• Question: How do you feel about the increasing amount of pollution caused by aeroplane fuels?

    Asked by missalice to Al, Emma, Ivanka, James, Omar on 19 Mar 2012.
    • Photo: Al Bartlett

      Al Bartlett answered on 19 Mar 2012:

      Hello missalice

      I like the question.

      Aircraft engines are slightly different to car engines because they also create noise pollution which is another issue that has designers constantly looking for answers.

      In the years of the jet engine we have developed the technology significantly that we have brought down the levels of toxic gases and noise released in to the atmosphere a lot.

      The first type of engine was called a ‘Low Bypass Turbofan’ – This is an incredibly noisy engine that thankfully is only used on a handfull of aircraft (All new jet-engined aircraft do not have this engine). A low bypass engine is one that takes ALL of the air that is sucked in, mixes it with fuel and burns it to create thrust (forward motion). The newer engines are called ‘High Bypass Turbofan’ which means that they suck in a lot more air but only burn a portion of it – The remaining air is used as a ‘cushion’ around the exhaust to make it much much quieter.

      The fuels used today are also much cleaner than fuels used in days gone by. The engines will burn of much of the fuel and gas as possible leaving only traces of the gas in the atmosphere.

      The fact is that the world requires aircraft to get from A to B but as more travel is required by more people, this means more aircraft.

      Trust me, the designers are working on the gas-free aircraft engine but it will take time – we’ll get there!!

      Hope this answers your question.

    • Photo: Omar Mustufvi

      Omar Mustufvi answered on 20 Mar 2012:

      Good question and I think Al has given a good answer. There have been smaller aircraft (propeller) which use a hybrid powertrain similar to cars but for large commercial aircraft it isn’t possible as they require huge amounts of thrust (forward force). As Al has said, similarly to the automotive industry there are many engineers working on developing more efficient technologies for planes and cleaner fuels may be the answer.

      I think in order to reduce the pollution we need companies and the public to be more aware of these issues and hence we will solve common problems such as half empty planes…

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