As the demand for speed increases, researchers have developed the world’s first engine using standard aviation kerosene, capable of flying at 16 Mach, equivalent to 20,000 kilometers per hour.
The South China Morning Post (SCMP) reported on February 26 that this groundbreaking achievement was made by Chinese scientists, who successfully tested the world’s first Oblique Detonation Engine (ODE) powered by standard aviation kerosene. This marks a potential major transformation in the field of hypersonic propulsion, which could redefine the limits of air and space travel.
The JF12 shock tunnel in Beijing, capable of simulating high Mach number flight conditions at altitudes above 40 kilometers, was used by researchers from the Chinese Academy of Sciences to conduct a series of experiments. Using the common commercial jet fuel RP-3, they successfully achieved sustained oblique detonation waves. The research, published in the academic journal “Experimental Fluid Mechanics,” shows that the engine’s combustion rate is 1,000 times faster than that of traditional supersonic combustion ramjets and can operate within a range of 6 to 16 Mach, speeds that are difficult for traditional air-breathing engines to achieve.
The report notes that this scientific technology is part of a grand Chinese plan. If applied to military use, the oblique detonation engine could lead to a new generation of hypersonic missiles, drones, and even bombers, which would have ultra-long ranges and low operational costs, giving the People’s Liberation Army a significant advantage in future warfare.
Unlike supersonic combustion ramjets, which require large combustion chambers and risk flameout at high Mach numbers, the oblique detonation engine uses oblique detonation waves as a supporting force.
Engineers found that by cleverly placing a 5 mm bump on the wall of the combustion chamber, they could induce a self-sustaining “detonation,” an explosion driven by ultra-high-speed shock waves that completes combustion in microseconds.
“The shock wave compresses and ignites the fuel-air mixture so violently that it creates a self-reinforcing explosion front,” wrote the research team from the Institute of Mechanics at the Chinese Academy of Sciences.
At 9 Mach, tests showed that the peak pressure at the explosion point reached 20 times the ambient level, indicating that the engine can generate considerable thrust at speeds where most supersonic combustion ramjets can hardly operate.
Due to the enormous power required, the wind tunnel only supported a continuous operation of 50 milliseconds—equivalent to flying about 150 meters at 9 Mach. However, this was sufficient for researchers to fully understand the engine’s ignition and self-sustaining shock wave propulsion.
The researchers explained that compared to the supersonic combustion ramjet design, the new engine’s combustion chamber is 85% shorter, which can significantly reduce the aircraft’s weight and extend its flight distance.
The SCMP pointed out that for decades, hypersonic engines have relied on hydrogen or ethylene as fuel. While these fuels ignite quickly, their storage requirements are impractical. On the other hand, RP-3 kerosene, while logically more ideal and with higher energy density, has an excessively long ignition delay time, making it extremely difficult to start the engine mid-flight.
Now, the Chinese Academy of Sciences research team has circumvented this problem by pre-compressing the fuel-air mixture to 3800 Kelvin (about 3527 degrees Celsius) before ignition, introducing a small bump to create a local “hot spot” to trigger a chain reaction, and using wing-shaped struts to accelerate fuel dispersion.
The report mentioned that this scientific project is part of an ambitious Chinese plan to build an aircraft capable of reaching any place in the world within one hour by 2030. The technology’s speed of 16 Mach, equivalent to 20,000 km/h, or flying from Shanghai to Los Angeles in half an hour, will enable reusable space planes to achieve atmospheric and orbital flight transitions.
If applied to military technology, the oblique detonation engine could lead to a new generation of hypersonic missiles, drones, and even bombers, which would have ultra-long ranges and low operational costs, giving the People’s Liberation Army a significant advantage in future warfare.
However, there are still obstacles in the research. According to the research team, researchers need to gain a deeper understanding of the by-products of RP-3 kerosene during and after explosive combustion and need to optimize the bump configuration to improve the engine’s actual flight efficiency.
The SCMP stated that as geopolitical tensions escalate, hypersonic technology is playing an increasingly important role in the power struggles among world powers. On January 23, local time, U.S. President Trump claimed in an interview with Fox News that Russia had “stolen” the design of U.S. hypersonic missile technology. He added that the U.S. is developing its own hypersonic missiles, which will be “even better.” “We will have them soon,” he added.
Moreover, the U.S. frequently uses other countries’ hypersonic weapons as a pretext to expand its own arsenal. Bloomberg reported on March 13 last year that Pentagon analysts claimed that China was leading in the development, testing, and deployment of hypersonic technology, not only surpassing Russia but also leaving the U.S. struggling to catch up with this new type of weapon that travels at five times the speed of sound.
In response to related questions, a spokesperson for the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs previously pointed out that the U.S. was the first country to develop hypersonic weapons and is still continuously developing and even proliferating hypersonic missile technology, investing trillions of dollars to upgrade its “triad” nuclear forces. The U.S. has repeatedly expressed so-called concerns about China’s normal spacecraft tests and used this to hype up the “China threat theory.” Can the U.S. explain to the international community what its intentions are in developing hypersonic weapons? And for what reason is it worried about other countries? Does the international community have sufficient reason to express concern about U.S. actions?
The spokesperson emphasized that we urge the U.S. to fully respect the rights of all countries to develop legitimate defense capabilities and to stop the trick of massively expanding military power by hyping up the so-called “China threat theory.”