{"id":5511,"date":"2012-04-09T11:59:11","date_gmt":"2012-04-09T18:59:11","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/cafe.foundation\/blog\/?p=5511"},"modified":"2012-04-09T11:59:11","modified_gmt":"2012-04-09T18:59:11","slug":"deturbulating-a-record-flight","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/cafe.foundation\/blog\/deturbulating-a-record-flight\/","title":{"rendered":"Deturbulating a Record Flight"},"content":{"rendered":"

Sumon K. Sinha, Ph.D., P.E., and head of Sinhatech, had a part in the recent Federation Aeronautique Internationale (FAI) record by Mr. Jean-Luc Soullier and recorded in a blog entry on March 10.<\/p>\n

Dr. Sinha wrote that, \u201cCAFE Foundation’s Blog on March 10th, 2012 <\/a>did not mention that the Colomban MC-30 aircraft had Sinhatech’s Deturbulator tape treatment on the wing upper surface as shown in the attached photograph. I would like to have this added to complete the description of the aircraft.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Jean-Luc Soullier's record MC-30 shows Dr. Sinha's Deturbulator tape along upper wing span<\/p><\/div>\n

Sinhatech Deturbulator tape is an innocuous-looking strip applied along the span of a wing at a point which will trigger a response from the tape, which oscillates in the airflow, increasing lift and mitigating skin friction, according to company white papers.<\/p>\n

Dr. Sinha points out that, \u201cThis is the first independently recorded flight with wing Deturbulator treatment by FAI. It is also the first independently recorded flight with full-span Deturbulators on a powered aircraft.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Sinhatech web site <\/a>has a great deal of test data, including a thorough analysis by Dick Johnson, a soaring pilot who exemplified scientific precision in his flight test reports.<\/p>\n

The last independently verified test with Deturbulators was on a Standard Cirrus sailplane by Dick Johnson: \u2018A Flight Test Evaluation of the Sinha Wing Performance Enhancing Deturbulators,\u2019 SOARING and Motorgliding Magazine….\u201d<\/p>\n

These tests <\/a>are in the Sinatech web site, and include this interesting line from the flight test summary.\u00a0 \u201cEvaluating this deturbulator prototype by time honored means applied to rigid wings yields a respectable 5%<\/span> improvement. However, at 50 kts (IAS) the data in this test series, as well as prior test flights, are well established at a point far beyond the reach of the traditional 4th<\/sup> order polynomial fit to glide ratio points. These data indicate a best glide ratio improvement in the range 13% to 18%<\/span>.\u201d<\/p>\n

Dr. Sinha acknowledges, \u201cThe current test does not conclusively show how much the Deturbulators contributed. It is however worth recalling that the 200-kg Luciole had only 4.7-kWh of battery power on board and no mechanism for in-flight recharging. Also, the actual airspeeds flown were well above the 136.5 km\/h (84.63 mph) average ground speed due to rapidly changing 20-25 km\/h (12.4-15.5 mph) winds coming off the mountains surrounding the airfield in Sisteron, France [home field for Anne Lavrand’s Electravia operations]. \u00a0It is doubtful that the Luciole would have been able to complete the record without Deturbulators and still have about 1-kWh in reserve for landing maneuvers and taxiing.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Dr. Sumon Sinha at Green Flight Challenge Expo, NASA Ames Research Center<\/dd>\n<\/dl>\n<\/div>\n

To hear more about Deturbulator tape and the many applications Dr. Sinha has found for this product, including increasing fuel mileage on 18-wheelers, be sure to attend the sixth annual Electric Aircraft Symposium in Santa Rosa, California, April 27 and 28.\u00a0 Register online<\/a> to be there for this year\u2019s assembly of stellar speakers.<\/p>\n