Aircraft Hydrogen Tank Layout for Cargo Bay Space Balance
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
The challenge of efficiently storing gaseous hydrogen in aircraft without significantly increasing the volume of the storage tanks and optimizing the use of available space within the aircraft fuselage, while maintaining the balance between hydrogen fuel capacity and payload, is a critical issue in hydrogen-fuelled aircraft design.
Innovation Solution
The aircraft is designed with forward and rear cargo bays containing hydrogen storage tanks with parallel longitudinal axes, each tank located on a lateral side of a vertical plane bisecting the bay, and a common aspect ratio of 4.2 ≤ R ≤ 7.7, along with a conveying system allowing tanks to be swapped in-situ, optimizing fuel capacity and payload for specific flight missions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Quantity of substance
If hydrogen storage tanks are installed in aircraft cargo bays, then hydrogen fuel capacity is increased, but the available space for payload is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent positions hydrogen storage tanks vertically in the cargo bay, utilizing the height dimension of the aircraft fuselage. By arranging tanks one above another rather than side-by-side, the design efficiently uses the third dimension (vertical space) to accommodate hydrogen storage without significantly encroaching on the horizontal payload space available in the cargo bay.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs a dynamic configuration where hydrogen storage tanks can be selectively installed or removed from the cargo bay depending on mission requirements. This allows the aircraft to optimize its configuration - carrying tanks when hydrogen capacity is needed, and having full payload space when hydrogen storage is not required, thus resolving the space conflict dynamically rather than statically.
2Volume of stationary object
If the aspect ratio of hydrogen storage tanks is increased to maximize volume utilization, then space efficiency is improved, but manufacturing complexity and structural integrity requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent specifies an optimal aspect ratio range of 4.2 ≤ R ≤ 7.7 for hydrogen storage tanks. This parameter optimization balances volume efficiency with manufacturability - tanks within this aspect ratio range maximize space utilization in the cargo bay while remaining feasible to manufacture and maintain adequate structural integrity, avoiding the extremes that would be either too space-inefficient or too difficult to build.
3Stability of the object's composition
If hydrogen storage tanks are fixed in position within cargo bays, then structural stability is improved, but flexibility for different mission profiles is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates a dynamic system where hydrogen storage tanks can be installed or removed from the cargo bay depending on the specific mission requirements. This allows the aircraft to be configured for maximum hydrogen capacity on long-range missions, or for maximum payload capacity on shorter missions, while maintaining structural stability when tanks are installed through proper positioning and support structures.
Data Source
Figure 1~4
Figure 5~7D
AI summary
An aircraft comprises a hydrogen-fuelled propulsion system, a plurality of like generally cylindrical hydrogen storage tanks and a conveying system arranged to convey hydrogen from the hydrogen storage tanks to the hydrogen-fuelled propulsion system. The aircraft further comprises a fuselage having a cargo bay (502) including one or more (510A-G) of the plurality of hydrogen storage tanks, the longitudinal axes (511A-G) of the one or more hydrogen storage tanks within the cargo bay extending parallel to the longitudinal axis (501) of the fuselage and lying in one or more planes (595, 597) extending across the width dimension of the cargo bay. The hydrogen storage tanks within the cargo bay have a common aspect ratio R in the range 42 ≤ R ≤ 25.7, allowing the volume of space with the cargo bay occupied by stored hydrogen to be maximised or approximately maximised.