Flying Hypersonia
The rise of hypersonic flight occurring during a pandemic. Horizontal takeoff & landing (HTHL) hyper speed aeroplanes are the vehicles for flying around the world. The airframes matter, but the focus is on the suitable engines. The propulsion driving the vehicles forward and upward.
The innovation is JAPHETH: Jet Airbreathing Propellant Hypersonic Engine TecHnology. These type of advanced jet and scramjet engines use high density propellants for powering. They are different from other existing forms of engines.
It is not a DASS. This has no complete bypass, not using the combustor chamber of the jet engine. A JAPHETH is made by 3D printing ensuring an integral design of the different components and parts. It uses the chamber of the engine and the components of the advanced jet, which retract creating an end-to-end patency for the scramjet to reach beyond Mach 20 speeds.
It is also not a turbine combined cycle engine, which is usually a dual combustor of a ramjet-scramjet composite. And it is not a turboramjet, liquid air combustion engine, rotating detonation engine, a SABRE or a rocket, even though they can complement each other.
The innovation uses a high bypass-inlet design that serves both the fore advanced jet and the aft scramjet. For takeoff, the inlet and the bypass serve the combustor of the jet and the chamber of the scramjet with air. During the hyper speed cruise phase, the inlet directly pumps air into the scramjet, after the fore components retract.
Previous postings present the various components of the composite engine – an innovative turboscramjet in its basic architecture. It is, however, more than this. It uses a propellant instead of the regular jet fuel, with various innovations to its parts.
The intention is making the composite to turn the potential of a jet engine into kinetic thrust. The engine able to give stable and prolonged specific impulse. Lasting longer than the one produced by a pure rocket engine. The release of the hyper hot exhausts propelling the vehicle forward and upward. The absolute thrust grows in line with the size and weight of the aircraft as required.
The engine — the implement becoming the infrastructure.
The Implement
The further innovation is making JAPHETH an Air Chemical Engine System (ACES). One which starts with the required amount of fuel for takeoff and then making more in flight. The start up fuel is a bi-propellant. A suitable fuel combined with nitrogen tetraoxide as the hypergolic.
Over the years, NASA has studied propellants. And hydrogen is found as the most suitable propellant, even though, the technologies for its production, storage and tankage are still improving. Moreover, the imperative of national security makes the military to prefer hydrocarbon-based fuels for powering planes and missiles. The strength of carbon as a capable carrier of heat is a factor that cannot be easily dismissed.
A bi-propellant using hydrogen with nitrogen tetraoxide burns clean and produces no carbon dioxide. In flight, the ACES, combines the constituent elements together to produce more of the kinds. Or, the catalysed chemical reactions also producing ammonia and nitrogen, both capable clean propellants.
The required chemistry & physics is the heat carrying capability of the elements. As opposed to looking at fuels or propellants as molecules, as they are currently studied. Such requiring identifying and harnessing the atomic and sub-atomic properties of the elements for maximum catalytic reactions.
The military is hamstrung by the still non-existent hydrogen fuel infrastructure. Therefore, the reality is that they will still keep to using the extant fuels. No nation can become a lame duck when it is attacked, because it is not using tried and tested systems and technologies for national defence. It is inexcusable, and if the nation survives, the leaders will be booted out immediately.
JAPHETH offers the innovation. With its ACES design, a hydrocarbon fuel is converted in-flight to hydrogen and ammonia, using the gasses present in atmospheric air. The carbon from such fuel are prevented from combining with oxygen. The innovation, thus, is to use a catalyst that favours the production of nitrogen tetraoxide in-flight. Favouring the use of oxygen for making such instead of carbon dioxide.
The innovation is different from current catalysts being used for neutralising nitrogen oxides in automobiles. Novel catalysts are needed to prevent their formation in the first place. And instantiates the reactions to favour the production of the preferred molecules.
JAPHETH itself requires an innovation. A separate chamber different from the combustor chamber and the tank is required for the preferred reactions to occur in. Such ensuring that the right variable pressure and temperature are present for the production of the preferred clean molecules. The compressor and turbomachinery of the engine made to act accordingly. The use of light weight and high heat resistant advanced materials and metals negating the challenge of brittleness and heaviness.
NASA, for instance, is making high heat resistant jet technologies, these are, however, for subsonic engines. Hence, the need for further innovations to accommodate the rising of hypersonic flights. The implement – a JAPHETH, becoming the infrastructure, making hypersonic HTHL a reality.
The innovations coming by companies.
The crucibles
The world changing innovations are coming by innovators making within startups, companies and corporations. General Electric Aerospace, Pratt & Whitney, Rolls Royce and others are working on hypersonic engines. These have accumulated patents over a century of making and servicing.
The upcoming startups such as Hermeus, Hypersonix Space Launch, Reaction Engines, Space Engines System, and others are growing their patents as well in the emerging sphere. These are craftsmen – the term as used previously, describing a lone or a motley crew bootstrapping in a workshop. Aspiring to grow bigger as their technologies become more capable, and the market is open to accepting their services.
Patents are long used for protecting hard earned intellectual properties. However, big companies can get complacent. Startups can beat them to the market with more innovative products and services, even as hedging with mergers & acquisitions or joint ventures can enable companies to stay afloat and abreast of a new technology.
The story of Bristol Aerospace Engines, is informative. The pioneer of vertical takeoff & landing (VTOL) engine — Pegasus, and a serial patentor was, nonetheless, acquired by Roll Royce. The lack of a market for civilian VTOL flights and the reticence of airframers and airliners to fully embrace the technology contributed to the folding up. The contributory Cold War atmosphere that forced untoward governmental intervention, notwithstanding.
Startups can be acquired by bigger companies, if they are not fully innovative. A transformative innovation requires changing the whole architecture of a product or service. A piecemeal or incremental tinkering can prone a startup to acquisition by the parent company it depends on for its main technology.
MTU Aero in Germany, has been improving jet engines made by bigger companies, and not growing better and big enough. The propping up by the German government and military for powering domestic planes, not giving the impetus to be transformative.
The prolonged prop up is an example of procurement being a hindrance to real innovation. A transformative innovation is otherwise. Usually coming from an entrepreneur or innovator. Governments can be supportive, especially when a novel technology is required for national wellbeing or security.
Patents are essential, but production and productivity matter more. As JAPHETH is an engine a crucible for making its own clean propellants, companies create and invent the novel. Hypersonia is the one.
It is real
The rising of hypersonic flight beyond Mach 5 is real. Hyper speed HTHL is reality. It is both niche and mass. Smartphones, for instance serve billions. The price one pays depends on the costs and efforts the company expended in its making. Therefore, different customers go to different companies to buy from according to their various capacities and use-cases.
JAPHETH is an innovation of infrastructure, products, services and systems. It is a group of engines. With integral and in-built capability for powering both earthbound and spacefaring hypersonic flights. Different from the extant, the technology bringing Hyperspacia closer.
Such technologies define nations. The US Congress, intentionally removing information about airbreathing scramjets for powering hypersonic cruise fighters and missiles from the recently released GAO report, is waking up to its transformative imports. Such decision guarding against showing other nations its full capability. Bolstering the existence of a hypersonic 6th Generation fighter.
Transformative innovations are contributing to tackling the health problems that Covid virus has brought. Hypersonia is likewise world changing. JAPHETH as the engine making it to fly.
God bless. Jesus heals.
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