Multi-fuel mixing test system and method

Abstract

A multi-fuel blending test system for conveying blended fuel to a test piece is provided, the system comprises an aviation kerosene supply assembly, a biofuel supply assembly, a blending assembly, a nitrogen supply system and a pump set, and the aviation kerosene supply assembly comprises a kerosene tank; the biofuel supply assembly comprises a biofuel oil tank; the mixing assembly is connected with the aviation kerosene supply assembly and the biofuel supply assembly and used for adjusting the mixing proportion of aviation kerosene and biofuel and outputting mixed fuel. The nitrogen supply system is used for providing pressure for driving aviation kerosene and biofuel to flow; and the pump set is arranged between the mixing assembly and the test piece and is used for secondarily pressurizing and mixing the fuel. The invention further provides a multi-fuel mixing test method. According to the system and the method, the blended fuel can be stably and accurately provided.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The invention relates to the field of aviation engine testing, and in particular to the field of multi-fuel blending testing. Background Art

[0002] With the development of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) in the field of aircraft engines, there is a demand for multi-fuel supply for aircraft engine test benches, that is, SAF and aviation kerosene need to be mixed in a certain proportion and supplied to the test piece during the test. However, the current fuel system of aircraft engine test benches can generally only supply a single fuel and cannot meet the demand for multi-fuel supply. Summary of the invention

[0003] An object of the present invention is to provide a multi-fuel blending test system capable of providing blended fuels stably and accurately.

[0004] To achieve the above-mentioned purpose, a multi-fuel blending test system is used to deliver blended fuel to a test piece, the system comprising an aviation kerosene supply component, a biofuel supply component, a blending component, a nitrogen supply system and a pump group, the aviation kerosene supply component comprising a kerosene tank; the biofuel supply component comprising a biofuel tank; the blending component is connected to the aviation kerosene supply component and the biofuel supply component, and is used to adjust the blending ratio of aviation kerosene and biofuel, and output the blended fuel; the nitrogen supply system is used to provide pressure to drive the aviation kerosene and the biofuel to flow; the pump group is arranged between the blending component and the test piece, and is used to pressurize the blended fuel.

[0005] In one or more embodiments, the aviation kerosene supply assembly further includes a kerosene filter device, a kerosene flow meter, and a kerosene regulating valve.

[0006] In one or more embodiments, the biofuel supply assembly further includes a biofuel filtering device, a biofuel flow meter, and a biofuel regulating valve.

[0007] In one or more embodiments, the system further comprises a heat exchange component disposed between the pump group and the test piece for adjusting the temperature of the blended fuel.

[0008] In one or more embodiments, the heat exchange assembly further includes a one-way valve.

[0009] In one or more embodiments, the system further includes a nitrogen purge assembly disposed between the pump group and the test piece, and configured to purge the blended fuel supply pipeline.

[0010] In one or more embodiments, the nitrogen of the nitrogen purge component comes from the nitrogen supply system.

[0011] In one or more embodiments, the system further includes a blending flow meter and a blending regulating valve, which are disposed between the pump group and the test piece and are used to regulate the flow rate of the blended fuel.

[0012] Another object of the present invention is to provide a multi-fuel blending test method, which includes the following steps: using nitrogen to independently drive the flow of biofuel and aviation kerosene; using a blending device to mix the biofuel and aviation kerosene in proportion to form a blended fuel; using a pump group to pressurize the blended fuel and then transport it to the test piece.

[0013] In one or more embodiments, the blended fuel supply line is purged with nitrogen prior to supplying the blended fuel.

[0014] The above-mentioned multi-fuel blending test system uses nitrogen as a driving source for one-time pressurization, and utilizes the stable characteristics of nitrogen to avoid affecting various mixed fuels, thereby ensuring the stability of the mixing ratio during the test, thereby providing blended fuel stably and accurately, solving the problem that the existing engine test bench fuel system can only provide a single fuel. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0015] The above and other features, properties and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent through the following description in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and embodiments, in which:

[0016] Figure 1 It is a simplified structural diagram of a multi-fuel blending system;

[0017] Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of a specific embodiment of a multi-fuel blending system.

[0018] Description of Reference Numerals

[0019] 2 Mixing flow meter

[0020] 3 Mixing control valve

[0021] 6 Heat exchange regulating valve

[0022] 7 Check valve

[0023] 10 Nitrogen supply system

[0024] 11 Heat Exchanger

[0025] 13 Waste oil tank

[0026] 20 Aviation kerosene supply components

[0027] 21 Kerosene tank

[0028] 22 Kerosene filter

[0029] 23 Kerosene flow meter

[0030] 24 Kerosene regulating valve

[0031] 25 Kerosene switch valve

[0032] 30 Biofuel Supply Components

[0033] 31 Biofuel tank

[0034] 32 Biofuel Filtration Device

[0035] 33 Biofuel flow meter

[0036] 34 Biofuel Regulator

[0037] 35 Biofuel Regulator

[0038] 40 Mixing components

[0039] 50 Pump Group

[0040] 60 test pieces DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0041] The present invention is further described below in conjunction with specific embodiments and drawings. More details are elaborated in the following description to facilitate a full understanding of the present invention. However, the present invention can obviously be implemented in a variety of other ways different from the description herein. Those skilled in the art can make similar generalizations and deductions based on actual application situations without violating the connotation of the present invention. Therefore, the protection scope of the present invention should not be limited by the content of this specific embodiment.

[0042] It should be noted that these and other subsequent drawings are only examples and are not drawn to scale, and should not be used to limit the actual scope of protection required by the present invention.

[0043] The fuel system of an engine test bench needs to stably provide multiple types of mixed fuels in multiple proportions. The multi-fuel blending test system described in the present invention can mix sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) and aviation kerosene in any proportion to meet the needs of testing and verifying aviation engines using sustainable aviation fuel.

[0044] Reference Figure 1 and Figure 2 As shown, the multi-fuel blending test system is used to deliver blended fuel to a test piece 60 , and specifically includes an aviation kerosene supply assembly 20 , a biofuel supply assembly 30 , a blending assembly 40 , a nitrogen supply system 10 and a pump assembly 50 .

[0045] The aviation kerosene supply assembly 20 includes a kerosene tank 21, a kerosene filter 22, a kerosene flow meter 23, a kerosene regulating valve 24 and a kerosene switch valve 25, which are independent delivery pipelines. The kerosene filter 22 filters the fuel in the tank, the kerosene switch valve 25 is used to control the on-off of the fuel, and a kerosene flow meter 23 and a kerosene regulating valve 24 are provided in the process leading to the blending assembly 40, which are used to measure the kerosene flow and regulate the flow respectively, so as to accurately achieve the delivery flow of the target required fuel blending ratio.

[0046] The biofuel supply assembly 30 includes a biofuel tank 31, a biofuel filter 32, a biofuel flow meter 33, a biofuel regulating valve 34 and a biofuel switch valve 35. The biofuel filter 32 filters the fuel in the tank, the biofuel switch valve 35 is used to control the biofuel flow meter 33, the biofuel regulating valve 34, the oil flow meter 23 and the kerosene regulating valve 24, which are respectively used to measure the biofuel flow and regulate the flow to accurately achieve the delivery flow of the target required fuel blending ratio.

[0047] Biofuel generally refers to solid, liquid or gaseous fuels composed of or converted from organisms, such as fuel ethanol and biodiesel.

[0048] The fuels can be mixed in any proportion after being adjusted and measured in two independent branches.

[0049] The nitrogen supply system 10 is used to provide a primary pressure to drive the flow of aviation kerosene and biofuel. By providing nitrogen of a certain pressure to the aviation kerosene tank 21 and the biofuel tank 31, the fuel in the two tanks can flow smoothly to the bottom of the pipeline under the pressure of nitrogen. The nitrogen has stable properties and can ensure the accuracy of the blending ratio, which is of great significance for fuel blending experiments.

[0050] The blending assembly 40 is connected to the aviation kerosene supply assembly and the biofuel supply assembly to adjust the blending ratio of aviation kerosene and biofuel and output the blended fuel. After the two fuels are blended at the target blending ratio, they are evenly blended by the blending assembly 40 and flow to the downstream pump assembly 50.

[0051] The pump group 50 is disposed between the blending assembly 40 and the test piece 60, and is used for the blended fuel outputted through the blending assembly 40. Thus, the nitrogen pressurizes the fuel once, and the pump group pressurizes the fuel twice.

[0052] The mixed fuel flows to the test piece 60 after being pressurized by the pump group 50. In some embodiments, the system further includes a heat exchange component 11 disposed between the pump group 50 and the test piece 60. The heat exchange component 11 is used to adjust the temperature of the mixed fuel. The heat exchange component includes a heat exchanger 8, which is used to reduce the temperature of the mixed fuel raised after the pump to room temperature. The heat exchange regulating valve 6 on the heat exchange circuit is used to adjust the flow rate of the mixed fuel in the circuit after the pump. The one-way valve 7 on the heat exchange circuit is used to prevent the fuel in the pipeline from flowing back.

[0053] In addition, a circuit is provided after the pump group for regulating the flow of the fuel. The blending flow meter 2 and the blending regulating valve 3 are provided between the pump group 50 and the test piece 60 for secondary regulating the flow of the blended fuel to the test piece 60.

[0054] At the beginning of the test or when the fuel blending ratio is changed, in order to prevent the residual oil in the pipeline from affecting the fuel blending ratio, a nitrogen purge assembly and a waste oil tank 13 are provided at the rear section of the pump group to collect the original blending ratio fuel. A nitrogen purge assembly is also provided to deliver nitrogen to purge the blended fuel supply pipeline at the rear end of the pump group and the residual oil in the test piece.

[0055] In some embodiments, the nitrogen of the nitrogen purge assembly may come from the nitrogen supply system 10, as shown by line A, or may come from other independent nitrogen sources.

[0056] During the test, the total fuel flow of the two branches is controlled at 1.2 times the maximum flow of a single test, and the excess fuel is returned to the front of the pump through the return oil pipeline after the pump group, or flows into the waste oil tank. When the oil supply flow of the test piece changes, only the heat exchange regulating valve 6 on the heat exchange circuit needs to be adjusted, which will not affect the upstream mixing ratio, thereby improving the convenience of the test.

[0057] By providing components such as a pump group 50, a blending flow meter 2, a blending regulating valve 3 and a heat exchange regulating valve 6, the fuel can be pressurized, regulated and measured for a second time after blending, thereby ensuring the measurement accuracy of the inlet fuel flow of the test piece, while the downstream fuel flow regulation will not affect the blending ratio.

[0058] Combined with the introduction of the above-mentioned multi-fuel blending test system, we can also learn about a multi-fuel blending test method, which includes the following steps: using nitrogen to independently drive the flow of biofuel and aviation kerosene; using a blending device to mix the biofuel and aviation kerosene in proportion to form a blended fuel; using a pump group to secondary pressurize the blended fuel and then transport it to the test piece.

[0059] In addition, before supplying the blended fuel, such as before testing or when changing the fuel ratio, use nitrogen to purge the blended fuel supply pipeline to avoid the impact of residual oil in the pipeline on the fuel blending ratio and ensure the accuracy of the blended fuel supply.

[0060] The above-mentioned system and method can mix sustainable aviation fuel and aviation kerosene in any proportion and then supply them to the engine. The mixing efficiency is high, the mixing ratio accuracy is high, and the stability is good. The flow measurement uses a high-precision flow meter to ensure the accuracy of the mixing ratio. Nitrogen as a pressure source can ensure the stability of the mixing ratio during the test and avoid contamination of the fuel required for the test, thereby ensuring the smooth progress of the test verification of aviation engines using sustainable aviation fuel (SAF).

[0061] It should be noted that the use of terms such as "first" and "second" to limit components is only to facilitate the distinction between corresponding components. Unless otherwise stated, the above terms have no special meaning and therefore cannot be understood as limiting the scope of protection of this application.

[0062] At the same time, the present application uses specific words to describe the embodiments of the present application. For example, "one embodiment", "an embodiment", and / or "some embodiments" refer to a certain feature, structure or characteristic related to at least one embodiment of the present application. Therefore, it should be emphasized and noted that "one embodiment" or "an embodiment" or "an alternative embodiment" mentioned twice or more in different positions in this specification does not necessarily refer to the same embodiment. In addition, some features, structures or characteristics in one or more embodiments of the present application can be appropriately combined.

[0063] Although the present invention is disclosed as above with preferred embodiments, it is not intended to limit the present invention. Any person skilled in the art may make possible changes and modifications without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. Therefore, any modification, equivalent change and modification made to the above embodiments according to the technical essence of the present invention without departing from the content of the technical solution of the present invention shall fall within the protection scope defined by the claims of the present invention.

Claims

1. A multi-fuel blending test system, used to deliver blended fuel to a test piece, characterized in that: The system includes: Aviation kerosene supply assemblies, including kerosene tanks; Biofuel supply components, including biofuel tanks; A nitrogen supply system for providing pressure to drive the aviation kerosene and the biofuel to flow; a blending assembly connected to the aviation kerosene supply assembly and the biofuel supply assembly, for adjusting the blending ratio of the aviation kerosene and the biofuel, and outputting the blended fuel; and A pump group is arranged between the blending component and the test piece, and is used for pressurizing the blended fuel.

2. The multi-fuel blending test system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The aviation kerosene supply assembly also includes a kerosene filter device, a kerosene flow meter, a kerosene switch valve and a kerosene regulating valve.

3. The multi-fuel blending test system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The biofuel supply assembly also includes a biofuel filtering device, a biofuel flow meter, a biofuel switch valve and a biofuel regulating valve.

4. The multi-fuel blending test system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The system also includes a heat exchange component, which is arranged between the pump group and the test piece and is used for adjusting the temperature of the mixed fuel.

5. The multi-fuel blending test system according to claim 4, characterized in that: The heat exchange assembly also includes a one-way valve.

6. The multi-fuel blending test system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The system also includes a nitrogen purge assembly, which is arranged between the pump group and the test piece and is used for purging a supply pipeline of the blended fuel.

7. The multi-fuel blending test system according to claim 6, characterized in that: The nitrogen of the nitrogen purge component comes from the nitrogen supply system.

8. The multi-fuel blending test system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The system also includes a blending flow meter and a blending regulating valve, which are arranged between the pump group and the test piece and are used to adjust the flow of the blended fuel.

9. A multi-fuel blending test method, characterized in that: The steps include: Use nitrogen to independently drive biofuel and jet fuel flows; Using a blending device to mix biofuel and aviation kerosene in proportion to form a blended fuel; The mixed fuel is pressurized using a pump set and then delivered to the test piece.

10. The multi-fuel blending test method according to claim 9, characterized in that: Before supplying the blended fuel, the blended fuel supply pipeline is purged with nitrogen.

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