As global aviation industries rally for a decarbonized future, advancements in electric aircraft development are being made to replace traditional jet engines. A research group at Kyushu University has achieved a worldwide first by successfully testing a new motor using superconducting technology. This milestone signifies a significant step toward realizing next-generation aircraft.
The new motor, developed by the group led by Professor Masataka Iwakuma of Kyushu University, leverages superconducting technology that virtually eliminates electrical resistance. While conventional motors are heavy due to the use of iron and copper wires, making them difficult to install on aircraft, the superconducting motor can be made lighter using special materials. This results in a motor with one-tenth of the weight and twice the output power of a conventional motor of the same size.
Major global aircraft manufacturers are researching superconducting motors. However, the problem of ‘AC loss,’ where some energy is lost as heat, had been a barrier to development. At Kyushu University, where superconducting technology research has been carried out for half a century, the research group utilized accumulated research results and technologies to solve the AC loss problem, successfully rotating the entirely superconductive motor.
The output of the newly developed motor is in the 400 kilowatt range. However, by increasing the output and installing multiple motors, it’s theoretically possible to power a large passenger plane. Source: Kyushu University / NHK
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