QLD: New test for revolutionary scramjet

AAP General News (Australia)
04-12-2001
QLD: New test for revolutionary scramjet

By Gil Breitkreutz

BRISBANE, April 12 AAP - A revolutionary jet engine designed to fly planes four times
faster than the Concorde has passed initial tests.

The scramjet, the pet project of aeronautical engineer Ray Stalker, passed its vibration
tests at Salisbury, South Australia, over the past three days.

Prof Stalker said the shaker test aimed to prove the revolutionary engine could withstand
the rigours of being shot into space.

"They literally tried to shake it to pieces," Prof Stalker said.

"Now it's passed, we have the Hyshot Project in July."

That involved sending a scramjet engine 380km into space and trying to start the engine
during its passage.

The scramjet is a combustible engine designed to work with air that passes into its
chambers at supersonic speed.

"With normal combustion engines the air is slowed down. With the scramjet the air enters
at the speed the engine is travelling and fuel is injected in milliseconds to provide
the combustion," said Prof Stalker.

He said the scramjet had worked in tests on the ground but this would be the first
attempt to make the engine work under subspace conditions.

"If it works it could lead to jet planes flying at eight times the speed of sound.

That's about four times the present speed of the Concorde. Think how that could revolutionise
air travel," he said.

Prof Stalker, who has been working on the project for 20 years, said the present trials
were costing about $500,000.

"The Americans have a longer term project underway that has a $150 million-budget," he said.

Prof Stalker said the US Air Force, the National Aeronautical Laboratory of Japan and
the US aerospace company GASL had joined the Queensland University in the current project.

Dr Allan Paul of Queensland University's Centre for Hypersonics said the scramjet could
revolutionise the launch of small space payloads such as communications satellites by
substantially lowering the costs.

AAP geb/jhm/mg

KEYWORD: SCRAMJET

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