TURBOPROP-POWERED AIRCRAFT

• US 20130283816A1
• Filed: 01/06/2012
• Published: 10/31/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 01/11/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: BAE Systems Plc
• Original Assignee: BAE Systems Plc
• Inventors: Smith, Stephen John Richard, Watt, Kieran James, White, Andrew Charles
• Granted Patent: US 9,429,076 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 60/784
• CPC Class Codes: B64C 39/024 of the remote controlled vehicle type, i.e. RPV
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 13/08 the air being heated or cooled
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 15/02 by ducted hot gas or liquid
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 15/04 Hot gas application
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 2013/0607 providing hot air or liquid for deicing aircraft parts, e.g. aerodynamic surfaces or windows
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 2013/0614 with subsystems for cooling avionics
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 2013/0648 with energy recovery means, e.g. using turbines
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 2013/0674 comprising liquid subsystems
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 27/10 of gas-turbine type jet aircraft B64D27/16
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 33/08 of power plant cooling systems cooling of internal-combustion engines per se F01P; cooling of gas-turbine plants or jet-propulsion plants per se F02C, F02K
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 10/25 Fixed-wing aircraft VTOL aircraft B64U10/20
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 20/96 using air
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 50/11 using internal combustion piston engines
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 50/12 using turbine engines, e.g. turbojets or turbofans
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 50/13 using external fans or propellers
• CPC Class Codes: F02C 7/24 Heat or noise insulation air intakes having provisions for noise suppression F02C7/045; turbine exhaust heads, chambers, or the like F01D25/30; silencing nozzles of jet-propulsion plants F02K1/00
• CPC Class Codes: F28D 2020/0013 the heat storage material being enclosed in elements attached to or integral with heat exchange conduits
• CPC Class Codes: F28D 2020/0017 the heat storage material being enclosed in porous or cellular or fibrous structures phase-change materials F28D20/023
• CPC Class Codes: F28F 13/003 by using permeable mass, perforated or porous materials F28F13/18 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 50/50 On board measures aiming to increase energy efficiency

Abstract

A turboprop-powered medium altitude long endurance aircraft, having a gas turbine engine; a heat scavenging device to scavenge heat from the gas turbine engine; and a heating device to use the scavenged heat to provide heating to the aircraft. The heat scavenging device may be placed on an engine casing and/or on or in an engine exhaust duct. The heating device may include a circulation path routed directly to a location in the aircraft where heating is to be performed, for example a leading edge of an engine support pylon or a leading edge of an engine-carrying wing. The heating device can include a heat exchanger.

Claims

1. A turboprop-powered medium altitude long endurance aircraft engine, comprising:

a gas turbine engine configured for providing propulsion power to an aircraft propeller;

a heat scavenging apparatus configured for scavenging heat from the gas turbine engine; and

a heating apparatus configured to provide scavenged heat for heating an aircraft.

2. A turboprop-powered medium altitude long endurance aircraft engine according to claim 1, wherein the heat scavenging apparatus comprises:

a thermal blanket.

3. A turboprop-powered medium altitude long endurance aircraft engine according to claim 2, wherein the thermal blanket comprises:

capillary tubing.

4. A turboprop-powered medium altitude long endurance aircraft engine according to claim 1, comprising:

an engine casing for the engine, wherein the heat scavenging apparatus is placed on the engine casing of the engine.

5. A turboprop-powered medium altitude long endurance aircraft engine according to claim 1, comprising:

an engine air duct of the engine, wherein the heat scavenging apparatus is placed on or in the exhaust duct of the engine.

6. A turboprop-powered medium altitude long endurance aircraft engine according to claim 1, wherein the heating apparatus comprises:

a circulation path for routing heat directly to an aircraft location where heating is to be performed.

7. A turboprop-powered medium altitude long endurance aircraft engine according to claim 6, in combination with an aircraft, wherein the location in the aircraft where heating is to be performed is a leading edge of an engine support pylon or a leading edge of an engine-carrying wing.

8. A turboprop-powered medium altitude long endurance aircraft engine according to claim 1, wherein the heating apparatus comprises:

a heat exchanger.

9. A turboprop-powered medium altitude long endurance aircraft engine according to claim 8, wherein the heat exchanger is configured to apply scavenged heat to heat air in a recirculating air path.

10. A turboprop-powered medium altitude long endurance aircraft engine according to claim 9, in combination with an aircraft, wherein the recirculating air path is arranged to provide cooling and/or heating to the aircraft.

11. A turboprop-powered medium altitude long endurance aircraft engine according to claim 10, comprising:

a further heat exchanger; and

wherein;

the further heat exchanger comprises a heat-storage material;

the further heat exchanger is arranged to cool air recirculating around the air recirculation path; and

the air recirculation path is arranged to allow the recirculating air to provide aircraft cooling.

12. A turboprop-powered medium altitude long endurance aircraft engine according to claim 11, wherein the further heat exchanger is configured to allow the heat-storage material to be cooled by a ground-based cooling apparatus during aircraft grounding.

13. A turboprop-powered medium altitude long endurance aircraft engine according to claim 12, wherein the heat-storage material has a melting point selected so as to be rendered solid when cooling is to be performed by the ground-based cooling apparatus and/or by ram air.

14. A turboprop-powered medium altitude long endurance aircraft engine according to claim 11, wherein the further heat exchanger is configured such that the heat-storage material will be cooled by ram air during aircraft flight.

15. A turboprop-powered medium altitude long endurance aircraft engine according to claim 14, wherein the heat-storage material has a melting point selected so as to be rendered solid when cooling is to be performed by a ground-based cooling apparatus and/or by the ram air.

16. A turboprop-powered medium altitude long endurance aircraft engine according to claim 1, wherein the heating apparatus comprises:

a pressurised heat transfer liquid loop.

17. A turboprop-powered medium altitude long endurance aircraft engine according to claim 16, in combination with an aircraft, wherein the pressurised heat transfer liquid loop is configured to transfer scavenged heat to aircraft parts to perform icing prevention at those parts of the aircraft.

18. A method of thermally managing a turboprop-powered medium altitude long endurance aircraft, the method comprising:

scavenging heat from an aircraft engine; and

performing heating of the turboprop-powered medium altitude long endurance aircraft with heat scavenged from the engine of the aircraft.

19. A method according to claim 18, comprising:

cooling, with ground-based cooling air, a heat exchanger, the heat exchanger having a heat-storage material;

thereafter, passing recirculated air via the heat exchanger to cool the turboprop-powered medium altitude long endurance aircraft; and

thereafter cooling, with ram air, the heat exchanger.