Abstract:
Faster traveling is the eternal pursuit of mankind. The research community and industries never stop the research and development of new technologies for the next-generation supersonic transport aircraft, since the "Concorde" and "Tu-144", representatives of first-generation supersonic transport, failed for their commercial operation. First, an overview of the state of the art has been conducted towards the next-generation environmentally-friendly supersonic transport aircraft, and four key technologies have been identified:sonic-boom prediction and reduction, drag reduction technology, variable-cycle engine technology, as well as low-boom configuration design and integrated aerodynamic/sonic boom optimization technology. Second, we summary the recent progresses on the development of sonic-boom prediction method, sonic-boom reduction method, low-boom and low-drag configuration design optimization method, and supersonic natural-laminar-flow technology in the Research Center for Supersonic Transports of Northwestern Polytechnical University. At last, the future research directions are suggested according to literature review on the technologies for supersonic transports.and supersonic natural-laminar-flow technology in the Research Center for Supersonic Transports of Northwestern Polytechnical University. At last, the future research directions are suggested according to literature review on the technologies for supersonic transports.