Honeywell Aims for New Markets with
Reduced-Size APU
Aviation Week & Space Technology
10/06/2003, page 38
Stanley W. Kandebo
New York
Honeywell hopes to expand into new marketsby developing a reduced-size
APU
Compact Power
Honeywell is developing a suitcase-sized auxiliary power unit for
small business jets, turboprops and helicopters.
The product demonstrator, dubbed the RE50, will be on display at
the National Business Aviation Assn.'s annual convention this week.
The APU will weigh 50-60 lb. and is being developed in conjunction
with the firm's automotive products groups to keep acquisition costs
low. The installation envelope should be about 20 X 12 X 12 in.,
and the unit should be at least as quiet as the company's RE100
APU, used on the Citation Excel. Company officials predict the finished
product, which should be able to remain "on-wing" for
3-5 years, will have a price "significantly below" the
RE100.
Technology used in the unit will include a gearless, oil-less system
that incorporates a generator mounted on the core shaft. The shaft
will turn at 100,000 rpm., and the unit will provide 250 amps of
energy. The APU will feature innovative air bearings derived by
Honeywell from air cycle systems used in aircraft environmental
control systems. These bearings, which also serve as thrust bearings
in the APU, eliminate the potential for oil to leak into the cabin
environment, a prime cause of petrochemical smells in cabin interiors,
officials said.
Honeywell executives hope to have the APU on the market in 2005,
and initial indications regarding demand are positive. "We
polled 700 potential users and 80% said they would buy this product
if it were available," said Roger Wolfe, vice president and
general manager of airframe systems at Honeywell.
RE50 APU is small enough
to fit in a suitcase. Honeywell plans to build "several"
of the APUs as part of a full-scale development program.
The company expects to use the APU first to supply just ground
power, and later to use it in flight applications. "We want
this product to be in aircraft that haven't had APUs before, so
pilots can start their engines without external power and run air
conditioning systems on the ground, at remote airfields, without
starting the main engines," Wolfe said. After operating experience
is gained with the APU, inflight operations will follow.
Honeywell expects to offer the APU eventually as a retrofit to
existing aircraft, "but first we want an original equipment
manufacturer (OEM) to offer it as an option to a production aircraft,"
Wolfe said. The unit also has potential military applications, both
in helicopters and in light armored vehicles. "Using this APU
in turbine-powered light armored vehicles would allow operators
to run all systems without firing up the turbine. That means saving
significant fuel savings," he explained.
Honeywell has successfully demonstrated and validated the power
generation and air-bearing portion of the APU; the next step is
to finalize an agreement with an OEM to use the unit and provide
constructive criticism. The company also expects to use the APU
in a variety of configurations and mountings before releasing it
for public sale.
