EAS IX: Short Circuiting Batteries on Purpose

Dean Sigler Electric Aircraft Components, Electric Powerplants, Sustainable Aviation Leave a Comment

Recent news from the world of insurance claims adjustors brings us back to ways inspired battery designers might reduce or eliminate certain types of claims, and make electric flight safer. Even when international agreements don’t make progress along those lines. Insurance Claims and international Agreements With recent news of Federal Aviation Administration interest in lithium-ion batteries arising from fires caused by thermal runaways, shipments of large numbers of batteries may be banned.  Claims Journal, an insurance industry news line, quotes Angela Stubblefied, an FAA hazardous materials safety official, as saying, “’We believe the risk is immediate and urgent.’ She cited research showing the batteries can cause explosions and fires capable of destroying a plane. “FAA tests show that even a small number of overheating batteries emit gases that can cause explosions and fires that can’t be prevented by current fire suppression systems. Airlines flying to and from the U.S. that accept lithium battery shipments carry 26 million passengers a year, …

Big Birds Flying Green Economy Class (Part Three): Environmental Politics or Revenue Source?

Dean Sigler Diesel Powerplants, Sustainable Aviation Leave a Comment

Recent disputes among the many national and regional  players in the emerging biofuel/jet fuel markets may slow acceptance and  development of  hese promising alternatives to fossil fuels. The European Union’s emissions trading system (ETS) seems to be central to contentions by China and the United States.  The scheme would impose caps on carbon emissions from airlines flying into Europe, unleashing charges from China that the proposed rules discriminate against carriers from developing countries. A one cent per liter tax on jet fuel, part of the system, is at least partially responsible for the international dispute. According to Flight Global, “The airlines likely to be involved are the nation’s flag carrier Air China, China Southern Airlines and China Eastern Airlines, said an official from the China Air Transport Association.” America has weighed in with court challenges from American Airlines and United Continental, represented by the Air Transport Association (ATA), and Congress has added its voice, opposing what it perceives as European threats to American sovereignty and defending domestic jobs, which it …