IEEE Power Electronics Magazine - March 2018 - 60

by Tom Keim

EccE 2017 Explores
Electrification of aircraft

he 2017 edition of the IEEE
Energy Conversion Conference and Exposition (ECCE)
was held in Cincinnati, Ohio, 1-5
October 2017. The theme of the conference was the application of
power electronics in aviation. In
making this choice, the organizers
were motivated at least in part by
the proximity of Cincinnati to Dayton, home of the Wright brothers
and the site of a major Air Force
research and development (R&D)
organization, and to Evendale, the
headquarters of General Electric's
(GE) jet engine business. The aviation theme was a great success.
After a day of seminars on Sunday,
the conference started on Monday,
2 October, with a morning plenary
session. The speakers found a way
to explain both the status and direction of power electronics and electrical energy conversion in present and
future aircrafts to an audience that,
for the most part, was not familiar
with the subject. Dr. Hao Huang, the
first keynote speaker and the technology chief of electrical power of GE
Aviation, was especially effective. In
addition to its well-known aircraft
engine division, GE provides electrical components, including generators and control systems to aircraft
builders. During his discussion, Dr.
Huang anticipated themes of subsequent keynote speakers, and he did an
especially excellent job of explaining
the growth to date along with the essential developments that have yet to
occur with aircraft electrification.
The speakers' discussions concentrated on the past decade's systems beyond the more electric aircraft (MEA)

Digital Object Identifier 10.1109/MPEL.2017.2784179
Date of publication: 23 February 2018

IEEE PowEr ElEctronIcs MagazInE

of the camel is evidently expected to
R&D programs. In fact, Dr. Huang's
arrive in the future.
speech helped me to understand for
The second keynote speaker was
the first time that, among the many
Robert Bayles of United Technologies
Boeing 787 airliner advancements, it
Corporation (UTC) Aerospace Sysis the first and only transport aircraft
tems, Charlotte, North Carolina. It is
to use electrical power for cabin cliapparent from his discussion that he
mate control and engine starting. For
and Dr. Huang share a vision of the futhese electrical innovations, multiple
ture; while Bayles' position provided
speakers compared the significance
clarity for the audience, because he
of the 787 to that of the Heinkel HE
presented his speech after Dr. Huang's,
178, which was the first turbine-proit may have seemed as though he
pelled aircraft to fly, in 1939. Howwas simply endorsing Dr. Huang's
ever, the mainstream technology for
opinions. In reality, it's clear that the
cabin climate control remains pneutwo speakers have
matic, with the priformed similar opinmary power source
Among the many
ions by independent
being extracted by
analysis of the same
bleeding air from one
thought-provoking
set of facts.
of the early stages of
ideas he put forward
The final keynote
the compressor porwas a stated goal to
s p e a k e r w a s D r.
tion of the propulsion
reduce the carbon
Nateri K. Madavan
engines. This compliconsumption of the
of NASA . A s befits
cates the construcindustry by 50%
the final speaker in a
tion of the engine as
series talking about
well as the aircraft,
between the years
the future a nd a s
compromising the
2005 and 2050.
somebody who works
propulsion efficienfor a space agency,
cy. The engines on
his vision and message reached farthe 787s have no provision for bleed air.
thest into the future.
Dr. Huang indicated, however, that
Among the many thought-provoking
t he out come of f ut u re at t empt s
ideas he put forward was a stated goal
to provide more electrical power on
to reduce the carbon consumption of
an aircraft is far from certain. Adthe industry by 50% between the years
vanced aircrafts currently in develop2005 and 2050. On first thought, this
ment are not likely to follow suit and
seems like a worthy ambition, with a
abandon bleed air. In the near future,
suitably long time frame. But upon
advancements in basic turbofan enfurther review, the goal seems nearly
gine technology promise a greater
impossible. Between 2005 and 2017, the
reduction of fuel consumption per
annual carbon emissions of the aviaunit of additional cost than electrical
tion industry have risen, not fallen.
climate controls. Eventually, turbofan
Furthermore, the seat miles flown
efficiency will plateau, and increased
continues to increase at a rate that
electrification will again become a
overbalances the fact that newer airtopic of interest. If the 787 in 2009
craft entering the fleet burn less fuel
is indeed as significant as the Heinper seat mile. So now the proposikel HE 178, then it is essentially the
tion is to reduce fuel consumption by
camel's nose under the tent-the rest

z March 2018

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