• A321neo DLH (Lufthansa)
    Pratt & Whitney
    Date Founded:
    1925-01-01
    CEO:
    Christopher Calio
    Headquarters Location:
    East Hartford, United States
    Business Type:
    Engine Maker

Today at the Farnborough Airshow, engine maker Pratt & Whitney and sister company Collins Aerospace announced the launch of a new hybrid-electric technology demonstrator program.

Pratt & Whitney (P&W) and Collins Aerospace (Collins), both Ratheyon Technologies businesses, have been long-time partners in hybrid-electric technology. The new Scalable Turboelectric Powertrain Technology (STEP-Tech) is a core element of their strategies for sustainable propulsion and enabling customers to achieve their net-zero CO2 emissions by 2050. The demonstrator will be located at the Raytheon Technologies Research Center in Connecticut, focusing on developing high voltage distributed turboelectric hybrid-electric propulsion concepts in the 100-500 kilowatt class. This makes it particularly applicable to hybrid-electric future advanced air mobility vehicles.

The STEP-Tech will advance hybrid-electric propulsion technology

A diagram of the STEP-Tech generator installed on various new types of aircraft.
Photo: Pratt & Whitney

The system has the potential to be scaled up to 1 megawatt and beyond, with the De Havilland Canada Dash 8-100 being the platform for the commercial hybrid-electric application. The parallel hybrid-electric propulsion involves a thermal engine and an electric motor-generator mechanically coupled to the turboprops. Propulsion can come from either the motor-generator or the thermal engine or both.

Both power sources would be used in certain situations requiring high thrust, but in the cruise, only power from the thermal engine is needed. The engine can be downsized and optimized for cruise performance, leading to around a 30% reduction in fuel burn and CO2 emissions compared to a modern regional turboprop airliner. The hybrid-electric program with the De Havilland Dash 8 is a Collins-P&W collaboration, supported by the governments of Canada and Quebec, a province in the east of Canada.

The STEP-Tech demonstrator platform is a complete system containing a turbogenerator, energy storage, power electronics and modular electrically driven propulsors. It will help develop technology for a range of aircraft applications, including high-speed eVTOL, Unmanned Aerial Vehicles, and small to medium-sized commercial air transporters. P&W senior vice president of engineering and technology, Geoff Hunt, said, "Hybrid-electric offers the potential to not only unlock even greater efficiency in future aircraft but also support the emergence of a new arena of advanced air mobility solutions. Ultimately our continual pursuit of advanced propulsion technologies will help enable aviation's pathway to net-zero CO2 emissions by 2050."

The horizon goes all the way to single-aisle airliners

Admiring the Dowty R408 Propeller attached to a Pratt & Whitney Canada PW100 on the Dash 8-400 on Boarding
Engine market Pratt & Whitney already works on several electrical aircraft projects. Photo: Joe Kunzler | Simple Flying

This week simple Flying is at the Farnborough Airshow. For all the latest news from the show click here.

The STEP-Tech is a modular platform that enables a wide range of configurations to be rapidly prototyped and demonstrated. A significant benefit of hybrid-electric technology is that it is highly scalable, meaning that motor components and electric control systems developed as part of the demonstrator announced today might eventually support larger-scale applications, including single-aisle aircraft. Proof of concept studies are completed, and ground testing of the platform is due later this year.

Collins has extensive expertise in electric power systems, and Collins Power & Controls president Henry Brooks says that fits perfectly with P&Ws track record in aircraft propulsion. He adds: "We are exceptionally well-positioned to lead the advancement of hybrid-electric technology for the next generation of sustainable aircraft. Our demonstrator programs will help mature technologies and components that can be adapted to a range of different applications, from smaller eVTOLS to regional turboprops, to single-aisle airliners."