TURBOPROP-POWERED AIRCRAFT

• US 20130292085A1
• Filed: 01/06/2012
• Published: 11/07/2013
• 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 Jamess
• Granted Patent: US 9,422,060 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 165/10
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 13/00 Arrangements or adaptations of air-treatment apparatus for aircraft crew or passengers, or freight space , or structural parts of the aircraft treatment rooms with artificial climate for medical purposes A61G10/02; respiratory apparatus in general A62B; for vehicles in general B60H
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 13/06 the air being conditioned pressurising B64D13/02
• 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 2013/0614 with subsystems for cooling avionics
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 2013/0633 including chemical reaction-based thermal management systems
• CPC Class Codes: B64F 1/362 Installations for supplying conditioned air to parked aircraft
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 50/50 On board measures aiming to increase energy efficiency

Abstract

A method and apparatus are disclosed for a turboprop-powered medium altitude long endurance (MALE) aircraft, having: a heat exchanger with a heat-storage material, for example a heat-storage wax; and an air recirculation path. The heat exchanger can be arranged to cool air recirculating around the air recirculation path which is arranged to provide cooling to the MALE aircraft, for example to an equipment bay. The heat-storage material may be cooled by ground-based cooling apparatus when the aircraft is on the ground and/or by ram air when the aircraft is in flight. The heat-storage material may have a melting point selected so as to be rendered solid during ground-based cooling and/or ram air cooling, and/or selected so as to undergo melting whilst cooling the air recirculating around the air recirculation path.

Claims

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

a heat exchanger having a heat-storage material; and

an air recirculation path;

wherein

the heat exchanger is configured 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 air.

2. A turboprop-powered medium altitude long endurance aircraft engine according to claim 1, wherein the heat exchanger is configured such that the heat-storage material will be cooled by ground-based cooling apparatus during aircraft is grounding.

3. A turboprop-powered medium altitude long endurance aircraft engine according to claim 1, wherein the heat exchanger is configured such that the heat-storage material will be cooled by ram air during aircraft flight.

4. A turboprop-powered medium altitude long endurance aircraft engine according to claim 2, 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.

5. A turboprop-powered medium altitude long endurance aircraft engine according to claim 3, 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 the ram air.

6. A turboprop-powered medium altitude long endurance aircraft engine according to claim 1, wherein the heat-storage material has a melting point selected so as to undergo melting to assist its heat capturing characteristics when cooling air is recirculating around the air recirculation path.

7. A turboprop-powered medium altitude long endurance aircraft engine according to claim 1, wherein the air recirculation path is arranged such that the recirculating air will provide aircraft cooling, and comprises an air recirculation path arranged to allow recirculating air to provide cooling to an aircraft equipment bay.

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

an air flow channel; and

a heat sink;

wherein

the heat sink is thermally coupled to the air flow channel and configured such that in operation heat will be extracted from air flowing along the air flow channel and extracted heat will be stored in the heat sink; and

the heat sink includes heat-storage material with a melting point selected relative to a temperature of air intended to be cooled such that the material will be initially solid and then will melt or start to melt while extracting and storing heat from air flowing along the air flow channel.

9. A turboprop-powered medium altitude long endurance aircraft engine according to claim 1, wherein the heat-storage material is a heat-storage wax.

10. A turboprop-powered medium altitude long endurance aircraft engine according to claim 9, wherein the heat-storage wax is paraffin wax.

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

cooling, with recirculated air passed via a heat exchanger, the turboprop-powered medium altitude long endurance aircraft, the heat exchanger having a heat-storage material.

12. A method according to claim 11, comprising:

cooling, with ground-based cooling air, the heat exchanger prior to using recirculated air passed via the heat exchanger to cool the turboprop-powered medium altitude long endurance aircraft.

13. A method according to claim 11, comprising:

cooling, with ram air, the heat exchanger after using the recirculated air passed via the heat exchanger to cool the turboprop-powered medium altitude long endurance aircraft.

14. A method according to claim 13, comprising:

cooling, after using ram air to cool the heat exchanger, the turboprop-powered medium altitude long endurance aircraft with recirculated air passed via the heat exchanger.

15. A method according to claim 11, comprising:

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