Lighter Than Air Concepts

LTA-crafts. An overview

Seminar Paper , 2009 , 16 Pages , Grade: 2,0

Engineering - Mechanical Engineering

In the fields of Lighter-than-air-craft a growing global interest and quite ambitious activity in developing large high-tech airships for specific promising applications (e.g. cargo lifting) and Zeppelin NT can be observed nowadays.
But what exactly is a lighter-than-air craft and how does it work? This paper gives an overview about all LTA-concepts and their pros and cons.

Table of Contents

• Introduction
• Hot Air Balloons
• Lighter-than-air crafts
  • Rigid Airships
  • Semi-rigid Airships
  • Non-rigid Airships
• Hot Air Airships
• Aeroscraft
• New developments
• The pros and cons
• Summary
• Sources

Objectives and Key Themes

This text explores the principles and applications of lighter-than-air (LTA) crafts, focusing on their history, technological evolution, and contemporary use.

• Historical Development of LTA Crafts
• Types and Characteristics of LTA Crafts
• Applications of LTA Crafts
• Advantages and Disadvantages of LTA Crafts
• Current and Future Developments in LTA Technology

Chapter Summaries

• Introduction: This chapter provides an overview of lighter-than-air concepts, highlighting their historical significance, contemporary use, and the underlying principles of buoyancy. The author emphasizes the distinction between balloons and airships.
• Hot Air Balloons: This chapter focuses on hot air balloons, exploring their origins, basic components, operating principles, and current applications. It discusses their role in leisure, tourism, and sport, while acknowledging the limitations of hot air for large-scale airships due to its low lift and high heating costs.
• Lighter-than-air crafts: This chapter introduces the concept of airships as powered LTA crafts capable of controlled direction. It classifies airships into three main types: rigid, semi-rigid, and non-rigid (blimps). The chapter details the essential components of all airships, including their lifting gas systems, gondolas, and propulsion mechanisms.

Keywords

This work focuses on lighter-than-air craft, buoyancy, airships, balloons, hot air, helium, hydrogen, rigid airships, semi-rigid airships, non-rigid airships, blimps, applications, technology, history, and contemporary use.

• College: University of Applied Sciences Wildau (Wildau Institute of Technology (WIT))
• Course: Master Studies in Aviation Management
• Grade: 2,0
• Author: Diplom-Staatswissenschaftler (Univ.) Sascha Hissler (Author)
• Publication Year: 2009
• Pages: 16
• Catalog Number: V149394
• ISBN (eBook): 9783640599240
• ISBN (Book): 9783640598861
• Language: English
• Tags: LTA, lighter than air, Zeppelin NT, Zeppelin, hot air balloon, airships, aeroscraft, rigid airships, lighter-than-air crafts