Inerting device, tank and aircraft provided with such a device, and corresponding method

摘要

The invention relates to an inerting device for a pressurized aircraft fuel tank, i.e. for a tank provided with a main vessel and a separate overflow space, the device including a generator of nitrogen-enriched gas, a circuit for transferring the nitrogen-enriched gas produced by the generator, the transfer circuit including an upstream end connected to the generator, a first downstream end which can be coupled to the main vessel and a second downstream end which can be coupled to the overflow space, the device including a sensor array for measuring information representative of a pressure differential between the interior of the overflow space and the exterior of the tank, the device further including an electronic logic unit receiving the measurements from the sensor array, the electronic logic unit being connected to the generator and/or to the transfer circuit, and being designed to control the supply of a nitrogen-enriched gas flow to the second downstream end when the pressure differential drops below a predetermined threshold S.

主权项

1. An aircraft fuel tank of the pressurized type, comprising:
a main vessel intended to store liquid fuel; a separate overflow space, the overflow space being fluidly connected to the main vessel in order to absorb temporarily, but without retaining, any overflows of liquid fuel from the main vessel, the overflow space communicating with an exterior of the tank via first and second non-return valves, the first non-return valve only allowing a flow of gas from the overflow space to an exterior of the tank and being calibrated to open only when a pressure of the overflow space is greater than a pressure of the exterior of the tank by a predetermined value associated with the first non-return valve, the second non-return valve only allowing a flow of gas from the exterior of the tank to the overflow space and being calibrated to open only when the pressure of the exterior of the tank is greater than the pressure of the overflow space by a predetermined value associated with the second non-return valve; and an inerting device for a aircraft fuel tank of the pressurized type that is provided with a main vessel and with a separate overflow space, said inerting device comprising: a nitrogen-enriched gas generator; a circuit for transferring the nitrogen-enriched gas produced by the generator, the transfer circuit comprising an upstream extremity connected to the generator, a first downstream extremity which can be coupled to the main vessel and a second downstream extremity which can be coupled to the overflow space; an array of sensors for measuring a pressure differential between a pressure of an interior of the overflow space and a pressure of an exterior of the tank; and an electronic logic unit for receiving the measured pressure differential from the array of sensors, the electronic logic unit being connected to the generator and/or to the transfer circuit, the electronic logic unit being designed to control a supply of a flow of the nitrogen-enriched gas to the second downstream extremity when the pressure differential is less than a predetermined threshold S, the first downstream extremity of the transfer circuit being coupled to the main vessel and the second downstream extremity of the transfer circuit being coupled to the overflow space, the electronic logic unit being designed to control the supply of a flow of nitrogen-enriched gas to the overflow space via the second downstream extremity when the pressure of the exterior of the tank is greater than a pressure of the overflow space by at least 70% of the predetermined value associated with the second non-return valve.