the back, in hopes that it will direct the noise upwards. They hope to reduce noise pollution to the point where plane sounds cannot be heard past airport boundaries. The challenge with such planes include the fact that it’s flat shape makes it harder to maintain cabin pressure and navigate at low speeds. Currently, NASA also works to implement smaller changes to the current tube-shaped commercial airplanes.
NASA’s aeronautical research and development goals actually encompass many different green aviation initiatives, not only in the planes themselves. One goal is to improve the efficiency of air traffic management in order to reduce fuel consumption. This includes the addition of satellite-based traffic information, the improvement of communication methods, and the incorporation of new management procedures. For example, currently pilots are required to ascend and descend to their desired altitudes in levels, consulting with air traffic controllers at every stage. This, however, results in a waste of fuel. Direct climbs during ascension could reduce the fuel consumption worldwide by 188 million gallons per year, while continuous descents would reduce fuel by 218 million. With better coordination, flights could take more direct, efficient routes without longer detours, resulting in the conservation of 200 million gallons/year. The new plane designs aim to reduce the plane’s fuel use by 33% – 50%.
In terms of pollutant emissions, it is thought that at least 6% of the gases produced by commercial flights can be cut. Currently in the U.S., commercial carriers create more than 250 million tons of CO2 per year, as well as copious amounts of nitric oxide (NO), nitrogen oxide (NO2), and sulfur oxides (SO2), all contributors to the thickening of the ozone layer. With the new regime, prominent greenhouse gases like the NOxs may be reduced by more than 50% by 2025.
NASA’s space program might have been put on hold, but as they happen to be the inventors who brought us water filters, memory foam, shoe insoles, long-distance telecommunications, scratch-resistant lenses, and now fuel-efficient airplanes, perhaps the government should think twice about cutting their funding.
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