Axis Nova
17-04-2005, 21:09
I've been thinking... while most of us postmodern nations take advantage of various advances of fusion power, better materials, faster computers et cetera, et cetera...
...pretty much everyone who designs postmodern aircraft goes with some sort of variation or advance of the standard jet engine.
Why not try using a small fusion reactor to make a fusion turbine engine?
This would provide a few disadvantages and a few advantages. Advantages would be as follows...
-Much more efficient engine due to the high heat combusting your reaction mass more completely
-More power than a jet engine (or variant thereof) of the same size could achieve
-Fuel would be hydrogen, which is somewhat less voatile than jet fuel, and easier to get and store (if you're a coastal nation, anyways)
-Doesn't require any special atmospheric conditions to work properly; could function at any altitude
Disadvantages:
-A bigger IR signature due to the higher heat involved in the reaction
-Likely to be pretty expensive
-Quite possibly HEAVIER than a jet engine of the same size
On the other hand, with the massively increased brute power these would provide, you could get much heavier things in the air.
Thoughts?
...pretty much everyone who designs postmodern aircraft goes with some sort of variation or advance of the standard jet engine.
Why not try using a small fusion reactor to make a fusion turbine engine?
This would provide a few disadvantages and a few advantages. Advantages would be as follows...
-Much more efficient engine due to the high heat combusting your reaction mass more completely
-More power than a jet engine (or variant thereof) of the same size could achieve
-Fuel would be hydrogen, which is somewhat less voatile than jet fuel, and easier to get and store (if you're a coastal nation, anyways)
-Doesn't require any special atmospheric conditions to work properly; could function at any altitude
Disadvantages:
-A bigger IR signature due to the higher heat involved in the reaction
-Likely to be pretty expensive
-Quite possibly HEAVIER than a jet engine of the same size
On the other hand, with the massively increased brute power these would provide, you could get much heavier things in the air.
Thoughts?