Comparative study of the energy efficiency of diesel and hybrid powered light aircraft

Abstract

In recent times many research efforts are aimed at the development of aircraft hybrid propulsion technology as a means to minimize the aircraft environmental impact. The objective is to provide an additional assessment of the energy efficiency of the hybrid powered light aircraft in comparison with current state of the art Diesel powered aircraft. Typical 4-seat propeller airplane is chosen as a prototype and its flight performance model is created using open source data. The comparison is performed for a realistic flight profile including the power demands for go-around and flight to alternate destination airport. Parallel hybrid architecture is considered. A parametric study with variation of the mass, efficiency and energy capacity parameters of the hybrid power train is performed in order to determine the parameter regions where the hybrid power train has advantage over the Diesel one. The present study is based on the previous experience of the authors in assessing the energy efficiency of alternative power sources for the aviation.