Aircraft fuel system
AssigneeROLLS-ROYCE plc
InventorsAlexis Lambourne, Neil E. Glover
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A fuel system for a hydrogen fueled aircraft propulsion system comprises a fuel tank configured to store hydrogen fuel, a main fuel conduit configured to provide fuel to a combustor of a gas turbine engine, a fuel heater comprising a catalytic combustor configured to catalytically combust a portion of the hydrogen fuel prior to delivery to the combustor and a heat exchanger configured to exchange heat between exhaust gases from the fuel heater and hydrogen fuel in the fuel conduit.
Claims14
A fuel system for a hydrogen fueled aircraft propulsion system, the fuel system comprising:
- a fuel tank configured to store hydrogen fuel;
- a main fuel conduit configured to provide the hydrogen fuel to a combustor of a gas turbine engine;
- a fuel heater comprising a catalytic combustor configured to catalytically combust a portion of the hydrogen fuel prior to delivery to the combustor;
- and
- a heat exchanger configured to exchange heat between exhaust gases from the fuel heater and the hydrogen fuel in the fuel conduit;
- a controller configured to control a fuel:air ratio within the catalytic combustor;
- wherein the controller is configured to control the fuel:air ratio to between a minimum defined by a catalytic combustion lean extinction limit, and a maximum defined by an air flammability lower limit.
A method of heating hydrogen fuel in a fuel system for a hydrogen fueled aircraft propulsion system, the fuel system comprising a fuel tank configured to store hydrogen fuel;
- a main fuel conduit configured to provide the hydrogen fuel to a combustor of a gas turbine engine;
- a fuel heater comprising a catalytic combustor configured to catalytically combust a portion of the hydrogen fuel prior to delivery to the combustor;
- and a heat exchanger configured to exchange heat between exhaust gases from the fuel heater and the hydrogen fuel in the fuel conduit;
- a controller configured to control a fuel:air ratio within the catalytic combustor;
- wherein the controller is configured to control the fuel:air ratio to between a minimum defined by a catalytic combustion lean extinction limit, and a maximum define by an air flammability lower limit, the method comprising:
- flowing the hydrogen fuel through the fuel conduit;
- flowing the hydrogen fuel and oxygen through the catalytic combustor to thereby catalytically combust the hydrogen fuel and the oxygen;
- controlling the fuel:air ratio in the catalytic combustor to between the minimum and the maximum;
- exchanging heat between the exhaust gases and the hydrogen fuel in the fuel conduit;
- and supplying the heated hydrogen fuel to the combustor.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.