Aircraft Panel Channel for Cryogenic Fuel Leak Containment
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Solution Overview
Problem
The challenge in designing aircraft that use alternative fuels like liquid hydrogen is the need for pressurized fuel tanks, which require significant space and are often positioned away from engines, leading to long fuel lines that complicate assembly and pose leak containment issues.
Innovation Solution
An aircraft assembly that includes a channel attached to the aircraft panel, with a fuel line disposed in the channel and a sealed containment space around the fuel line to contain any leaks, allowing for easier assembly and leak management.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Quantity of substance
If pressurized fuel tanks are positioned away from engines to meet emissions targets, then fuel storage capacity is improved, but fuel line length increases and assembly complexity worsens
Solution Approach 1:
The fuel delivery system is segmented into modular components: fuel tanks positioned in optimal locations for emissions compliance, separate fuel lines routed through channels, and distinct containment spaces. This segmentation allows independent optimization of each component while reducing overall assembly complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
Channels serve as intermediary structures that facilitate the connection between fuel tanks and engines. These channels provide a structured pathway for fuel lines, simplifying routing and assembly while maintaining the required separation between fuel storage and power generation components.
2Adaptability or versatility
If fuel lines extend significant distances across the aircraft, then fuel storage and engine positioning flexibility is improved, but leak containment difficulty worsens
Solution Approach 1:
Sealed containment spaces act as intermediary barriers between the fuel lines and the aircraft interior. These containment spaces isolate potential leaks while allowing fuel lines to extend across the aircraft structure, maintaining positioning flexibility without compromising safety.
Solution Approach 2:
The sealed containment spaces provide preliminary protection against the harmful effect of fuel leaks before they can affect the aircraft interior. This preventive measure is built into the structure, countacting the potential harm of long fuel line extensions.
3Manufacturing precision
If additional assembly steps are performed on the wing box to access inner space, then fuel line installation precision is improved, but assembly time and complexity worsen
Solution Approach 1:
Channels are pre-installed onto the wing box structure before final assembly. This preliminary action creates ready-made pathways for fuel lines, eliminating the need for subsequent disassembly steps and reducing overall assembly time while maintaining installation precision.
Solution Approach 2:
The channel installation is merged with the wing box assembly process, combining two operations into one integrated step. This merging eliminates redundant assembly and disassembly cycles, reducing time loss while ensuring precise fuel line positioning.
Data Source
AI summary
An aircraft assembly is disclosed including an aircraft panel, a channel attached to the aircraft panel, a fuel line for carrying cryogenic fuel, the fuel line disposed in the channel, and a sealed containment space around the fuel line for containing cryogenic fuel leaked from the fuel line, the containment space defined between the channel, the fuel pipe, and the aircraft panel.