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Manchester engineers to design cheap, green planes

06/02/2007

Engineers at the University of Manchester are hoping to use a £280,000 European Union grant to develop greener, cheaper and lighter and greener aircrafts.

The A team from the university's Power Conversion Group will investigate how mechanical and hydraulic systems used for small aircraft can be improved using advanced electrical engineering.

One of the main aims of the team is to produce plans for an aircraft that uses electronic systems instead of heavy mechanics and hydraulics. This will allow the planes to burn less fuel and carry more travellers, thereby reducing the carbon footprint of each passenger.

Dr Nigel Schofield said: "With the increasing popularity of air travel, the demand for smaller commercial aircraft is likely to increase in coming years.

"It certainly won't provide a solution to the huge problem of aircraft emissions, but it could lead to cheaper, smarter and more environmentally friendly aircraft taking to the skies."

The research is part of the three-year Cost Effective Small Aircraft project, which began last September and involves nearly 40 commercial and academic organisations in Europe.




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