Hybrid Environmental Conditioning System for Aircraft
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
The existing environmental conditioning systems for aircraft are inefficient due to excessive energy usage from unnecessary pressure generation, leading to increased fuel consumption.
Innovation Solution
An environmental conditioning system that includes a compressor, a turbine, a first evaporator, a heat exchanger, and a second evaporator, with a controller managing refrigerant flow to balance cooling demands and optimize air conditioning, using a combination of air and vapor cycles to efficiently condition air for the passenger compartment.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If the compressor delivers high pressure air to meet peak cooling demands, then the air conditioning capability is improved, but excessive pressure is generated that exceeds requirements at most operating points, leading to energy waste
Solution Approach 1:
The system dynamically adjusts the compressor outlet pressure to match the actual cooling demand at different operating conditions. The controller continuously monitors cooling requirements and modulates compressor pressure accordingly, avoiding the waste of generating excessive pressure that would be throttled away. This dynamic pressure regulation resolves the contradiction by making the pressure delivery adaptive rather than static.
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the operating parameters of the compressor, specifically the outlet pressure, to optimize energy efficiency. By varying the pressure parameter to match actual cooling demands rather than maintaining constant high pressure, the system achieves adequate cooling capability while minimizing energy consumption associated with pressure generation.
2Reliability
If the compressor generates excessive pressure to ensure adequate conditioning, then the air conditioning reliability is improved, but the unnecessary pressure generation leads to increased fuel consumption
Solution Approach 1:
The system maintains reliable air conditioning by dynamically adjusting compressor pressure to match actual demands rather than relying on excessive static pressure. The controller ensures adequate cooling is always provided by modulating pressure in real-time, achieving reliability without the penalty of continuous excessive pressure generation that wastes fuel.
Solution Approach 2:
The system uses its own compressor and turbine components to regulate pressure and recover energy. The turbine recovers energy from the compressed air flow, and the controller orchestrates the system to self-regulate pressure levels, maintaining reliability while minimizing fuel consumption through internal energy management rather than external fuel burn.
3Device complexity
If a single evaporator system is used to cool air from the compressor, then the device complexity is reduced, but the system cannot efficiently balance cooling demands between fresh air conditioning and recirculated air cooling
Solution Approach 1:
The cooling system is segmented into two separate evaporators: a first evaporator for cooling fresh air from the compressor and a second evaporator for cooling recirculated air from the passenger compartment. This segmentation allows independent optimization of each cooling path, improving overall cooling efficiency by matching each evaporator's capacity to its specific cooling demand rather than forcing a single evaporator to handle both functions.
Solution Approach 2:
The refrigerant system is designed with multi-functionality to serve both evaporators simultaneously. The refrigerant circulation system can distribute refrigerant to either or both evaporators based on demand, providing universal cooling capability that handles both fresh air conditioning and recirculated air cooling efficiently without requiring completely separate refrigerant loops.
4Reliability
If the system uses only fresh air from the compressor for conditioning, then the air quality is improved, but the energy consumption increases due to conditioning all air from scratch
Solution Approach 1:
The system merges fresh air from the compressor with recirculated air from the passenger compartment to provide conditioned air. By combining these two air streams, the system leverages the cooling already achieved in the passenger compartment, reducing the energy required to condition all air from ambient temperature while maintaining air quality through the continuous introduction of fresh air.
Solution Approach 2:
The system recovers cooling energy by conditioning recirculated air that has already been partially cooled in the passenger compartment. Instead of discarding this pre-cooled air and conditioning it from scratch like fresh air, the system recovers and reuses it, significantly reducing the energy consumption associated with air conditioning while maintaining air quality through the fresh air component.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This solution reduces energy consumption by optimizing power use and maintaining air quality with a balanced combination of fresh and recirculated air, minimizing energy expenditure while ensuring efficient temperature and humidity control.
Implementation Method 1
a heat exchanger disposed in said air flow path between said compressor and said first evaporator, said heat exchanger being configured to cool air from said compressor
Implementation Method 2
a first evaporator in communication with air from said compressor and configured to cool air from said compressor
Implementation Method 3
each of said first and second evaporators arc in fluid communication with refrigerant flow in a refrigerant system
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
AI summary
An environmental conditioning system (10) has a compressor (11) for compressing air in an air flow path (18). A turbine (22) drives the compressor and is coupled to the compressor. An evaporator (26) is in communication with air from the compressor. The evaporator is configured to cool air from the compressor.