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Lithium ion conductivity of a lithium compound is known to be influenced by an inert, non-lithium ion conductor additive. This paper reports an investigation of the effects of boron nitride (BN) addition to the conductivity of lithium iodide (Lil). The Lil:BN stoichiometry and heat treatment parameters (temperature and time) have been used as variables. It will be shown that lithium conductivity is strongly dependent upon heat treatment parameters. The activation energy for lithium ion transport also decreases with the addition of BN. Further analysis of activation energy data suggests that lithium ion motion takes place through interfacial regions of Lil and BN phases.

Many of the engines used in Remotely Piloted Aircraft (RPA), come directly from the remote-control (R/C) aircraft market, which turn a propeller but are not necessarily built for the greatest efficiency or reduced fuel consumption. The DoD “single fuel concept” is pushing these platforms to be able to operate with JP-8 using an Otto Cycle engine. Additionally, with increased environmental concern with fossil fuels, possible future DoD requirements could require the use of bio-derived liquid fuels. The research presented in this paper takes steps to satisfying both the efficiency and single fuel requirements. The Fuji BF-34EI engine was successfully shown to operate effectively with JP-8, Diesel, Algae-based Diesel and Camelina based Hydroprocessed Renewable Jet fuel. When generally compared over the entire engine operating map, between AVGAS and JP-8, the latter is shown to present a 10-20% lower brake specific fuel consumption (BSFC).

Numerical simulations indicate that blast loading on aircraft structural joints can impart loading rates in excess of 10 Mlb/sec (ten million pounds per second, Reference 1). Experimental evidence, on the other hand, suggests that mechanical joint failure loads are highly loading rate dependent; for example, the failure load for a dynamically loaded tension joint can double from its static value. This paper discusses the progress and to-date findings of research on the assessment of strength failure of aircraft structural joints subjected to loading rates expected from an internal explosive detonation, and several associated experimental procedures to generate such dynamic loading. This work is conducted at MDC and at the University of Dayton Research Institute (UDRI) in support of the FAA Aircraft Hardening Program.

Aircraft engine power is degraded with increasing altitude according to the resultant reduction in air pressure, temperature, and density. One way to mitigate this problem is through turbo-normalization of the air being supplied to the engine. Supercharger and turbocharger components suffer from a well-recognized loss in efficiency as they are scaled down in order to match the reduced mass flow demands of small-scale Internal Combustion Engines. This is due in large part to problems related to machining tolerance limitations, such as the increase in relative operating clearances, and increased blade thickness relative to the flow area. As Internal Combustion Engines decrease in size, they also suffer from efficiency losses owing primarily to thermal loss. This amplifies the importance of maximizing the efficiency of all sub-systems in order to minimize specific fuel consumption and enhance overall aircraft performance.