Warship of Great Power

The power turbine of the gas turbine can easily output 10,000 to 20,000 revolutions per minute. When used on warships, it needs to add and reduce gears. It is a perfect match for this lift fan!

If the electric transmission solution is used, it is actually not suitable, because electric transmission is too complicated. It requires a generator and an electric motor. Although there are mature solutions for power generation, there is no suitable choice for electric motors on the other hand.

The electric motors used to drive warships in water are only a few hundred revolutions, which are all slow motors. Normal electric motors are at most a few thousand revolutions, and there are very few electric motors with tens of thousands of revolutions.

This is also why many people brag about electric turbines, as if changing the engine in this way can increase a lot of power. In fact, it is useless. The turbocharger can easily reach tens of thousands of revolutions, and the speed of the electric motor cannot reach it at all. If it is used as a supplement to the exhaust gas turbocharger to reduce the turbine delay, it is okay. If it is used as the main turbine, it will hinder the airflow at high speed, making the engine more fuel-consuming.

If we follow Qin Tao's plan and use an electric motor to drive the fan to blow air backward, it is absolutely inappropriate. He is commanding recklessly and taking it for granted. However, the idea of ​​using a ship-mounted gas turbine is still correct.

Because this engine can ignore the erosion of salt in the sea and can be used for a long time. Although this ground effect vehicle is to fly up, many parts are better to use ships than airplanes.

Therefore, the technicians of the Fourth Design Department thought hard and finally found a suitable solution: directly use a gas turbine to drive the lift fan!

Gas turbines are ready-made, and lift fans are also ready-made!

The J-31A fighter uses a lift fan. It is a lift fan when placed vertically, and it can be used as a thrust engine when placed horizontally!

And it happens to be a shaft drive!

"What power of gas turbine do you use?" Qin Tao was very curious.

"Forty megawatts." Alekseyeva introduced: "After the transformation, each lift fan can withstand a power input of about 2.5 megawatts. These 40 megawatts are just right for driving sixteen lift fans."

The Caspian Monster is already very powerful with eight engines installed in front, but for a behemoth with a take-off weight of 2,000 tons, eight engines are not enough, and sixteen are needed!

When talking about the power of a jet engine, generally speaking, how much thrust is there. Only the lift fan needs to input power through the transmission shaft, so it can be measured by horsepower.

Each lift fan can have a power of 30,000 horsepower. This 40-megawatt gas turbine can be used to drive a 10,000-ton warship, but now it is used to drive a 2,000-ton ground effect vehicle. It sounds a bit wasteful, but the warship cannot fly!

The big guy that humans can fly, the An-225 transport aircraft, only has a take-off weight of 640 tons, while the Peace Dove No. 4 of the Mingzhou Group is 2,000 tons!

"This is for takeoff, what about cruising?"

Qin Tao has already thought of something. Since the engine used in the takeoff lift technology is a gas turbine, then the cruising engine is probably also a gas turbine, right?

"For cruising, a 5-megawatt gas turbine is used to drive two lift engines as cruise engines." Alexeyeva said: "This is more fuel-efficient. If the 40-megawatt gas turbine is used at a lower power, the fuel consumption will not be low."

This is the disadvantage of the gas turbine.

The gas turbine has high power, small size, and light weight, but fuel consumption has always been a hard flaw. In fact, the fuel consumption of full-power operation does not matter. Even in the later period, the fuel consumption of some excellent gas turbines is almost the same as that of diesel engines. However, its power is reduced, but the fuel consumption is not reduced much, which is the most troublesome.

The American and Russian tank drivers who use gas turbines have the most say in this regard.

Qin Tao nodded: "Use two if you want. Our Mingzhou Group is not short of money, but... in the future, if you want to develop a ground effect vehicle of tens of thousands of tons or even 100,000 tons, this power system will not be suitable."

A 2,000-ton ground effect vehicle needs a 40-megawatt gas turbine to drive the lift-boosting engine. How much does a 10,000-ton one need? 400 megawatts? What about a 100,000-ton one? 4,000 megawatts?

It is estimated that it is difficult to find, so it will be difficult to develop a ground effect vehicle to a larger size. The engine for flying and cruising does not need to be too large, but the lift-boosting engine required for takeoff is not small.

Alexeyeva nodded: "Yes, if we continue to develop, ordinary power will definitely not work, but we still have special power."

If ordinary power is gone, there is still special power?

Qin Tao reacted: "Nuclear power?"

Not to mention the 100,000-ton one, it is estimated that the 10,000-ton big guy will have to consider the possibility of nuclear power, after all, nuclear power can provide high enough energy... Wait, nuclear power doesn't seem to be enough!

The nuclear reactor currently used on the 003 aircraft carrier has a thermal power of only 700 megawatts per unit, and the mechanical power to drive the turbine is only 200 megawatts. Even if this is used to directly drive the lift engine, it is not enough. A 10,000-ton aircraft carrier requires two nuclear reactors, and they are only used during takeoff. It is definitely a waste. Moreover, how heavy are these two nuclear reactors?

"Ordinary nuclear power is not enough, but our domestic related units are now developing nuclear fusion technology. We look forward to a breakthrough in this technology. By then, there will be a nuclear power system with enough energy. When our Mingzhou Group builds an aircraft carrier in the future, it may be a real aerospace aircraft carrier!"

The energy generated by nuclear fusion is several times that of fission. The fission reactor is 700 megawatts, and the fusion reactor may have 10,000 or 20,000 megawatts, which will naturally be enough by then.

Qin Tao breathed a sigh of relief. Well, since you are pinning your hopes on fusion reactors, I am relieved. At least this kind of nuclear reactor will not come out now, and you don't have to play with tens of thousands of tons immediately.

If it is really too big, it will probably cost a lot of money, and I am embarrassed to say no.

"Mr. Qin, thank you for helping me realize my father's dream. In fact, my father planned to build a 2,000-ton ground-effect vehicle back then." Alexeyeva continued.

Alexeyeva thought of her father again.

What 500 tons, 200 tons, in fact, are not her father's real pursuit. Alexeev wanted to build a 2,000-ton class, but no one supported him at all. Even building a 500-ton class was not supported. In the end, only the 200-ton class was relied on for practical use.

Now, Alexeev can finally build a 2,000-ton class. At this time, she thought of her father again. How great it would be if her father could see the current achievements!

"Well, it's a pity that Mr. Alexeev died early, otherwise he would definitely lead this project now, and he could also see the feasibility of this project."

"Yes, Sir Stanley Hook of the UK also proposed a 2,000-ton ground effect vehicle, planning to carry thousands of passengers as an aerial train, but in the end he still felt it was unrealistic and had to give up. We are confident that we can make it mature."

"By the way, we only talked about the engine, the wing should also be very large, right?"

When the size increases to a certain limit, it is not just a simple expansion. There may be many technical problems, for example, the strength of the material cannot be achieved.

Qin Tao didn't know the details, but he knew common sense, so he asked.

"Yes, it's also difficult to manufacture wings, but fortunately, our domestic material technology is progressing rapidly. Our wings and many parts on the fuselage are made of composite materials. This material is strong and durable, has high strength, and has good moisture and salt resistance. The most important thing is that it can allow some deformation, which is absolutely impossible for aluminum alloy materials in the past."

The aviation industry has been developing various advanced materials. High-temperature resistant ones are used in engines, and light and high-performance ones are used in skins. The slender wings of the American Global Hawk UAV are made of composite materials, which are quite advanced.

When Dongfang was manufacturing drones, there was no such advanced technology, and only ordinary materials could be used, so the wing could not be made particularly long, so two were made in the style of a shoulder pole. If it is now, it is completely possible.

However, it is no longer necessary now. Practice has proven that this design is not bad. When it is on an aircraft carrier, it is also convenient to flip the outer half of the wing in a small hangar. If it is a large aircraft like the Global Hawk, the outer part of the wing can only be flipped on the deck, and the hangar is not high enough!

No matter where you are, materials are the most important. It is precisely because of advanced materials that ground effect vehicles can reach the 2,000-ton level.

"Moreover, as the weight of our ground effect vehicle increases, it is difficult to land on land. We mainly fly over the sea. In order to facilitate docking at the port, our wings are also designed with a folding mechanism. When arriving at the port, it can be folded upwards, which can greatly reduce the risk of scratching.

A 500-ton ground effect vehicle can barely be designed with landing gear. After all, the take-off weight of the An-225 is 640 tons, and it can still land on the airport runway with the landing gear.

However, a 2,000-ton one is definitely not possible. How many tires should be installed on it? How many runways are needed? Moreover, when switching between sea and land, the landing gear door must be absolutely sealed and absolutely no water can leak.

These are too difficult, so we can only give up the ability to take off and land on land. This also means that even if it can fly over the land, it cannot land. Fortunately, most places on the earth are seawater.

"It seems that you have considered everything carefully. In this case, I am relieved. "

Qin Tao felt that he had nothing to ask. The design of the folding wings and docking at the port had already been completed. What was there to worry about?

But Alexeeva began to ask back.

"Boss Qin, where do you think our 2,000-ton ground effect vehicle is best used?"

In the era of the Red Empire, the Russian designers only needed to build it. They didn't need to worry about what it was used for. All kinds of advanced equipment were produced under smart brains, and Alexeeva was like this.

But now, it is necessary to find a market for the product. If you don't know what to do after you build it, it will definitely be a failure. Even if Max is playing with aerospace, it will cost a huge amount of money, and he also has the dream of sending humans to Mars, and he can also make a lot of money.

What is a 2,000-ton ground effect vehicle used for?

"The Navy is very interested in this project." Qin Tao said: "The Navy hopes that this ground effect aircraft can play a role in future operations. It hopes that this ground effect aircraft can quickly fly back and forth on both sides and move a large number of main battle aircraft. Tank transport."

Alexeyeva shook her head: "Our ground effect aircraft flies very fast, but the speed of entering and exiting the port is very slow. Our ground effect aircraft cannot land on beaches, so if the navy uses it, it will soon It feels useless. Unless the amphibious tanks are transported, they land near the target, and then the amphibious tanks drive over by themselves. However, many equipment in the navy can do this. What the navy lacks is the tools to transport heavy equipment. "

Regardless of how the Navy has been pushing for ground-effect aircraft, if you use them, you will feel inappropriate.

After all, the distance of one to two hundred kilometers is too short. After the ground effect aircraft takes off, it will soon land again, and the operation at the port is very complicated. Therefore, the ground effect aircraft is not suitable for this scenario.

"If you want to fly to Hawaii or even the West Coast of the United States, this kind of ground-effect aircraft is very suitable." Alexeyeva added.

It takes a long-distance flight to realize the advantages of ground-effect aircraft!

A two-thousand-ton ground-effect aircraft weighs five hundred tons, plus five hundred tons of fuel and fresh water supply and other resources, and has a load capacity of one thousand tons. A fifty-ton main battle tank can hold twenty vehicles!

It is equivalent to being able to attack with two tank companies. It is meaningless only in the short distance. It has to be driven at least several thousand kilometers to reflect the value of this aircraft.

Take Hawaii for example. The distance is 7,000 kilometers and the speed is 500 kilometers per hour. It only takes 14 hours. If you leave in the afternoon, you can arrive in the early morning of the next day. In the whole day of the next day, you can put all the flags on it. If replaced, this speed is much faster than warships. If those warships were to sail over, the speed of 30 knots would only be 1,000 kilometers a day, and it would take seven or eight days to arrive.

Airplanes are fast but have a small load capacity, while warships have a large load capacity but are slow. Ground effect aircraft combine the advantages of both: the speed of an aircraft and the load capacity of a warship.

"What if the strength of the bottom is increased so that this kind of ground-effect aircraft can be used for beaching?"

Many landing ships have this design and drive directly to the beach. In this way, even tanks without amphibious capabilities can drive directly to the beach and then rush towards the target.

"You can give this a try." Alexeyeva nodded: "If the bottom is strengthened, it will increase the weight. Unless high-strength materials are used, how about we use titanium alloy?"

Qin Tao frowned, titanium alloy? Unlike in Lao Maozi's era, we can use titanium alloy to build the shell of nuclear submarines luxuriously. If we use titanium alloy to build the bottom of the ship, how expensive will it be?

"Let's list this as a planned project first." Qin Tao changed the topic: "We still have to take advantage of the long distance. Let's build a batch first and join our Mingzhou Group Transportation Company. With this kind of ground effect aircraft, We can promise that all kinds of valuable materials will arrive within 48 hours from all over the world!”

The east is on the other side of the earth. It is not the United States, nor Europe, nor the big dog, but Argentina. When it comes to Argentina, it is probably difficult to arrive on the same day, but when it comes to other places, there is no problem, such as the big dog. Over there, the direct sea voyage is about 10,000 kilometers, and a ground-effect aircraft can fly there within 20 hours. If you want to fly a shorter route, you can take the land route, then pass over Laoba, and go directly to We're at the big dog shop.

Although we are talking about flying over the sea, ground-effect aircraft can also fly close to the ground, and can even fly thousands of meters into the sky when needed. As for the inability to land on land, that's really a problem. You need to find a nearby lake to land, or simply use unmanned driving. It doesn't matter if the cargo is destroyed. The insurance company will pay for it anyway, as long as the person is fine.

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"Can our ground effect aircraft be unmanned?" Qin Tao asked.

"We have currently adopted digital fly-by-wire flight control. As long as it is transplanted into the automatic flight control program, it can fly autonomously." Alexeyeva said: "However, these have not been tested, so we cannot tell you the specific effects. report."

Qin Tao nodded: "Our Mingzhou Group has powerful unmanned driving technology. As long as the flight control here passes the test, it will not be troublesome to transplant the unmanned driving technology over. You can still do your thing. For this professional thing, we will find professionals." personnel to do it.”

Alexeyeva nodded: "Mr. Qin, let's build a batch of crosses first. The cost of each cross is about 100 million."

"Well, this money will be paid by our transportation company. This amount of money is nothing. A passenger plane costs two to three hundred million."

Whether compared with ships or airplanes, this kind of ground-effect aircraft is not expensive. What can 100 million do?

"After we build it, we can sell it to the world. If a customer is interested in a two-thousand-ton ground-effect aircraft like ours, we will have to pay him more than $500 million for one!"

Building it yourself is one price, and delivering it is another price. The ground effect vehicle has the speed of an airplane and the carrying capacity of a ship. There will definitely be many customers who are interested in it. If you send something to a big dog owner, the big dog owner will probably like it.

The ground effect vehicle will become another important source of profit for the Mingzhou Group! As for some people, the French, the British, the Americans, etc., just look at it. Want to buy it? You will have to wait in line for ten years.