Aircraft system with a structure that limits a volume with a top point and a hydrogen-carrying element

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The invention relates to the field of aircraft in which a system of pipes, pumps, tanks, etc., is arranged for hydrogen. More particularly, the invention relates to an installation comprising a structure that delimits a volume in which a hydrogen-containing element is placed, and within this volume, a material is arranged that catalyzes the oxidation of hydrogen with ambient air to oxidize hydrogen. The invention also relates to an aircraft comprising at least one such installation. PREVIOUS STATE OF THE ART

[0002] Hydrogen is a known alternative to petroleum for vehicle propulsion, particularly for aircraft. For this purpose, an aircraft is equipped with a hydrogen tank that supplies a fuel cell to generate electricity, which then powers an electric motor, or directly drives an engine that consumes hydrogen. The aircraft therefore includes a network of pipes, pumps, and other components through which the hydrogen flows. For safety reasons and to limit the risk of hydrogen leaks, double-walled pipes are commonly used.

[0003] Although such an arrangement allows for a sufficient level of safety, it may be useful to have another arrangement that limits the risks of hydrogen concentrations in the aircraft.

[0004] US2023 / 170504A1 and JP6772467B2 each describe an aircraft installation comprising an aircraft structural assembly delimiting a volume with a high point, a container in which dihydrogen is present and which is arranged in the volume, and a catalyst intended to catalyze an oxidation reaction of dihydrogen with ambient air, where the catalyst is fixed in the volume at the high point. DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0005] An object of the present invention is to propose an aircraft installation comprising a structure which delimits a volume in which is disposed an element containing dihydrogen and where, in the volume, is arranged a catalyst material for an oxidation reaction of dihydrogen with ambient air to oxidize dihydrogen.

[0006] For this purpose, an aircraft installation is proposed according to claim 1.

[0007] With such an arrangement, the dihydrogen is consumed, which prevents its excessive concentration.

[0008] Advantageously, the volume has a low point and the installation includes, at the low point, a drainage channel arranged through a wall of the structural assembly to evacuate liquid water out of the volume.

[0009] Advantageously, for the catalyst or each catalyst, the installation includes a seal arranged around the associated channel, between the catalyst and the wall of the structural assembly where said channel is arranged.

[0010] Advantageously, the structural assembly is a portion of an aircraft wing.

[0011] Advantageously, the installation includes, for the catalyst or each catalyst, a temperature sensor arranged to measure the temperature of said catalyst.

[0012] The invention also proposes an aircraft comprising at least one installation according to one of the preceding variants. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0013] The features of the invention mentioned above, as well as others, will become clearer upon reading the following description of at least one exemplary embodiment, said description being made in relation to the accompanying drawings, among which: There figure 1 is a front and cross-sectional view of an aircraft in which an installation according to the invention is implemented, The figure 2 is a cross-sectional view of an unclaimed installation, The figure 3 is a cross-sectional view of an installation according to an embodiment of the invention, The figure 4 is a detailed view of a catalyst installation, and The figure 5 is a detailed view of another catalyst setup. DETAILED EXPLANATION OF IMPLEMENTATION METHODS

[0014] There figure 1 shows an aircraft 10 which has a fuselage 11 and on either side of the fuselage 11, a wing 12. The aircraft 10 has engines 13 which are supplied with dihydrogen by pipes 14 from a dihydrogen tank which is disposed for example in the fuselage 11.

[0015] Dihydrogen is used to achieve combustion in engine 13 or to power a fuel cell located near engine 13, which is then supplied with electricity from this fuel cell.

[0016] To enable the supply of dihydrogen along the wing 12 and to each of the engines 13, the aircraft 10 generally includes pipes 14, pumps 14a, and any other necessary devices. These elements are hereinafter referred to as "containers 106," and dihydrogen is present in each of them.

[0017] The aircraft 10 comprises a structure divided into structural assemblies 102. A "structural assembly 102" is any set of elements of the aircraft's structure 10 that together define a volume 104 that is more or less impermeable to dihydrogen and that, in any case, by its design, defines a volume 104 in which dihydrogen can accumulate. A structural assembly 102 can be, for example, a section of the wing 12 that includes a portion of the upper surface 12a, a portion of the lower surface 12b, and transverse walls 12c that are fixed between the upper surface 12a and the lower surface 12b. Thus, according to a particular embodiment, the volume 104 is located between the upper surface 12a, the lower surface 12b, and two successive transverse walls 12c.

[0018] A structural assembly can be, for example, a section of the fuselage 11 which comprises an inner skin, an outer skin, and beams fixed between the inner and outer skins. The volume 104 is then located between the inner skin, the outer skin, and two successive beams.

[0019] Of course, any other part of the aircraft 10 whose structural elements define a volume also constitutes a structural assembly within the meaning of the invention.

[0020] There figure 2 shows an unclaimed 100 installation and the figure 3 shows an installation 100 according to an embodiment of the invention.

[0021] The installation 100 comprises a structural assembly 102. Although this embodiment is based on a structural assembly 102 derived from the wing 12, the invention applies equally to any other structural assembly. The aircraft 10 may have several installations 100 distributed in different locations.

[0022] Installation 100 also includes a container 106 which is arranged in volume 104, as specified above, container 106 can be any element or set of elements containing dihydrogen.

[0023] Volume 104 has a high point 104a at which dihydrogen H2 is likely to accumulate in the event of a leak F at the level of the container 106.

[0024] To limit the concentration of dihydrogen at the high point 104a, the installation 100 includes a catalyst 108 designed to catalyze an oxidation reaction of dihydrogen with ambient air. The dihydrogen is thus oxidized to form water. In order to transform as much dihydrogen as possible, the catalyst 108 is fixed in the volume 104 at the high point 104a. The position of the catalyst 108 at the high point 104a is such that the accumulated dihydrogen H2 necessarily comes into contact with the catalyst 108. In one embodiment, the catalyst 108 can be arranged against the upper surface wall 12a, and in a second embodiment of the invention, the catalyst 108 is arranged against the upper surface wall 12a and one of the transverse walls 12c.Catalyst 108, for example, consists of a support, such as a grid, a plate, etc., covered with a suitable catalytic substance such as alumina and / or cerium oxide and / or a platinum group metal (platinum, palladium, platinum dioxide).

[0025] Depending on the configuration of the structural assembly 102, the consumption of hydrogen and oxygen will cause a drop in pressure within volume 104 if it is airtight, but oxygen will be replaced if volume 104 is not airtight. However, in all cases, the consumption of hydrogen will decrease its proportion within volume 104.

[0026] To evacuate the water thus formed, a drainage channel 110 can be arranged at a low point 104b of the volume 104. The drainage channel 110 thus passes through a wall of the structural assembly 102, here the intrados wall 12b and ensures the evacuation of the liquid water out of the volume 104.

[0027] To promote the passage of dihydrogen H2 through the catalyst 108, and thus improve the efficiency of the dihydrogen conversion, the installation 100 includes, through a wall of the structural assembly 102, an evacuation channel 112 which is arranged at the high point 104a and behind the catalyst 108 relative to the container 106.

[0028] Passage through the catalyst 108 is favoured when it is permeable to gases and takes, for example, the form of a grid on which the catalytic substance is deposited.

[0029] The drainage channel 112 crosses the extrados wall 12a here, but it could also cross the transverse wall 12c.

[0030] In addition, to improve the arrival of dioxygen in volume 104 when it is too airtight, the installation 100 includes, through a wall of the structural assembly 102, an introduction channel 114 which allows air to be introduced into volume 104.

[0031] The inlet channel 114 passes through the cross wall 12c, but it can pass through any other wall as long as air can reach it. Similarly, the inlet channel 114 is here at the low point 104b, but it could be at another location.

[0032] Due to the movements of the aircraft 10 during a flight, as well as the pressure differences between the volume 104 and the outside of the structural assembly 102, air and / or dihydrogen may be caused to exit the volume 104 through the inlet channel 114.

[0033] To ensure that the dihydrogen exiting volume 104 through inlet channel 114 is also transformed, the installation 100 includes an additional catalyst 116 designed to catalyze an oxidation reaction of dihydrogen with ambient air. This additional catalyst 116 is fixed in volume 104 between inlet channel 114 and container 106.

[0034] The additional catalyst 116 can take the same form and composition as the catalyst 108.

[0035] THE Figs. 4 And 5 show two examples of catalyst implementation 108. In the example of the figure 4 The catalyst 108 is placed on a wall, for example here on the upper surface wall 12a. In the example of the figure 5 , the catalyst 108 is placed at a corner between two walls, for example here between the extrados wall 12a and the transverse wall 12c.

[0036] In each installation, the catalyst 108 is fixed to one or more walls 12a, 12c and at a distance from these walls 12a, 12c by means of spacers 40. The fixing is completed here by retaining screws 42 but any other fixing device is possible.

[0037] To force the dihydrogen to pass through the gas-permeable catalyst 108 and reach the discharge channel 112, the installation 100 includes a seal 118, for example an O-ring, which is disposed around the discharge channel 112. This seal 118 is disposed between the catalyst 108 and the upper surface wall 12a in the case of the figure 4 and the extrados walls 12a and the transverse walls 12c in the case of the figure 5 , that is to say the walls of the structural assembly 102 where the drainage channel 112 is arranged.

[0038] Although on the examples of Figs. 4 And 5 , it is the catalyst 108 that is presented, they apply in the same way to the additional catalyst 116 and the associated introduction channel 114.

[0039] The temperature of catalyst 108, 116 depends, among other things, on the amount of dihydrogen that has been oxidized, since this oxidation reaction is exothermic. Therefore, by monitoring the temperature of each catalyst 108, 116 in aircraft 10, it is possible to infer the presence or absence of dihydrogen at each catalyst 108, 116.

[0040] To this end, the installation 100 includes for each catalyst 108, 116, a temperature sensor 120, for example a thermocouple, which is mounted for example against the catalyst 108, 116 and which measures the temperature of said catalyst 108, 116.

[0041] This information is then transmitted to a control unit 122 which, based on the information received and comparing it to a reference temperature range, can deduce the presence or absence of dihydrogen at each catalyst 108, 116. From there, it can inform the personnel of a possible leak F of dihydrogen in the aircraft 10.

[0042] The control unit 122 constitutes a hardware platform that includes, connected by a communication bus: a processor or CPU (Central Processing Unit), RAM (Read-Only Memory), ROM (Read-Only Memory) or EEPROM (Electrically-Erasable Programmable ROM), a storage unit such as a HDD (Hard Disk Drive) or a storage media reader such as an SD card reader (Secure Digital), and an interface manager linked to each temperature sensor 120 and a communication interface with personnel. The processor is capable of executing instructions loaded into RAM from ROM, external memory, storage media (such as an SD card), or a communication network.When the control unit 122 is powered on, the processor is able to read instructions from RAM and execute them. These instructions form a computer program, causing the processor to implement all or part of the steps and operations described here.

[0043] All or part of the steps and operations described here can be implemented in software by a programmable machine, such as a DSP (Digital Signal Processor) or a microcontroller, by executing a set of instructions. Alternatively, they can be implemented in hardware by a dedicated machine or electronic component (chip) or a dedicated set of electronic components (chipset), such as an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array) or ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit). Generally, the hardware platform includes electronic circuitry adapted and configured to implement the operations and steps described here.

Claims

1. Installation (100) for an aircraft (10), said installation (100) having: - a structural assembly (102) of the aircraft (10) delimiting a volume (104) with a high point (104a), - a container (106) in which dihydrogen is present and which is arranged in the volume (104), and - a catalyser (108) intended to catalyse an oxidation reaction of the dihydrogen with the ambient air, wherein the catalyser (108) is fastened in the volume (104) at the high point (104a), the installation having, through a wall of the structural assembly (102): - an evacuation channel (112) arranged at the high point (104a) behind the catalyser (108) with respect to the container (106); and - an introduction channel (114) arranged to introduce air into the volume (104), characterized in that it has an additional catalyser (116) intended to catalyse an oxidation reaction of the dihydrogen with the ambient air, where the additional catalyser (116) is fastened in the volume (104) between the introduction channel (114) and the container (106), at the inlet to the introduction channel (114) leading into the volume (104).

2. Installation (100) according to Claim 1, characterized in that the volume (104) has a low point (104b) and in that the installation (100) has, at the low point (104b), a drying-out channel (110) arranged through a wall of the structural assembly (102) to evacuate liquid water from the volume (104).

3. Installation (100) according to either of Claims 1 and 2, characterized in that, for the or each catalyser (108, 116), the installation (100) has a seal (118) disposed around the associated channel (112, 114), between the catalyser (108, 116) and the wall of the structural assembly (102) where said channel (112, 114) is arranged.

4. Installation (100) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the structural assembly (102) is a portion of a wing (12) of the aircraft (10).

5. Installation (100) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that it has, for the or each catalyser (108, 116), a temperature sensor (120) arranged to measure the temperature of said catalyser (108, 116).

6. Aircraft (10) having at least one installation (100) according to one of the preceding claims.