a collaboration between the university of central lancashire (preston, england) and the university of manchester (england) national graphene institute (ngi) took flight at the farnborough air show in july.
the research project led to an unmanned test of an aircraft, named “prospero” according to a report from the university of manchester. the aircraft featured a wing that was partly covered in the carbon allotrope graphene. it was produced by haydale composite solutions of loughborough, england.
tests at the ngi determined graphene’s effects in “drag reduction, thermal management and ultimately the ability to achieve lightning strike protection for aerospace,” among other possible real-world applications.
billy beggs, university of central lancashire’s engineering innovation manager, said, “the research team is still in the early stages of flight testing with the new remotely piloted aircraft but initial test data is already very encouraging. in terms of impact resistance the new wing is showing increased levels of impact resistance of up to 60 percent over a conventionally-skinned carbon fibre wing.”
while educators at the ngi are insisting that the research into graphene could encompass the next 20 years, there is already interest being shown from the aerospace industry. two weeks after the initial report of the test flight, the ngi also announced that it is working with the beijing institute of aeronautical materials (biam).
the five-year partnership will explore graphene’s ability to produce “lighter, better performing aircraft and high-speed trains.”
the report stated, “research will focus on composites with enhanced performance in the field of mechanical, electric conductive and thermal conductive behaviour, as well as the compatibility of graphene and the matrix materials. in aerospace this might lead to applications of graphene in different materials and components, with weight saving accompanied by better performance.”
the project will run to 2020 and will feature an exchange of personnel between beijing and manchester.
to learn more about the university of manchester’s work with graphene, visit http://www.manchester.ac.uk/discover/news/worlds-first-flight-of-graphene-skinned-aircraft-to-take-place-at-farnborough-air-show or http://www.manchester.ac.uk/discover/news/graphene-partnership-could-deliver-lighter-planes.
for more information about graphene’s thermal management potential, read this article from a recent edition of qpedia: https://www.coolingzone.com/uploads/pdf-article/graphene_fillers_promise_major_improvements_to_tim_thermal_conductivity.pdf.
learn more about graphene in the video below:
|