Alignment
An EMCP fan will be compatible and/or easily modified to fit in all military ground vehicles (e.g. tactical vehicles, infantry fighting vehicles, tanks). The engine/electronics cooling fan will provide the most benefits in this respect for air flow optimized for cooling demands and fluctuating environmental conditions. It will be most critical for silent-watch applications when the engine is off and cooling demands are decreased but still needed to maintain electronics, occupant comfort and CBRNE readiness; the key will be continuous air flow at very low speeds and power draw rather than modulated control with intermittent air flow at either high speed and/or speed not optimized for the blade pitch – with significantly greater power draw and noise levels. CBRNE fans will also benefit from EMCP through their ability to maintain pressure at optimal efficiencies in the presence of changing environmental conditions (e.g. minor to moderate clogging in its filter).
EMCP’s cost sensitivities will make its advancements feasible for ground support equipment and fixed or moveable/temporary ground bases. Vehicles participating in tactical microgrids will experience a doubled value proposition from reduced power demands within a given field operation and optimized power generation with greater EMCP use.
EMCP’s improvements will be most acute in the ground-military domain where power draw efficiencies are concomitant with better thermal and acoustic signature management; continuous, low-speed air flow optimized for blade pitch will generate less acoustic noise and provide continuous servicing of a vehicle’s thermal signature.
While EMCP’s thermal value proposition is potent for a vehicle’s powertrain, its use in the form of a propeller will have direct impact on an aircraft’s propulsion efficiency. The design of an EMCP propeller will be different from that of a fan but the principles will remain the same. Controllable pitch propellers are highly desirable for aeronautic and marine applications because they are a key enabler for varying the aggressiveness of propulsor operations (supporting the differing propulsion regimes of a mission’s profile). For VTOL, it will enable greater lifting capacity at the same time it enables power optimization. A helicopter’s tail rotor could be significantly improved with EMCP.