Potential Interests for Aviation Transportation Research

I have recently begun thinking about several areas of future research concerning transportation:

1) Examining the viability of electric or hybrid propulsion systems in General Aviation (GA) aircraft and identification of the necessary support infrastructure. Specifically, comparison and determination of scenarios/operating conditions that result in maximum effectiveness (i.e., short-local (city/county), medium-regional (state/region), long-continental (country/domestic), and extended-transcontinental) given state of current technology. This concept could provide a baseline for scalability up to Commercial operations. Additionally, a list of positive and negative attributes could be identified to support further decision making, including:

• Positive (reduced noise, common fuel/power standard, reduced emissions, and reduced mechanical complexity)
• Negative (disposal of greater consumables such as depleted batteries, new infrastructure investment, and performance of extensive safety analyses on technology)

2) Comparison of various transportation loading methodologies (multi-modal; trains, aircraft, ships, buses, etc...) throughout the world and identification of optimized method(s) to meet anticipated future needs (low stress passenger experience, security, increased use, and multi-modal interchanges).

3) Economic examination of passenger support/experiential enhancement business locations within transportation hubs (placement before versus after security, maximum passenger exposure versus limited competition, etc...).

4) Use of unmanned systems for commercial cargo delivery (fixed routes and delivery schedules) within the planned 2012 to 2025 FAA Next Generation (NextGen) Air Transportation System, including:

• Specific use of Automatic Dependent Surveillance Broadcast (ADS-B)/Global Positioning System (GPS) for real-time route-planning/correction, location, separation, and traffic data.
• Development of new/improved decision making algorithms using System Wide Information Management (SWIM) and NextGen Network Enabled Weather (NNEW) technology.
• Identification of components necessary for future incorporation into European and Asian airspace. 

5) Re-examination of my graduate research project, Cost and Performance Analysis of Internal Combustion (IC) Engines Versus Electric Motors for use as Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) Propulsion Systems, with a focus on use of the latest generation in electric motors (brushless), power management, and batteries (lithium-polymer/ion).

If you are interested in potential collaboration or have any questions, please feel free to contact me.