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Airliner Concepts: A Step Change In Efficiency

Jun 21, 2019

Graham Warwick | Aviation Week & Space Technology

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  Aurora Flight Sciences D8

  Conceived by Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Aurora Flight Sciences, the D8 concept has two key technologies: a “double-bubble” fuselage and boundary-layer-ingestion (BLI) propulsion. The wide, lifting fuselage allows a smaller, lower-drag wing and tail, while the dual-lobe cabin cross-section provides twin-aisle convenience in a Boeing 737-800-class aircraft. But the non-circular fuselage cross-section requires a unique composite structure. The engines are embedded in the top of the aft fuselage where they ingest the boundary layer and reenergize the wake to reduce drag. But wake-filling propulsion requires distortion-tolerant fans to cope with the turbulent air entering the engines. Another distinctive feature of the D8 is the “pi” tail, which reduces weight. 

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  Photo credit [D8] - Aurora Flight Sciences

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The rising clamor over aviation's carbon emissions could add impetus to studies of unconventional aircraft configurations, and offer a step change in efficiency – beyond simple improvements in engine technology​. Here are some of the novel concepts being considered.