Study of a Regional Turboprop Aircraft with Electrically Assisted Turboshaft

Abstract

Hybrid-Electric Propulsion (HEP) could be part of the solution to decrease emissions associated with regional commercial aviation. This study presents results for the aircraft level fuel reduction potential of a regional turboprop concept with an HEP architecture and Entry-Into-Service (EIS) in 2035+. The configuration specifically tackles the elaborated challenges of introducing an additional electrical energy source to the configuration by employing a twofold electrical assistance to a turboshaft engine in combination with an innovative thermal management concept. Relevant components and disciplines were modeled and incorporated into an integrated aircraft design environment. The behavior and interaction of the HEP architecture with the aircraft was thoroughly investigated. A best-performing configuration was derived and compared with a conventional reference configuration following a State-of-the-Art (SoA) reference aircraft approach. For a typical mission with 200 nmi range, a block fuel reduction of 9.6% was found. However, the assumed battery performance characteristics limited the reduction potential and led to a fuel burn increase for the 600 nmi design mission. Furthermore, sourcing the non-propulsive subsystems directly from the on-board battery was detrimental. The innovative Thermal Management System (TMS) located in the propeller slipstream showed a synergistic effect with the investigated configuration.