U.S. patent application number 11/221328 was filed with the patent office on 2007-05-10 for deoxygenated fuel-cooled environmental control system pre-cooler for an aircraft.
This patent application is currently assigned to United Technologies Corporation. Invention is credited to Robert L. Bayt, Scott Kaslusky, Daniel R. Sabatino, Michael K. Sahm.
Application Number | 20070101731 11/221328 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 37546639 |
Filed Date | 2007-05-10 |
United States Patent
Application |
20070101731 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Bayt; Robert L. ; et
al. |
May 10, 2007 |
Deoxygenated fuel-cooled environmental control system pre-cooler
for an aircraft
Abstract
A fuel based thermal management system according to the present
invention includes a fuel stabilization system which permits the
fuel to exceed the traditional coking temperatures. An air-to-fuel
heat exchanger operates as an environmental control system (ECS)
pre-cooler such that the heat from the engine compressor bleed air
is rejected into the fuel to maintain engine operating
efficiency.
Inventors: |
Bayt; Robert L.; (Hebron,
CT) ; Sabatino; Daniel R.; (East Hampton, CT)
; Sahm; Michael K.; (Avon, CT) ; Kaslusky;
Scott; (West Hartford, CT) |
Correspondence
Address: |
CARLSON, GASKEY & OLDS/PRATT & WHITNEY
400 WEST MAPLE ROAD
SUITE 350
BIRMINGHAM
MI
48009
US
|
Assignee: |
United Technologies
Corporation
|
Family ID: |
37546639 |
Appl. No.: |
11/221328 |
Filed: |
September 7, 2005 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
62/7 ; 62/401;
62/86 |
Current CPC
Class: |
Y02T 50/50 20130101;
B64D 13/06 20130101; B64D 2013/0659 20130101; B64D 37/32
20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
062/007 ;
062/086; 062/401 |
International
Class: |
F25B 19/00 20060101
F25B019/00; F25B 9/00 20060101 F25B009/00; F25D 9/00 20060101
F25D009/00 |
Claims
1. A thermal management system comprising: a fuel stabilization
system; a liquid-to-air heat exchanger system in fluid
communication with said fuel stabilization system; and an
environmental control system in communication with said
liquid-to-air heat exchanger system.
2. The thermal management system as recited in claim 1, wherein
said fuel stabilization system comprises a deoxygenation
system.
3. The thermal management system as recited in claim 1, wherein
said liquid-to-air heat exchanger is in communication with
compressed air from an Energy Conversion Device.
4. The thermal management system as recited in claim 3, wherein
said Energy Conversion Device is an aircraft gas turbine
engine.
5. The thermal management system as recited in claim 1, wherein
said liquid-to-air heat exchanger is a fuel-to-air heat
exchanger.
6. The thermal management system as recited in claim 1, wherein
said liquid-to-air heat exchanger operates to reduce a temperature
of a compressed air to approximately 300 degrees Fahrenheit.
7. The thermal management system as recited in claim 1, wherein
said liquid-to-air heat exchanger operates to reduce a temperature
of a compressed air to approximate a liquid inlet temperature of
said liquid-to-air heat exchanger system.
8. The thermal management system as recited in claim 6, wherein
said liquid-to-air heat exchanger operates with fuel at
temperatures exceeding 325 degrees Fahrenheit.
9. The thermal management system as recited in claim 1, wherein
said environmental control system communicates airflow to an
aircraft cabin.
10. The thermal management system as recited in claim 1, wherein
said environmental control system communicates airflow to an
electronic device.
11. The thermal management system as recited in claim 1, wherein
fuel from said liquid-to-air heat exchanger is in communication
with a combustor section of a gas turbine engine.
12. A method of thermal management comprising the steps of: (1)
deoxygenating a fuel to provide a deoxygenated fuel; (2)
communicating the fuel through a liquid-to-air heat exchanger
system; (3) communicating a compressed air from an energy
conversion device through the liquid-to-air heat exchanger system
to reject heat from the compressed air to the deoxygenated fuel;
and (4) communicating the compressed air from the liquid-to-air
heat exchanger to an environmental control system.
13. A method as recited in claim 12, wherein said step (3) further
comprises the step of: drawing the compressed air from a compressor
section of a gas turbine engine.
14. A method as recited in claim 12, wherein said step (3) further
comprises the step of: rejecting heat to the deoxygenated fuel to
raise the temperature of the fuel to above approximately 325
degrees Fahrenheit.
15. A method as recited in claim 14, further comprising the steps
of: communicating the deoxygenated fuel from the liquid-to-air heat
exchanger system to a combustor section of a gas turbine engine.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0001] The present invention relates to a thermal management
system, and more particularly to a thermal management system which
utilizes a fuel stabilization unit with a fuel-air pre-cooler for
an aircraft environmental control system.
[0002] Aircraft utilize sophisticated Thermal Management Systems
(TMS) for component and environmental thermal management. An
environmental control system (ECS) provides a supply of conditioned
air to an enclosure, such as an aircraft cabin and cockpit.
Conventional ECSs have utilized an air cycle cooling system which
is in a heat exchange relationship with a liquid loop. The liquid
loop typically cools other heat loads such as avionics packages.
Interaction between the air and liquid subsystems is relatively
complex.
[0003] In one conventional ECS, a flow of bleed air is drawn from
an intermediate or high pressure engine compressor section of a gas
turbine engine. Although effective, a penalty paid for the use of
bleed air is a reduction in operating efficiency of the engine from
which the air is bled. Furthermore, the bleed air is often above
700 degrees Fahrenheit and must be pre-cooled to below 450 degrees
Fahrenheit in an engine pylon mounted air-to-air heat exchanger
prior to being communicated through the aircraft wing and into the
ECS. The cooler air communicated to the air-to-air heat exchanger
is fan bypass airflow drawn from a fan section of the of the
aircraft engine. The fan bypass airflow is air drawn from the fan
duct of a gas turbine engine which further reduces the operating
efficiency of the engine.
[0004] Accordingly, it is desirable to provide an effective,
lightweight thermal management system for an aircraft ECS which
minimizes reduction in engine operating efficiency.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0005] A fuel based thermal management system according to the
present invention includes a fuel stabilization system which
permits the fuel to exceed the traditional coking temperatures. An
air-to-fuel heat exchanger operates as an environmental control
system (ECS) pre-cooler such that the heat from the engine
compressor bleed air is rejected into the fuel. The deoxygenated
fuel air-to-fuel heat exchanger minimizes drawing of engine bypass
airflow with a conventional air-to-air pre-cooler which would
otherwise decrease engine operating efficiency.
[0006] The present invention therefore provides an effective,
lightweight thermal management system for an aircraft ECS which
minimizes reduction in engine operating efficiency.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0007] The various features and advantages of this invention will
become apparent to those skilled in the art from the following
detailed description of the currently preferred embodiment. The
drawings that accompany the detailed description can be briefly
described as follows:
[0008] FIG. 1 is a general block diagram of a thermal management
system according to the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
[0009] FIG. 1 illustrates a general perspective view of a fuel
based thermal management system (TMS) 10 for an energy conversion
device (ECD) 12. The TMS includes a fuel circuit 14 and an
environmental control system circuit 16.
[0010] A fuel stabilization system (FSU) 18 receives a liquid fuel
from a fuel tank system 20 (illustrated schematically). It should
be understood that the location of the FSU 18 represents only one
of many possible locations, and that the FSU may be located in
other locations while still deoxygenating the fuel to be
advantageously utilized at higher temperatures with high
temperature resistant components.
[0011] The ECD 12 may exist in a variety of forms in which the
fuel, at some point prior to eventual use for processing, for
combustion or for some form of energy release, acquires sufficient
heat to support autoxidation reactions and coking if dissolved
oxygen is present to any significant extent in the fuel. One form
of the ECD 12 is a gas turbine engine, and particularly a turbofan
engine illustrated schematically which includes a fan section 22, a
compressor section 24, a turbine section 26, and a combustor
section 28.
[0012] The fuel is typically a hydrocarbon such as a liquid jet
fuel. The FSU 18 includes a fuel deoxygenation system 30 which
permits the fuel to remain stable at much higher temperatures
without coking by removing dissolved oxygen from the liquid fuel
which enables higher temperature loads to reject their heat to the
fuel. It should be understood that various deoxygenation systems
will benefit from the present invention. For further understanding
of a fuel deoxygenator system and associated components thereof,
attention is directed to U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,315,815 and 6,709,492
which are assigned to the assignee of the instant invention and
which are hereby incorporated herein in their entirety.
[0013] The fuel in the fuel circuit 14 serves as a coolant for the
environmental control system (ECS) circuit 16 to absorb thermal
energy therefrom prior to the elevated temperature fuel being
communication to the combustor section 28 of the ECD 12. In
general, heating of the fuel increases efficiency of the ECD 12.
The deoxygenation system 30 permits fuel to accommodate
temperatures upwards of 900 degrees Fahrenheit.
[0014] A liquid-to-air heat exchanger system 32 is located at an
intersection between the circuits 14, 16. The liquid-to-air heat
exchanger system 32 is embodied herein as an ECS pre-cooler,
however, other subsystems which require thermal management will
likewise benefit from the present invention and that other heat
exchanger subsystems may be incorporated into the TMS 10. It should
be understood that various precautions may be preferably taken due
to the close proximity of the compressed air with the high
temperature deoxygenated fuel, however, such precautions are well
within one of reasonable skill in the thermal management art.
[0015] The ECS circuit 14 receives compressed air from the
compressor section 24 of the ECD 12. The compressed air is
communicated through the liquid-to-air heat exchanger system 32
prior to communication to an aircraft cabin 34 through an aircraft
environmental control system (ECS) 36. The liquid-to-air heat
exchanger system 32 preferably reduces the temperature of the
compressed engine air to approximately 300 degrees Fahrenheit prior
to further conventional cooling in the ECS 36 for distribution to
the cabin 34 as generally understood.
[0016] The deoxygenated fuel is preferably raised to a temperature
which exceeds 325 degrees Fahrenheit in the liquid-to-air heat
exchanger system 32 prior to communication to the combustor section
of the ECD 12. This and greater temperatures are available due to
the deoxygenation system 30 which permits the deoxygenated fuel to
accommodate temperatures upwards of 900 degrees Fahrenheit. The
performance of the ECD 12 is improved with otherwise wasted thermal
energy. Moreover, the increased cooling of the compressed air prior
to communication to the ECS 36 due to the air-to-liquid heat
exchanger system 32 advantageously minimizes the size and/or weight
of this and other heat exchangers associated with the ECS 36. Such
thermal management avoids or minimizes the usage of fan bypass air
which would otherwise reduce engine operating efficiency.
[0017] Although particular step sequences are shown, described, and
claimed, it should be understood that steps may be performed in any
order, separated or combined unless otherwise indicated and will
still benefit from the present invention.
[0018] The foregoing description is exemplary rather than defined
by the limitations within. Many modifications and variations of the
present invention are possible in light of the above teachings. The
preferred embodiments of this invention have been disclosed,
however, one of ordinary skill in the art would recognize that
certain modifications would come within the scope of this
invention. It is, therefore, to be understood that within the scope
of the appended claims, the invention may be practiced otherwise
than as specifically described. For that reason the following
claims should be studied to determine the true scope and content of
this invention.
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