Integrated thermal modeling of helicopters

Li, Yanqing; Xuan, Yimin

doi:10.1016/j.applthermaleng.2019.03.107

Cited by 4 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 29 publications

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“…Having a global view of the onboard energy usage is necessary to heat recovery [5], [6]. The significant benefit of improving engine power conversion efficiency can be achieved by warming up the fuel and inlet air [7].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Energy and Exergy Analysis on a Waste Heat Recovery Module for Helicopters

Wei

Zhao

et al. 2021

IEEE Access

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The exhaust of turboshaft engines contains a big amount of waste heat but does not provide propulsion power to the helicopter. Reusing the heat can increase fuel efficiency and reduce carbon emissions of the engine. This paper implements energy analyses and weight penalty estimations to a waste heat recovery module of the turboshaft engine. The components are a fuel preheating process and a power generation unit based on the organic Rankine cycle. The fuel penalty of the module consists of the fuel consumption of the following: carrying the instruments, overcoming the additional drag, and powering from the engine. Considering the high-temperature situation, working fluid of the module is chosen from benzene, R365mfc, and R245fa. Simulation based on T700 turboshaft engine and a complete flight mission validate the energy efficiency improvement produced by the module. Results show that the module having existing technologies of the expander always cost additional fuel while increasing energy efficiency for the helicopter, but negative fuel penalties can be achieved by increasing the power-to-weight ratio of the module.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Energy and Exergy Analysis on a Waste Heat Recovery Module for Helicopters

Wei

Zhao

et al. 2021

IEEE Access

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“…In this context, the increased electrification of various subsystems is expected to increase the importance of thermal management making the full exploitation of available thermal sinks a necessity. During the last two decades, several research studies have been published on thermal management systems for the new and next generation of civil aeroengines [7], more electric aircraft (MEA) program [8], energy optimization aircraft (EOA) program [9], and integrated thermal management systems design for conventional rotorcrafts [10]. However, the thermal management requirements for the hybrid electric concepts have not been explored, while little attention has been drawn on rotorcraft hybrid electric configurations.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Integrated Systems Simulation for Assessing Fuel Thermal Management Capabilities for Hybrid-Electric Rotorcraft

Roumeliotis

Castro

Jafari

et al. 2020

Volume 5: Controls, Diagnostics, and Instrumentation; Cycle Innovations; Cycle Innovations: Energy Storage

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Future aircraft and rotorcraft propulsion systems should be able to meet ambitious targets and severe limitations set by governments and organizations. These targets cannot be achieved through marginal improvements in turbine technology or vehicle design. Hybrid-electric propulsion is being widely considered as a revolutionary concept to further improve the environmental impact of air travel. One of the most important challenges and barriers in the development phase of hybrid-electric propulsion systems is the Thermal Management System (TMS) design, sizing and optimization for addressing the increased thermal loads due to the electric power train. The aim of this paper is to establish an integrated simulation framework including the vehicle, the propulsion system and the fuel-oil system (FOS) for assessing the cooling capability of the FOS for the more electric era of rotorcrafts. The framework consists of a helicopter model, propulsion system models, both conventional and hybrid-electric, and a FOS model. The test case is a twin-engine medium (TEM) helicopter flying a representative Passenger Air Transport (PAT) mission. The conventional power plant heat loads are calculated and the cooling capacity of the FOS is quantified for different operating conditions. Having established the baseline, three different Power Management Strategies (PMS) are considered and the integrated simulation framework is utilized for evaluating FOS temperatures. The results highlight the limitations of existing rotorcraft FOS to cope with the high values of thermal loads associated with hybridization for the cases examined. Hence, new ideas and embodiments should be identified and assessed. The case of exploiting the fuel tank as a heat sink is investigated and the results indicate that recirculating fuel to the fuel tank can enhance the cooling capacity of conventional FOS.

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