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Runway stones thrown up by aircraft undercarriage wheels can cause considerable damage to the aircraft structure. A model of runway debris lofting developed at Imperial College has been used for the new A400M military transport aircraft, which Airbus reported was `absolutely needed' during the successful development of a nose wheel debris deflector [5. A]. This deflector dramatically reduces the incidence and severity of the runway debris impacts and the associated maintenance costs and downtime of the new aircraft. Airbus has received 174 orders to date for the A400M. An indication of the cost savings comes from the Hercules C130K, the predecessor of the A400M, which incurred costs of up to £1M for each aircraft on active service in Afghanistan for the repair of runway debris damage. This cost is now eliminated for the Airbus A400M aircraft.
As a direct result of University of Glasgow research, there have been no deaths in a gyroplane accident in the UK since 2009. Previously, gyroplanes (also known as autogyros) had a questionable safety record. Following fifteen years of comprehensive studies, researchers recommended innovative new design standards to the Civil Aviation Authority. These recommendations led to the introduction of new civil airworthiness requirements in the UK, subsequently adopted by Australia and Canada. The implementation of these revised regulations has forced gyroplane manufacturers to change their designs. Close to 2000 machines have been produced since this design change, revolutionising gyroplane safety worldwide.
Cranfield's understanding and modelling of aircraft icing, a critical part of the safety, operation and design protocols for all types of aircraft, has changed the way in which aerospace companies approach the design of new aircraft. Cranfield's research has produced high quality predictive software and an extensive experimental validation database the impact of which is its use in the design, optimisation and certification of aircraft and their components.
The impact of Cranfield's icing research is in the design processes for:
The consultancy company AeroTex makes use of UCL research findings to design new and improved ice protection systems for fixed wing or rotor aircraft. These new designs enable AeroTex's customers (aircraft manufacturers and Tier 1 equipment suppliers) to comply with upcoming changes that are raising aircraft certification standards and to operate aircraft more safely in icing conditions. The increase in income to AeroTex resulting from this work was approximately [text removed for publication] per year between 2010 and 2013, representing around 15% of AeroTex's annual turnover.
The safe operation of ships is a high priority task in order to protect the ship, the personnel, the cargo and the wider environment. Research undertaken by Professor Alexander Korobkin in the School of Mathematics at UEA has led to a methodology for the rational and reliable assessment of the structural integrity and thus safety of ships and their cargos in severe sea conditions. Central to this impact is a set of mathematical models, the conditions of their use, and the links between them, which were designed to improve the quality of shipping and enhance the safety of ships. The models, together with the methodology of their use, are utilised by the ship certification industry bringing benefits through recognised quality assurance systems and certification.
Research conducted at the University of Lincoln into advanced modelling of ship aerodynamics, integrated with helicopter flight simulation, has led to a design analysis technique which has influenced both the design of a specific ship and the guidance given to naval ship designers. It has been used by BAE Surface Ships in the design of the forthcoming Type 26 combat ship. This will be the first naval ship to be designed using a technique that has led to a superstructure configuration which seeks to reduce the impact of the ship airwake on the helicopter, thereby improving flight handling and pilot workload, and maximising the operational envelope of the helicopter and improving pilot safety. The research has also directly influenced the international ship design community through the NATO working group on Ship Design Guidance for Aircraft Operations (AVT-217).
Rail transport is the greenest form of transport in that it produces the least pollution of the environment. However, the noise from squealing trains has been a major factor preventing the wider use of rail transport in populated areas, especially in cities, where trains have to traverse tight curves in built-up areas. Research carried out at Keele University on curve squeal gave crucial input to developing an effective control method (KELTRACK friction modifier, developed by the company LB Foster Friction Management). This is a device by which a thin film is applied at the wheel-rail interface, which in turn destroys the generation mechanism of curve squeal. The KELTRACK friction modifier is now used in transport systems all over the world, especially in underground systems, such as the metros of Tokyo, Beijing and Madrid.
The GRANIT system is a non-destructive technique for assessing the condition of rock bolts and ground anchors used to support structures such as tunnels. It applies a small impulse to the bolt and interprets the resulting vibration response to provide estimates of load and unbonded length. Initial development of the system was based on the findings of EPSRC projects in tunnels undertaken by the Universities of Aberdeen and Bradford from 1989-1997, resulting in an empirically based method. However, research undertaken at the University of Aberdeen since 1998 has provided the understanding of the process and developed the fundamental engineering science needed to underpin the development of a full commercial system. The GRANIT system is patented, and has been subject to worldwide licence to Halcrow who have undertaken testing and provided a method of ensuring the safety of mines, tunnels and similar structures. Halcrow received the NCE award for Technical Innovation Award for GRANIT in December 2010. The impact of the research has been in part economic, but largely on practitioners and professional services.
For aerospace vehicles, the development of new materials and structural configurations are key tools in the relentless drive to reduce weight and increase performance (in terms of, for example, speed and flight characteristics). The economic drivers are clear — it is widely recognised that it is worth approximately $10k to save one pound of weight in a spacecraft per launch and $500 per pound for an aircraft over its lifetime. The environmental drivers (ACARE 2050) are also clear — reduced aircraft weight leads to lower fuel burn and, in turn, to lower CO2 and NOx emissions. With such high cost-to-weight ratios, there is intense industrial interest in the development of new structural configurations/concepts and enhanced structural models that allow better use of existing or new materials. Analytical structural mechanics models of novel anisotropic structures, developed at the University's Advanced Composites Centre for Innovation and Science (ACCIS), are now used in the industrial design of aircraft and spacecraft. Based on this research, a new, unique anisotropic composite blade, designed to meet an Urgent Operational Requirement for the MoD, is now flying on AgustaWestland EH101 helicopters that are deployed in Theatre. In addition, the new modelling tools and techniques have been adopted by Airbus, AgustaWestland, Cassidian and NASA and incorporated into LUSAS's finite element analysis software. These tools have, for example, been used to inform Airbus's decision to use a largely aluminium wing design rather than a hybrid CFRP/aluminium wing for the A380.
A two-dimensional flood inundation model called LISFLOOD-FP, which was created by a team led by Professor Paul Bates at the University of Bristol, has served as a blueprint for the flood risk management industry in the UK and many other countries. The documentation and published research for the original model, developed in 1999, and the subsequent improvements made in over a decade of research, have been integrated into clones of LISFLOOD-FP that have been produced by numerous risk management consultancies. This has not only saved commercial code developers' time but also improved the predictive capability of models used in a multimillion pound global industry that affects tens of millions of people annually. Between 2008 and 2013, clones of LISFLOOD-FP have been used to: i) develop national flood risk products for countries around the world; ii) facilitate the pricing of flood re-insurance contracts in a number of territories worldwide; and iii) undertake numerous individual flood inundation mapping studies in the UK and overseas. In the UK alone, risk assessments from LISFLOOD-FP clones are used in the Environment Agency's Flood Map (accessed on average 300,000 times a month by 50,000 unique browsers), in every property legal search, in every planning application assessment and in the pricing of the majority of flood re-insurance contracts. This has led to more informed and, hence, better flood risk management. A shareware version of the code has been available on the University of Bristol website since December 2010. As of September 2013, the shareware had received over 312 unique downloads from 54 different countries.