‘Biggest breakthrough in aerospace propulsion since the jet engine’ claims UK engineering firm
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A British firm has announced what it claims to be "the biggest breakthrough in aerospace propulsion technology since the invention of the jet engine", hailed by the Institution of Mechanical Engineers as bringing us "a step closer to flights from London to Sydney that last just a little longer than an on-flight film or even two-week holidays in space".
Oxfordshire-based Reaction Engines said that critical tests had been successfully completed on the key technology for Sabre, an engine that will enable aircraft to reach the opposite side of the world in under four hours, or to fly directly into orbit and return in a single stage, taking off and landing on a runway.
Sabre, an air-breathing rocket engine, utilises both jet turbine and rocket technology. Its pre-cooler technology is designed to cool the incoming airstream from over 1,000 degs C to minus 150 degs C in less than 1/100th of a second (six times faster than the blink of an eye) without blocking with frost. The recent tests have proven the cooling technology to be frost-free at the crucial low temperature of -150 degs C.
The European Space Agency (ESA) has evaluated the Sabre engine's pre-cooler heat exchanger on behalf of the UK Space Agency, and has given official validation to the test results:
Welcoming the breakthrough, Philippa Oldham, head of transport and manufacturing at the IMechE, said Sabre would have a great impact on UK aerospace engine industry. "This technology has the potential to be used with current aeroplanes, which could improve fuel efficiency by up to 10%, saving airlines about $20 billion a year," she continued.
"The fact that this technology is being developed in the UK is also hugely encouraging and demonstrates the talent and expertise there is in this country for manufacturing high value and high-tech goods."
Pictured: hot air passes over the piping, cooling to -150 degs C in 1/100th of a second