On-board fuel inerting system
OwnerKenneth Suskoinventor
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An inerting system is disclosed that is adaptable to inert the fuel tank of a vehicle, most typically an aircraft, that includes an oxygen detector to monitor the oxygen partial pressure of the vapors in the ullage (i.e., the overfuel) volume of the tank, a source of an inert gas (e.g., nitrogen) in valved communication with the ullage of the tank, and a detector for sensing the oxygen content in the ullage of the tank and controlling the flow of inert gas to the tillage to maintain that volume with a proportion oxygen that will not support combustion in the event of an ignition source or intrusion of another potentially explosive occurrence within said tank. A specific fiberoptic probe which enables monitoring oxygen content within the tank without introducing a source of electrical current within the tank is also disclosed.
Claims14
An on-board fuel inerting system for a vehicle subject to electrical sparking or other intrusion of potentially explosive occurrences within a fuel tank of the vehicle which comprises:
- (a) an oxygen partial pressure detector maintained in contact with the vapors in the ullage of the fuel tank;
- (b) a source of inert gas maintained on-board the vehicle in valved communication with the ullage volume of the fuel tank;
- and (c) a controller responsive to the detection of a partial pressure of oxygen within said ullage volume that is higher than a predetermined level to cause inert gas to flow into the ullage volume from said source to establish the oxygen partial pressure in said volume at a lower level.
An on-board fuel inerting system for an aircraft subject to electrical sparking or other intrusion of potentially explosive occurrences within a fuel tank of the aircraft which comprises:
- (a) an oxygen partial pressure detector maintained in contact with vapors in a ullage volume of the fuel tank;
- (b) a source of inert gas maintained on-board the vehicle in valved communication with the ullage volume of the fuel tank;
- and (c) a controller responsive to detection of a partial pressure of oxygen within said ullage volume that is higher than a predetermined level to cause inert gas to flow into the ullage volume from said source to establish the oxygen partial pressure in said volume at a lower level.
An on-board fuel inerting system for a fuel tank of an aircraft subject to electrical sparking or other intrusion of potentially explosive occurrences within the fuel tank which comprises:
- (a) an oxygen partial pressure detector maintained in contact with the vapors in the ullage of the fuel tank;
- (b) a source of liquid nitrogen gas maintained on-board the vehicle in valved communication with the ullage volume of the fuel tank, said source containing an amount of gas sufficient double the amount needed to flood the ullage of said fuel tank;
- and (c) a controller responsive to the detection of a partial pressure of oxygen within said ullage volume that is higher than the proportion that would support combustion to cause inert gas to flow into the ullage volume from said source to establish the oxygen partial pressure in said volume at a lower level.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.