‘Revolutionary’ design: Chinese scientists invent the most powerful detonation engine for hypersonic flight
- Hypersonic weapons researchers say they have an unprecedented power solution for aerospace planes
- Paper says design integrating rotational and straight-line detonation across a wide speed range is ‘world first’ and testament to Chinese ingenuity
The “revolutionary” air-breathing engine could, in theory, lift an aircraft from a runway to more than 30km (18.6 miles) into the stratosphere and continuously accelerate it to 16 times the speed of sound.
At this velocity, even the longest intercontinental flights could take just one or two hours while consuming less fuel compared with conventional jet engines.
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The engine blueprint was detailed in a peer-reviewed paper published in the Chinese Journal of Propulsion Technology in December by a team led by Zhang Yining with the Beijing Power Machinery Institute.
According to the paper, the engine operates in two distinct modes: below Mach 7 speed, it functions as a continuous rotating detonation engine.
Air from the outside mixes with fuel and is ignited, creating a shock wave that propagates in an annular, or ring-shaped, chamber. The shock wave ignites more fuel during rotation, providing a powerful and continuous thrust for the aircraft.
Above Mach 7, the shock wave stops rotating and focuses on a circular platform at the engine’s rear, maintaining thrust through a nearly straight-line oblique detonation format, according to the paper.
