MIT develops concept for airplanes to combat air pollution

Asthma, respiratory diseases, and cardiovascular disorders have a common enemy –nitrogen oxides or NOx. The noxious chemical waste from airplanes’ exhaust kills 16,000 people every year globally, according to a Massachusetts Institute of Technology research note. In the hybrid electric system, the gas turbine drives a generator, producing electricity to power aircraft’s wing-mounted, electrically-driven propellers. “If you want to get to a net-zero aviation sector, this is a potential way of solving the air pollution part of it, which is significant, and in a way, that’s technologically quite viable.” The team estimates that the concept would eliminate 95% of aviation’s NOx emissions, and thereby reducing premature deaths by 92%. They also calculated that if such a hybrid electric system were to be implemented in a Boeing 737 or Airbus A320 aircraft, the extra weight would require about 0.6% more fuel to fly the plane.