CFD Investigation of Vortex Generator Additions to the General Atomics MQ-9 Reaper

Kuwik, Brett S.; Tabacjar, Christopher; Lee, Seong-Jin

doi:10.2514/6.2018-1009

Cited by 3 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 2 publications

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“…In common with other joint civil/military airframes (e.g. A-330 and A-330 MRTT [29]), civilian versions are already made for the MQ-9 [30]; this eliminates national security or threat misidentification concerns. Significant civilian savings are expected from the $30M military CapEx unit price-omitting the following:…”

Section: Uav Platformmentioning

confidence: 99%

Marine-cloud brightening: an airborne concept

Claudel,

Lockley,

Hoffmann

et al. 2024

Environ. Res. Commun.

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Marine Cloud Brightening (MCB) is a proposed Solar Radiation Modification (SRM) geoengineering technique to enhance Marine Boundary Layer (MBL) cloud albedo. Extant proposals consider 10,000-100,000 autonomous ships spraying seawater, generating and dispersing sea salt nanoparticles. Alternatively, this paper proposes industrially manufacturing NaCl nanoparticles using ethanol anti-solvent brine precipitation. With desiccation, size optimization and narrowed size distribution, aerosol mass flux reduces by 500x (17x for dry mass flux). This facilitates Unmanned Aerial Vehicle delivery (e.g. MQ-9 Reaper Unmanned Aerial Vehicle). Increased speed and wake turbulence improves areal coverage per vehicle vs. ships --- reducing fleet size. Utilizing extant airframe designs improves vehicle Technology Readiness Level (TRL) --– potentially improving system operational cost (est. $40B per year) and lead time. This approach further reduces energy requirements (5x less), technical risk and system complexity. Increased readiness amplifies proliferation risk --- particularly for inexpensive regional heatwave and hurricane suppression --- making governance more urgent.

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Section: Uav Platformmentioning

confidence: 99%

Marine-cloud brightening: an airborne concept

Claudel,

Lockley,

Hoffmann

et al. 2024

Environ. Res. Commun.

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“…The power of the jet aircraft in case that the maximum thrust is needed, is estimated as (45) In case that the jet aircraft cruises with the minimum required power, the following condition is valid [34]:…”

Section: Jet-driven Uavsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The MQ-9 Reaper/Predator B (Figure 10) is a HALE UAV produced by General Atomics, used for high-altitude surveillance and ground attack missions, by militaries and organizations all over the world [44][45][46][47][48][49][50]. The aircraft is powered by the TPE331-10 turboprop engine of 940 shp, designed by Honeywell [50,51].…”

Section: Mq9 Reaper/predator B Parameter Estimation-performance Analysismentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The takeoff and landing distance is typically 2000 ft [48]. Regarding its airfoil design, the MQ-9 Reaper has the Drela GW-19/−25 wing root and the Drela GW-27 airfoil wing tip, designed by Dr. Drela, MIT [45].The technical characteristics of the aircraft are given in Table 5, whereas 6.67 lb/US gal the propulsion system's characteristic curve is depicted in Figure 11.…”

Section: Mq9 Reaper/predator B Parameter Estimation-performance Analysismentioning

confidence: 99%

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A guide to unmanned aerial vehicles performance analysis—the MQ‐9 unmanned air vehicle case study

Zountouridou

Kiokes

Dimeas

et al. 2023

The Journal of Engineering

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Great efforts are devoted for integrating Renewable Energy Sources (RES) on the propulsion system of Unmanned Air Vehicles (UAVs). This is applicable to small UAVs, having a horizon to expand to large UAVs within the next decades. For the conventional propulsion systems to be replaced, the required power needs of the aircraft should first be examined. The required power depends on the UAV's flight stage from takeoff to landing, whereas its calculation varies with regard to the propulsion system type, which is separated into two main categories, the propelled-driven engines and the jet engines. Two obstacles are arising. First, the parameters needed for the power estimation are commercially sensitive and second the analysis alters with respect to the engine's type. This paper focuses on the mathematical analysis of the required power for both the main propulsion systems, presented extensively for each flight phase, proposing, at the same time, a parameter estimation method which is applicable to any UAV type. The main purpose of this paper is to act as a guide for the calculation of any type UAV's required power at any flight stage. To validate the analysis, the MQ-9 Reaper/Predator B, a High Altitude Long Endurance (HALE) turboprop UAV produced by General Atomics is analysed. Its unknown parameters are estimated and based on a selected flight profile, the required power in terms of horsepower from takeoff to landing is assessed, for two scenarios regarding the aircraft's initial weight. In the first scenario the UAV has the maximum gross takeoff weight, whereas in the second scenario it does not carry any payload. The estimated required shaft power per flight phase for each scenario is then marked into the TPE331-10 turboprop engine characteristic curves.

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“…In common with other joint civil/military airframes (e.g. A-330 and A-330 MRTT [21]), civilian versions are already made for the MQ-9 [24]; this eliminates national security or misidentification concerns. Significant civilian savings are expected from the $30M military CapEx unit price -omitting military grade secure communications, stealth capabilities, electronic counter measures, threat detection systems, targeting optics, crew vetting, etc.…”

Section: Uav Platformmentioning

confidence: 99%

Marine Cloud Brightening: an airborne concept

Claudel,

Lockley,

Hoffmann

et al. 2023

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Marine cloud brightening (MCB) is a proposed solar radiation modification (SRM) geoengineering technique to enhance marine boundary layer (MBL) cloud albedo. Extant proposals consider 10,000-100,000 autonomous ships spraying seawater, generating and dispersing sea salt nanoparticles. Alternatively, this paper proposes industrially manufacturing NaCl nanoparticles using ethanol anti-solvent brine precipitation. With desiccation, size optimization and narrowed size distribution, aerosol mass flux reduces by 500x (17x for the dry mass flux). This facilitates Unmanned Aerial Vehicle delivery (e.g. MQ-9 Reaper UAV). Increased speed, altitude and wake turbulence improves areal coverage per vehicle vs. ships - reducing fleet size. Utilizing extant airframe designs improves vehicle technology readiness level (TRL) - potentially improving system operational cost (est. $40B/year) and lead time. This approach further reduces energy requirements (5x less), technical risk and system complexity. Increased readiness amplifies proliferation risk - particularly for inexpensive regional heatwave and hurricane suppression - making governance more urgent.

show abstract

CFD Investigation of Vortex Generator Additions to the General Atomics MQ-9 Reaper

Cited by 3 publications

References 2 publications

Marine-cloud brightening: an airborne concept

Marine-cloud brightening: an airborne concept

A guide to unmanned aerial vehicles performance analysis—the MQ‐9 unmanned air vehicle case study

Marine Cloud Brightening: an airborne concept

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