This application claims priority to Great Britain Application No. 0724630.9, filed 18 Dec. 2007, the entire contents of each of which are hereby incorporated by reference.
The present invention relates to a system and method for measuring the total temperature of a gas. In particular, the invention is applicable to total air temperature sensing on aircraft.
Total air temperature (TAT) is a measure of air temperature that is used for air flows. TAT is the static air temperature plus the adiabatic temperature rise of the air produced by the complete conversion of the kinetic energy of the air into thermal energy.
Total Air Temperature can be expressed by the following equation:
where
The free stream Mach number M is a measure of the speed of the air flow past the sensor.
However the measured temperature, sometimes called the recovered temperature, is different from the total temperature because of incomplete conversion of the gas motion energy into the thermal energy.
Therefore the recovered temperature is given by:
where r is the recovery factor and is defined as:
The recovery factor depends on the effectiveness of the sensor in capturing the adiabatic temperature rise and on the ratio between the internal and external air velocities. The recovery factor also depends on the construction of the probe and varies with Mach number.
The recovered temperature TR can be expressed more conveniently by:
TR=TTAT(1−η)
where
and is called the recovery correction.
Total air temperature measurement is critical to many aircraft systems. TAT sensors mounted on the aircraft body provide information about the air temperature that can be used to calculate true air speed. TAT sensors mounted at the inlet to gas turbine engines are used to provide accurate engine power settings and to select engine pressure ratios prior to take off. TAT measurements are also required for stall control, with inlet guide vane scheduling and for calculation of engine parameters such as corrected speed, fuel flow and fuel consumption.
The basic architecture of TAT sensors on aircraft has remained unchanged for many years. U.S. Pat. No. 2,588,840 and U.S. Pat. No. 2,970,475 describe the principles of operation and the basic architecture of these sensors.
Prior TAT sensors comprise a temperature sensing element 10 mounted inside a housing 11 through which air flows, as illustrated in
There are a number of technical problems with this basic solution that have led to very complex mechanical and electrical configurations for the sensors.
One parameter that affects the accuracy of TAT measurements is the boundary layer formed inside the sensor housing. Typically, during flight the temperature of the walls of the housing surrounding the sensor is lower than the air temperature. The air close to the walls is therefore cooler that the air in the centre of the housing. The air close to the walls also moves more slowly than the air passing through the centre of the housing and so forms a boundary layer of cool air. At low air speeds, the boundary layer thickness can build up to the extent that it will affect the measured temperature.
In order to control the thickness of the boundary layer, prior designs have included a complex array of apertures 15 within the housing, as shown in
Another problem with prior total air temperature sensors is that they are not able to completely convert the kinetic energy of the gas into an adiabatic temperature rise. The recovery correction typically varies with Mach number from 0 to about 0.6%.
A further problem associated with prior total air temperature sensors is the build up of ice on the sensor housing. The solution to the problem of build up of ice on the sensor housing has been to include heater elements within the housing itself. However, the de-icing heater elements affect the accuracy of the temperature measurement, as the generated heat is detected by the temperature sensor. This effect is more prominent at low speeds and can result in an error of up to 8° C. The heating elements can actually cause the boundary layer of air close to the interior surfaces of the housing to have a higher temperature than the main airflow and at low speed the thickness of the boundary layer can be enough to contact the sensing element.
Aspects of the present invention are intended to address these problems or at least provide a useful alternative. Although the preceding discussion refers to total air temperature, the same considerations apply to other gases, and so the invention can be applied to any gas or mixture of gases.
In a first aspect, the present invention provides a temperature sensor and a method of sensing temperature as defined in the appended claims, to which reference should now be made. This aspect of the invention provides a sensor that is simple to manufacture, is robust, provides for a low recovery correction and does not suffer from significant boundary layer problems. Preferred features are defined in the dependent claims.
The present invention also provides apparatus and methods for de-icing a temperature sensor that do not significantly affect temperature measurements taken by the temperature sensor and that use a low power. In accordance with one aspect of the invention, there is provided a gas probe including an apparatus for reducing ice formation on a housing of the gas probe, the apparatus comprising a transducer mounted to the housing so as, in use, to produce ultrasonic vibrations in the housing; and driving means for driving the transducer at a frequency that reduces the formation of ice on the housing. In a preferred embodiment, the driving means drives the transducer at a frequency between 10 and 500 MHz.
The transducer may be mounted to the housing so as to produce vibrations at a gas inlet of the housing.
In the described embodiment, the gas probe is a temperature sensor. The gas probe may be a sensor in accordance with the first aspect of the invention and may be a total air temperature sensor.
In accordance with a further aspect of the invention, there is provided a method for reducing ice formation on a housing of a gas probe, comprising the step of inducing ultrasonic vibrations in the housing. The ultrasonic vibrations are preferably of a frequency between 10 and 500 MHz.
In accordance with a still further aspect of the invention, there is provided a gas probe including an apparatus for reducing ice formation on the housing of the probe, the apparatus comprising a microwave source for generating microwaves; and focussing means associated with the microwave source, such that in use, the microwaves are incident on a region of a gas inlet of the gas probe.
The microwave source may be a solid-state device. The gas probe may be a temperature sensor. The gas probe may a sensor in accordance with the first aspect of the invention. The gas probe may be a total air temperature sensor.
In accordance with a still further aspect of the invention, there is provided a method for reducing ice formation on a gas probe, comprising the step of directing microwaves at a gas inlet of the gas probe.
Embodiments of the invention will now be described in detail, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:
a is a schematic illustration of an air temperature probe in accordance with the present invention, with the valve in a closed position;
b shows the temperature sensor of
a and 2b are schematic illustrations of the essential elements of a TAT sensor in accordance with the present invention. A temperature sensing element 20 is located in a measurement chamber 21. The chamber comprises side walls 23, an air inlet 24 and an air outlet 25. The air outlet 25 can be sealed by a valve 22. In
In this embodiment, the temperature sensing element is a resistance temperature device (RTD), such as a platinum resistance thermometer (PRT) of either a wire wound or sintered film type, a tungsten resistor or a rhodium-iron RTD. Alternatively, a thermistor, such as a diamond thermistor, a thermocouple or optical temperature sensor may be used.
The valve in
The chamber sidewalls 23 can be made of any suitable material. In MEMS devices, silicon is a preferred material.
The measurement chamber shown in
The operation of the TAT sensor shown in
This mode of operation provides almost complete recovery of the kinetic energy of the airflow, resulting in a low recovery correction factor. The speed of operation of the valve also prevents the build up of a boundary layer within the measurement chamber. Air is stopped as a result of the valve being closed but is then flushed through the measurement chamber after the valve is opened. The temperature measurement is taken very shortly after the valve is closed preventing any significant thermal transfer from the sidewalls.
It is possible to take a plurality of temperature measurements per cycle of the valve, i.e. a plurality of measurements may be taken during each period when the valve is closed. Equally, temperature measurements may be taken only once every few cycles of the valve.
The results of the temperature measurements taken by the sensing element are passed from the controller 41 into elements of the aircraft control system 40. The total air temperature measurements are passed to the Air dData Computer 42, the Full Authority Digital Engine Control (FADEC) 43, and to the Cockpit display 44.
It is possible to take total air pressure measurements in the measurement chamber as well. For example, MEMS pressure measurement devices may be incorporated into the chamber walls or into the valve.
f=V/λ
where f is the frequency, V is the wave velocity in material and λ is the wavelength of the wave e.g. for V=5000 m/sec and d=0.025 mm, f=200 MHz.
The transducers can be mounted to the housing to produce different types of waves in the housing, e.g. shear, longitudinal, transverse. These waves may be generated in combination or separately and at the same or different frequencies.
The transducers require low power in comparison to the heater elements of the prior art. Furthermore, the transducers may be quickly switched on when icing conditions are detected and turned off otherwise, saving power.
One significant advantage of using ultrasonic transducers to reduce the build up of ice at the inlet to the TAT sensor is that there is no heating of the incoming air and so no interference with the temperature measurement taken by the TAT sensor. In contrast, prior solutions, incorporating heating elements into the housing do affect the accuracy of temperature measurements taken by a TAT probe.
The system in
Any suitable microwave source may be used in the system shown in
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