Chapter 1496: Ultra-high-speed unmanned reconnaissance aircraft, Wuzhen 8?

Chapter 1496 Super high-speed unmanned reconnaissance aircraft, Wuzhen 8?

"End effect and Hall effect." Xing Muchun concluded: "In theory, by increasing the number of electrode pairs on both sides of the power generation channel, the current deflection caused by these two effects can be weakened at the same time."

Chang Haonan nodded in approval: "The idea is correct, but the problem is..." He paused and pointed to the horizontal axis of the graph, "The power generation cycle takes a certain amount of time to reach a steady state, but the effective working time of the JF14 wind tunnel does not exceed 0.1 seconds."

Li Min was still a little confused at this time: "In other words, we can't get the real steady-state data in the test?"

"Even if we add certain simulation reasoning elements, the effective duration of ground wind tunnel testing will not be able to meet the requirements." Xing Muchun's broad shoulders seemed to collapse all of a sudden. "We need actual flight tests. Only in a continuous working environment can we accurately evaluate the true impact of these effects."

This sentence caused the scene to fall into silence for a while.

The team members' faces were filled with fatigue, but more of it was unwillingness.

They were so close to success, but were blocked by an unexpected physical effect.

Lingxiao 1 itself is designed to be the power source for air-breathing hypersonic missiles, which means that the aircraft body and the engine will have a highly integrated design.

There is no additional space to accommodate two sections of MHD power generation equipment.

The planned reusable hypersonic vehicle will not be able to begin verification flights until several years later.

Team leaders like Chang Haonan have multiple responsibilities, so they don't mind postponing a project until conditions allow.

However, there are still many comrades who are fully engaged in the development of tubular magnetohydrodynamic power generation systems, but it is difficult for them to put down their work and wait for such a long time.

Moreover, too long a window period will also have a negative impact on the progress of the project itself.

For a while, no one could come up with a proper solution.

It was not until a wave of fatigue came over Chang Haonan that he looked at the time and realized that the experiment had lasted for nearly twenty hours.

He looked around and saw more than a dozen pairs of bloodshot eyes and haggard faces.

"Let's stop here today and take a rest." His voice was still calm. "We will discuss the solution tomorrow."

Everyone left one after another, and Chang Haonan was the last one to walk out of the control room.

In the corridor, he met Li Min and Wang Rui who were packing up their tools.

"Don't worry too much." The former was trying to comfort the young engineer next to him, "At least we have proved that the basic concept is feasible..."

……

After returning to the office, Chang Haonan finally couldn't bear it anymore.

After all, I am over 30 years old, and my energy and physical fitness can no longer be compared with the peak time in my twenties.

He yawned and prepared to change his clothes and take a nap.

But before lying down on the bed, he subconsciously went to the desk and took a look.

But I happened to see a report on the table——

Summary of the tests conducted at the Huairou Science City Wind Tunnel Center in the first half of 2010.

There was also a note on the cover: "Academician Chang, this is a report on the wind tunnel work in the past six months - Office Xiao Wang"

Strictly speaking, Chang Haonan is not the person in charge of Huairou Science City, nor does he hold any position in the Institute of Mechanics, so he does not need to review things like work reports.

It's just out of respect, or it may be Jiang Zongli's instruction, anyway, the office always prepares an extra copy and sends it here.

Never miss a single issue.

Normally, Chang Haonan would just put it aside——

His project is the top priority in Huairou Science City, and there is no need to consider coordinating with anyone else's tests.

But today, I am not ready to let it go.

"Just use it as a bedtime reading..." Chang Haonan smiled, opened the book casually, and then half-lay on the bed in the rest room.

The report paper exuded a fresh smell of ink, obviously it had been printed not long ago.

Even as an academician, he had to admit that this kind of diary-like report was extremely boring, so much so that he felt sleepy after reading just two pages.

But in the last moments before he lost consciousness, a headline suddenly caught his attention:

"Summary of the JF10 wind tunnel test of Chengdu Aircraft Industry Group: High-speed unmanned reconnaissance aircraft verification project"

Even though my mind was as confused as a mess, my instinct still grasped a certain vague key point.

The next second, Chang Haonan suddenly woke up, turned his eyes back to the paper, and read the next 10 pages at a glance -

After initially resolving the shortcomings of the air force's main combat equipment, China began to shift its attention to air-based strategic support equipment.

So two years ago, the Air Force Equipment Department and the Navy Equipment Department jointly issued bidding proposals for three large UAVs.

Among them, the WZ-7 is a high-altitude, long-flight subsonic unmanned reconnaissance aircraft with similar functions to the RQ4 Global Hawk. It can provide overview and continuous reconnaissance intelligence to the rear and can also be used as a platform for other functions. Guizhou Aviation Industry Group was ultimately awarded the bid and was responsible for its research and development.

The WZ-8 is a high-altitude, high-speed unmanned reconnaissance aircraft with similar functions to the D21 or SR72. It can rely on its speed and altitude to traverse high-threat areas and provide intelligence information with an accuracy between that of satellite and ground-based infiltration reconnaissance. Ultimately, Rongfei Group won the bid to be responsible for its research and development.

Wuzhen-9 is also a high-altitude, long-flight subsonic UAV, but its functions are early warning and relay command and guidance. It is mainly aimed at air combat and was awarded the bid by Shengfei Group for its research and development.

The content of this report is a description of the two unmanned reconnaissance aircraft sent by Chengfei for testing:

The first type uses a rocket engine as its power source. Its shape is like a flattened cone. It is an atypical waverider with a total length of 11.8 meters, a wingspan of 6.7 meters, and a maximum speed of 6.5 Mach. However, it is a disposable equipment.

The infrared photos attached to the report show that the surface of this aircraft is covered with honeycomb-shaped thermal insulation tiles similar to the "Lingxiao-1 Modified", there is an obvious jet cooling device on the nose part, and there are obvious signs of ablation around the tail nozzle.

He was very familiar with this thing - it was the final "Wuzhen 8" ultra-high-speed reconnaissance aircraft plan in the previous life.

The key lies in the second one.

It is powered by a more complex subsonic ramjet engine and has a graceful, elongated waverider shape. It is slightly smaller than the previous one, with a total length of 10.2 meters and a wingspan of 5.1 meters. Its maximum speed is slightly lower, at about Mach 4.2, but its endurance is longer, and it can land autonomously and be reused multiple times. However, it still cannot take off by taxi, but needs to be launched in the air from a special platform improved from the H-6.

The line diagram in the report shows that the aircraft has a spacious central cabin, which is located exactly at the center of gravity. It is currently equipped with synthetic aperture radar and electronic reconnaissance equipment. Two ramjet engines are located under the "wing" structure on both sides, which is somewhat similar to an abstract version of the SR71.

Chang Haonan's fatigue was swept away. He sat up straight, his fingers tightly grasping the edge of the report.

The size and performance parameters of the second drone quickly matched the requirements of the magnetohydrodynamic power generation system in his mind, especially the engines installed on both sides with ample redundant space - a space almost tailor-made for their MHD power generation system!

"that's it……"

He whispered to himself.

This unexpected discovery was like a bolt of lightning, splitting the fog that had troubled us for hours.

Chang Haonan immediately picked up the phone and dialed Xing Muchun's number, and a long waiting tone came from the receiver.

"Hey?"

Xing Muchun's voice was filled with sleepiness.

"Old Xing, don't sleep, I found a solution!" Chang Haonan's voice was a little sharp due to excitement and fatigue.

There was a sound of fabric rubbing from the other end of the phone, and it seemed that Xing Muchun was struggling to sit up. From the tone of his voice, he almost called him his daddy: "What plan? It's early morning now..."

"Chengfei's sub-combustion ramjet drone!" Chang Haonan flipped through the report quickly. "4.2 Mach top speed, waverider shape, autonomous landing - a perfect verification platform! Large enough to install our MHD power generation channel and control system!"

There was silence on the other end of the phone for a few seconds.

Afterwards, Chang Haonan heard the sound of lights turning on and papers shuffling.

"Wait a minute, let me check the parameters..." After a moment, Xing Muchun's voice became clear, and he was no longer sleepy. "I think... you are right!"