Rolls-Royce is designing the 'world's fastest all-electric airplane' named ACCEL that can reach up to 300 mph

Brittany ChangDec 28, 2019, 00:56 IST

Rolls-Royce is designing what it hopes to be the world's fastest all-electric airplane that can reach up to 300 mph: the ACCEL, short for "Accelerating the Electrification of Flight."
The aircraft's battery has enough energy to power 250 homes or fly London to Paris, about 200 miles, with one charge.
The plane is scheduled to take flight in Great Britain in spring of 2020.
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Rolls-Royce is designing what it hopes to be the world's fastest all-electric airplane that can reach up to 300 mph: the ACCEL, short for "Accelerating the Electrification of Flight."

The company is collaborating with the UK government, YASA, and Electroflight for the engineering feat. YASA is a UK-based manufacturer of "high-power, lightweight" electric motors and controllers for multiple applications, including cars and aerospace, while Electroflight is a startup focusing on bespoke electric powertrains.

"We're gaining the know-how to not only pioneer the field of electric-powered, zero-emissions aviation - but to lead it. At this point, our confidence is sky high," Rolls-Royce ACCEL Project Manager Matheu Parr said in a statement.

In order to follow the progress of the aircraft, its makers track 20,000 data points per second on the powertrain that provides energy to the propellers, all while monitoring the battery. The battery has 6,000 cells and a cooling system to meet the aircrafts demands while making it the "world's most energy dense flying battery park," according to Rolls-Royce. In short, it has enough energy to power 250 homes or fly London to Paris, about 200 miles, with one charge.

"We believe pure electric, or all-electric, propulsion will power smaller aircraft in the foreseeable future- while larger aircraft will rely on hybrid electric solutions that combine electrification with evolutions of the gas turbine," Rolls-Royce CTO Paul Stein said in a statement.

In a separate statement, UK Member of Parliament and Minister for Business and Industry Nadhim Zahawi said: "The electrification of flight has the potential to revolutionise the way we travel and transform aviation for decades to come - ensuring we can travel worldwide while maintaining a low carbon footprint."

Keep scrolling to see Rolls-Royce's progress on the aircraft:

See Rolls-Royce is designing the 'world's fastest all-electric airplane' named ACCEL that can reach up to 300 mph >>

There are three 750R lightweight electric motors producing over 500 horsepower that were designed and produced by YASA.

The aircraft’s propeller blades spin at a lower revolutions per minute rate than a typical airplane. This allows the ACCEL to fly stabler and quieter.

The electric powertrain has 750 volts and a 90% energy efficiency, all with no emissions.

“It is these technological advances in power density and energy capacity of electric systems that will make the aerospace industry’s goal of actively limiting the environmental impacts of flight possible,” Rolls-Royce wrote.

It also costs less to maintain an electric aircraft because of reduced fuel and operation costs, according to its maker.

The aircraft can operate beyond normal hours because it's electric powertrain won't be as loud as a typical non-electric aircraft according to its maker.

The aircraft has vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) and short take off and landings (STOL) capabilities in order to reduce emissions and noise while increasing its ability to operate in denser urban areas, according to the automaker.

“More silent and economically efficient airplanes will allow new commuter concepts to offer transport services beyond the traditional flight routes,” Rolls-Royce wrote in a statement. “This has the potential to reinvigorate small regional airports and to make flight transport more accessible to large parts of society.”

Rolls-Royce predicts there will be four markets for hybrid aircrafts: small two to four-seater planes, air taxis, commuter planes with less than 20 seats, and turbofan commercial flights.

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