This text is part of the special Higher Education notebook
This November, designers, thinkers and doers in the aerospace industry will be able to take engineering training focused on reducing aviation’s carbon footprint. A first in Canada, according to Concordia University, which will offer the 15-week course online.
Aerospace engineering students learn how aircraft equipped with a traditional gasoline engine operate. During their bachelor’s degree, scientific advances in energy transformation and the concepts of sustainable development are not covered, explains Carole El Ayoubi, director of education at Concordia’s Aerospace Design and Innovation Institute. “There is a lack of qualifications,” she maintains.
However, the race for green technologies has begun in the aviation sector.
“Sustainability in aerospace, or in the mobility sphere in general, is a super important issue right now. There are many funding possibilities through our governments,” adds Carole El Ayoubi.
Canada, a leader in aerospace, must not miss the boat, according to elected officials. In June, Ottawa announced an envelope of nearly $350 million to subsidize research and development projects with companies in the sector. Among the objectives: finding fuels with low impacts on the climate and designing lighter, less energy-consuming aircraft.
These opportunities for financial support are not without effects. “Researchers are working hard on this type of problem. And not just researchers. Our industrial partners are also working on this,” underlines Carole El Ayoubi.
Like that of other universities, Concordia’s undergraduate course in aerospace engineering does not include hours of learning dedicated to the green shift, and therefore finds itself isolated from major and central reflection in the sector. And if we wish to revise the program, the process will be long; changes must obtain the seal of Engineers Canada.
It is for these reasons that Concordia had the idea of offering a course separate from the baccalaureate: continuing training on the decarbonization of aviation, offered to all working professionals.
“What is decarbonization? This means eliminating or minimizing emissions that come from an airplane, for example. So, we hear about new fuels, hydrogen, hybrid propulsion [moitié électrique, moitié traditionnelle] », Lists Carole El Ayoubi.
“We want to ensure that everyone has the basic knowledge […] so that they can find solutions that will change aviation and make it greener,” she explains.
A first
If, in the country, teaching activities focusing on ecological options in aerospace are rare, it is not only because modernizing programs takes time; it is also because environmental concerns are recent.
“To my knowledge, in Canada, there are no other courses like this. I think the primary reason is that the concept is new. We are starting to work on this. At the moment, we do not have a plane that uses 100% alternative fuels,” notes Carole El Ayoubi.
But in the eyes of the researcher who is particularly interested in the aerothermal design of gas turbines, this idea is not unrealistic.
“We have the electric car, we will be able to create an airplane engine that uses 100% alternative fuels. It’s not science fiction, it will happen, it’s just that we need discipline, work, funding, programs like ours. We just need to collaborate,” she argues.
Concordia focuses on short programs
This content was produced by the Special Publications team at Duty, relating to marketing. The writing of the Duty did not take part.