AIRCRAFT WITH HYDROGEN STORAGE TANKS

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The invention relates to an aircraft having hydrogen storage tanks, especially tanks for storage of gaseous hydrogen to be used as a fuel for aircraft propulsion, for example by use in a fuel cell system and / or a hydrogen-burning gas turbine engine.BACKGROUND

[0002] Use of hydrogen as a fuel in transport applications, including aeronautical applications, is of interest due to the absence of carbon dioxide generation at the point of use. However, storage of gaseous hydrogen on an aircraft requires a significantly greater fuel storage volume compared to that of a conventional aircraft. For many flight missions, conventional aircraft designs are therefore not appropriate for hydrogen-fuelled aviation. If a conventional aircraft is fitted with hydrogen storage tanks, the usable volume within the aircraft's interior is substantially reduced if the aircraft is intended to maintain its original range and payload.

[0003] US patent application publication US 2004 / 0245382 A1 discloses an aircraft having an arrangement of three elongate cylindrical nitrogen storage tanks coupled to the exterior of the fuselage of the aircraft and extending parallel thereto. The longitudinal axes of the tanks are co-planar.

[0004] An aircraft having three hydrogen storage tanks mounted to the fuselage of the aircraft azimuthally at top dead-centre position but at different longitudinal positions along the fuselage is disclosed in the paper "Hydrogen Powered Aircraft: The Future of Air Transport" by B. Khandelwal et al, Progress in Aerospace Sciences 60 (2013) pp 45-59. A fourth hydrogen storage tank occupies a terminal rear portion of the interior of the fuselage.BRIEF SUMMARY

[0005] According to the present invention, an aircraft comprises a fuselage and is characterised in that the aircraft comprises first, second, third, fourth and fifth elongate cylindrical hydrogen storage tanks each being mounted to the exterior of the fuselage, extending parallel thereto and being disposed vertically above a horizontal plane containing the wing tips of the aircraft with the aircraft on the ground or in level flight, the first tank being mounted to the exterior of the fuselage at top dead-centre thereof, the second and third tanks each being mounted in contact with the first tank on a respective lateral side thereof and having a common diameter less than that of the first tank, the fourth and fifth tanks being mounted to the fuselage in contact with the second and third tanks respectively and having a common diameter less than that of the second and third tanks, and wherein the aircraft further comprises an aerodynamic fairing, the aerodynamic fairing and the fuselage enclosing the first to fifth hydrogen storage tanks.

[0006] The aircraft may further comprise sixth, seventh, eighth and ninth elongate cylindrical hydrogen storage tanks mounted to the exterior of the fuselage, the sixth and seventh tanks being in contact with the fourth and fifth tanks respectively and having a common diameter less than that of the fourth and fifth tanks and the eighth and ninth tanks having a common diameter less than that of the sixth and seventh tanks, the first to ninth tanks being enclosed by the aerodynamic fairing and the fuselage, and the first to ninth tanks being disposed vertically above the horizontal plane containing the wings tips of the aircraft with the aircraft on the ground or in level flight.

[0007] The aircraft may comprise at least one of a hydrogen-fuelled fuel-cell system and a hydrogen-burning gas turbine engine, and a conveying system arranged to convey hydrogen from the hydrogen storage tanks to the hydrogen fuel-cell and / or the hydrogen-burning gas turbine engine.BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0008] Embodiments of the invention are described below by way of example only and with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1shows a transverse cross-section of an example aircraft of the invention; and Figure 2shows a longitudinal cross-section of the aircraft of Figure 1. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0009] Referring to Figures 1 and 2, an example aircraft 100 of the invention comprises a fuselage 118, wings 116A, 116B, first to ninth elongate generally cylindrical hydrogen storage tanks 112A-I mounted on and extending generally parallel to the fuselage 118 and an aerodynamic fairing 114 which, together with the fuselage 118, encloses the hydrogen storage tanks 112A-I and provides a continuous external air-washed surface of the aircraft 100. With the aircraft on the ground or in level flight, a vertical plane 102 longitudinally bisects both the fuselage 118 and the first hydrogen storage tank 112A, i.e. the first hydrogen storage tank 112A is mounted on the fuselage 118 at top dead-centre thereof. A horizontal plane 101 includes the tips of the wings 116A, 116B. The first to ninth tanks 112A-I are each mounted on the fuselage 118 vertically above the plane 101. The fairing 114 extends fore and aft of the hydrogen storage tanks 112A-I as shown in Figure 2. The interior 110 of the fuselage 118 provides a space for passengers and / or cargo in use of the aircraft 100. The second 112B and third 112C tanks have a common diameter smaller than that of the first tank 112A and are each mounted on the exterior of the fuselage 118 on a respective lateral side of the first tank 112A. The second 112B and third 112C tanks are in contact with the first tank 112A. The fourth and fifth tanks 112D, 112E, the sixth and seventh tanks 112F, 112G and the eighth and ninth tanks 112H, 112I are three pairs of elongate generally cylindrical hydrogen storage tanks, the pairs having respective diameters which progressively decrease moving azimuthally away from the first tank 212A with respect to the fuselage 218, and which each have a smaller diameter than that of the second and third tanks 112B, 112C.

Claims

1. An aircraft (200) comprising a fuselage (218) and first, second, third, fourth and fifth elongate cylindrical hydrogen storage tanks (212A-E) each being mounted to the exterior of the fuselage, extending parallel thereto and being disposed vertically above a horizontal plane (201) containing the wing tips of the aircraft with the aircraft on the ground or in level flight, the first tank (212A) being mounted to the exterior of the fuselage at top dead-centre thereof, the second and third tanks each being mounted in contact with the first tank on a respective lateral side thereof and having a common diameter less than that of the first tank, the fourth and fifth tanks being mounted to the fuselage in contact with the second and third tanks respectively and having a common diameter less than that of the second and third tanks, and wherein the aircraft further comprises an aerodynamic fairing (214), the aerodynamic fairing and the fuselage enclosing the first to fifth hydrogen storage tanks.

2. An aircraft according to claim 1 further comprising sixth, seventh, eighth and ninth elongate cylindrical hydrogen storage tanks (212F-I) mounted to the exterior of the fuselage and extending parallel thereto, the sixth and seventh tanks being in contact with the fourth and fifth tanks respectively and having a common diameter less than that of the fourth and fifth tanks and the eighth and ninth tanks having a common diameter less than that of the sixth and seventh tanks and being in contact with the sixth and seventh tanks respectively, the first to ninth tanks being enclosed by the aerodynamic fairing and the fuselage, and the first to ninth tanks being disposed vertically above the horizontal plane containing the wings tips of the aircraft with the aircraft on the ground or in level flight.

3. An aircraft according to claim 1 or claim 2 and comprising at least one of a hydrogen-fuelled fuel-cell system and a hydrogen-burning gas turbine engine, and further comprising a conveying system arranged to convey hydrogen from the hydrogen storage tanks to the hydrogen fuel-cell and / or the hydrogen-burning gas turbine engine.