Japan has successfully tested a rotary detonation engine in space

  • Reading Time:3Minutes

The basic concept of the rotating detonation engine (RDE) is so simple that it was born in the 1950s. RDE as a concept was first conceived at the University of Michigan in the 1950s, and is based on the idea that, unlike conventional internal combustion engines, the fuel is not burned but exploded in a circular chamber where the shock wave from the explosion travels along, providing propulsion while triggering another explosion – in other words, the process is self-sustaining until the fuel is used up.

The advantage of the idea is that much more thrust can be squeezed out of much less fuel (we’re talking about savings of around 25 per cent), while the disadvantage is that the explosion is a much more difficult process to control than combustion. The concept is also reminiscent of the pulse detonation engine (PDE), but better in that the combustion chamber has to be cleaned before each explosion, whereas with RDE it is a self-sustaining, constantly running process.

Unfortunately, however, there is sometimes a painfully wide gap between theory and practice, and despite decades of attempts to build such engines, it turns out that sustaining self-sustaining, continuous detonations is so difficult that around 2020, US rocket scientists publicly declared that the practical implementation of similar engines based on hydrogen-oxygen detonation was impossible. It didn’t take much longer than a few months for scientists at the University of Central Florida’s Air Force Research Laboratory to achieve the impossible: they built a prototype that worked by continuously detonating hydrogen and oxygen.

The prototype study also meant a renewed interest in this “impossible engine”, according to scientists who spoke to New Atlas. And the development of the RDE has reached another milestone after the 2020 milestone, with the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) announcing on 19 August that it had successfully tested such an engine, not just in the lab but in space. One of the most important applications of the RDE would be in space travel/exploration, where it is important to provide the most thrust with the least amount of fuel.

JAXA has installed the system on an S-520-31 rocket capable of delivering 100 kg of cargo to an altitude of 300 km. The launch took place at the Uchinoura Space Centre on 27 July. The rocket launched the test after the first stage separation, when the RDE operated for 6 seconds, and after the device was lifted out of the ocean after re-entry, it was found that the RDE had developed a thrust of 500 Newtons. The researchers say they hope to see practical results from this experiment within 5 years. The US Air Force is also considering the practical use of the RDE in the same timeframe, and hopes to conduct a missile test with the engine by 2025.

The main use of RDE is therefore in space research, but it can also be used on the ground. In 2012, the Naval Research Laboratory estimated that replacing gas turbines on the largest ships with RDE could save 15-20% of fuel costs per year. But RDE could also be used for hypersonic and supersonic flight, and even power generation.

Recent article

EVTOL & VTOL News & Articles

The flying ambulance arrives at lightning speed

EVTOL & VTOL News & Articles

The electric car revolution could continue in the air

EVTOL & VTOL News & Articles

Unmanned aerial taxis flew in a unique formation

Electric airplane News & Articles

NASA’s Innovations: Soaring into an Electrified Flight Future

EVTOL & VTOL News & Articles

Could eVTOLs and Air Taxis Replace Public Transport ?

Additional aircraft News & Articles

The Morphobot: An Innovation in Multimodal Robotics

News & Articles Points of interest

The Dawn of AI Air Travel: Airbus and its Vision for Autonomy

Air taxi News & Articles

Volocopter’s High-Flying Ambitions for the Olympics

News & Articles Propulsion-Fuel

The Horizon of Aviation: Airbus’ Vision for 2035 and Beyond

EVTOL & VTOL News & Articles

A Shift in Aviation Licensing and Training

Drones News & Articles

Russia’s Path to Drone Supremacy

Air taxi News & Articles

Israel’s Pioneering Venture into Drone Transport

Air taxi News & Articles

More efficient air taxis in the future

Air taxi News & Articles

Testing of perhaps the most promising air taxi begins

Additional aircraft News & Articles

Navigating the Future: Autonomous Helicopters Soar High

EVTOL & VTOL News & Articles

Embracing the Future: Seoul’s Leap into Urban Air Mobility
More articles you may be interested in...

Air taxi News & Articles

The Coming Electric Air Taxi Revolution: Competing with Train Tickets ?

The Dutch company, Electron Aviation, is making a bold promise that is set to disrupt.......... READ MORE

News & Articles Propulsion-Fuel

Unveiling the Whisper of Innovation: CycloTech’s Exploration into CycloRotor Noise Levels

In the fast-paced realm of aeronautical engineering, the introduction of CycloRotors has heralded a paradigm.......... READ MORE

Points of interest

Sailing the Skies in Style: Airbus’s Novel Vision for Air Travel

Navigating the dawn of a fresh chapter in aviation, Airbus recently shared its audacious plans.......... READ MORE

Drones News & Articles

Boosting Agriculture: A Drone Revolution Awaits in Budapest

The stage is set in Hungary, as it stands on the brink of an exciting.......... READ MORE

News & Articles Propulsion-Fuel

Embracing the Future with Rolls-Royce’s Revolutionary UltraFan Engine

Just when you thought the apex of innovation had been reached, Rolls-Royce challenges the notion.......... READ MORE

Air taxi News & Articles

Testing of perhaps the most promising air taxi begins

For some of us, the very idea of an air taxi evokes scenes straight out.......... READ MORE

Additional aircraft News & Articles

Navigating the Future: Autonomous Helicopters Soar High

Unmanned helicopters are no longer a concept in some futuristic Sci-Fi novel. They're here, revolutionizing.......... READ MORE

EVTOL & VTOL News & Articles

Embracing the Future: Seoul’s Leap into Urban Air Mobility

In an audacious move to revolutionize its transport system, Seoul - the bustling South Korean.......... READ MORE