Aircraft air contaminant analyzer and method of use

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11243145-B2
Application number	US-202117180459-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Feb 19, 2021
Priority date	Apr 23, 2019
Publication date	Feb 8, 2022
Grant date	Feb 8, 2022

Abstract

Disclosed are methods for determining and classifying aircraft air contaminants comprising one or more of: turbine engine oil, hydraulic fluid and deicing fluid using contaminant analyzers comprising a contaminant collector comprising a membrane and a heater vaporizing the contaminants; a gravimetric sensor generating a response when contaminant mass is added to or removed from the sensor, the sensor receiving contaminants desorbed from the heated membrane; a frequency measurement device, measuring the response generated by the sensor as the contaminant is added to and removed from the sensor; a computer readable medium bearing a contaminant recognition program and calibration data; a processor executing the program, the program including a module classifying contaminants by type, and a module using the data for comparison with magnitude of response generated by the sensor to calculate contaminant concentration; and, a pump, generating flow of air through the collector before and after the membrane is heated.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A method for determining and classifying by type aircraft air contaminants, the method comprising:
(a) passing aircraft air through an aircraft air contaminant analyzer comprising at least one aircraft air contaminant collector comprising:
(i) a microporous medium comprising microporous flow-through channels, the microporous medium having a chemoselective coating; and,
(ii) a thin film resistive heater, capable of heating to a temperature that vaporizes captured air contaminants comprising one or more of the following: turbine engine oil, hydraulic fluid and deicing fluid, wherein the heater is in contact with the microporous medium;

(b) capturing air contaminants comprising one or more of the following: turbine engine oil, hydraulic fluid and deicing fluid by the microporous medium;
(c) discontinuing passing aircraft air through the at least one aircraft air contaminant collector;
(d) heating the microporous medium to a temperature sufficient to vaporize the captured air contaminants and desorb the captured air contaminants;
(e) receiving the desorbed air contaminants on a gravimetric sensor arranged to generate a proportionate resonant frequency response when air contaminant mass is added to or removed from the gravimetric sensor;
(f) measuring the proportionate resonant frequency response generated by the gravimetric sensor as the air contaminant is added to and removed from the gravimetric sensor;
(g) executing an air contaminant recognition program stored upon a computer-readable medium, including calculating air contaminant concentration and determining air contaminant type; and,
(h) outputting the determined air contaminant concentration and air contaminant type.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the air contaminants comprise aerosols.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the air contaminants comprise particulates.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the air contaminants comprise vapor(s).

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein (h) comprises displaying the determined air contaminant type on a screen of a display device.

6. The method of claim 5 , wherein the display device is a hand-held device.

7. The method of claim 6 , wherein the display device comprises a indicator and (h) comprises displaying the determined air contaminant type by illuminating the indicator.

8. The method of claim 7 , wherein the sensor is arranged in an aircraft cabin or cockpit.

9. The method of claim 1 , wherein (h) comprises displaying the determined air contaminant type using a display device.

10. The method of claim 1 , wherein the aircraft air contaminant analyzer comprises two or more aircraft air contaminant collectors, each aircraft air contaminant collector separately comprising:
(i) a microporous medium comprising microporous flow-through channels, the microporous medium having a chemoselective coating; and,
(ii) a thin film resistive heater, capable of heating to a temperature that vaporizes captured air contaminants comprising one or more of the following: turbine engine oil, hydraulic fluid and deicing fluid, wherein the heater is in contact with the microporous medium;
the aircraft air contaminant analyzer further comprising a gravimetric sensor near each collector; and
the method comprises passing aircraft air through the aircraft air contaminant analyzers such that separate portions of aircraft air pass through each of the two or more aircraft air contaminant collectors; and
carrying out (b)-(h) with respect to each of the two or more aircraft air contaminant collectors such that the determined air contaminant concentration and air contaminant type is outputted with respect to each of the two or more aircraft air contaminant collectors.

11. An aircraft air contaminant analyzer comprising:
(a) at least one aircraft air contaminant collector comprising:
(i) a microporous medium comprising microporous flow-through channels and a chemoselective coating, wherein the microporous medium remains functional and desorbs captured air contaminants contaminants comprising one or more of the following: turbine engine oil, hydraulic fluid and deicing fluid while being heated for a controlled time period;
(ii) a thin film resistive heater, capable of heating to a temperature that vaporizes captured air contaminants, wherein the heater is in contact with the microporous medium;

(b) a first substrate, having a top surface and a bottom surface; wherein the contaminant collector is associated with the first substrate, the microporous medium and heater being thermally insulated from the first substrate;
(c) a gravimetric sensor arranged to generate a proportionate resonant frequency response when air contaminant mass is added to or removed from the gravimetric sensor, for classifying air contaminant type;
(d) a second substrate, having a top surface and a bottom surface; wherein the gravimetric sensor is associated with the top surface of the second substrate, the gravimetric sensor being separated from the contaminant collector by a constant distance, the gravimetric sensor being arranged to receive air contaminants comprising one or more of the following: turbine engine oil, hydraulic fluid and deicing fluid desorbed from the microporous medium when the microporous medium is heated;
(e) a support comprising a top surface and a bottom surface, the support comprising at least one aircraft air inlet port passing through the top surface and the bottom surface of the support, wherein the bottom surface of the second substrate is associated with the top surface of the support;
(f) a resonant frequency measurement device, arranged to measure the proportionate resonant frequency response generated by the gravimetric sensor as the air contaminant is added to and removed from the gravimetric sensor;
(g) a computer readable medium bearing an air contaminant recognition program and calibration data;
(h) a processor configured to execute the air contaminant recognition program, the contaminant recognition program including a module configured to classify the air contaminant by type, and a module programmed to use the calibration data for comparison with magnitude of the proportionate resonant frequency response generated by the gravimetric sensor to calculate air contaminant concentration; and,
(i) a pump, arranged to generate flow of aircraft air through the at least one aircraft air inlet port and through the at least one air contaminant collector before and after the microporous medium is heated.

12. The aircraft air contaminant analyzer of claim 11 , wherein the aircraft air contaminant collector is tethered to the first substrate.

13. The aircraft air contaminant analyzer of claim 11 , wherein the heater is integrated with the microporous medium.

14. The aircraft air contaminant analyzer of claim 11 , wherein the aircraft air contaminant analyzer comprises at least one additional aircraft air contaminant collector comprising:
(i′) a microporous medium comprising microporous flow-through channels and a chemoselective coating, wherein the microporous medium remains functional and desorbs captured air contaminants contaminants comprising one or more of the following: turbine engine oil, hydraulic fluid and deicing fluid while being heated for a controlled time period;
(ii′) a thin film resistive heater, capable of heating to a temperature that vaporizes captured air contaminants, wherein the heater is in contact with the microporous medium;
(b′) an additional first substrate, having a top surface and a bottom surface;
wherein the additional contaminant collector is associated with the additional first substrate, th

Assignees

• Pall Corp

Inventors

• Mlcak Richard
• Kodas Aidan
• Gwynne Patrick
• Abramson Justin

Classifications

• G01N1/2214 Primary

  by sorption · CPC title

• G01N29/022 Primary

  Fluid sensors based on microsensors, e.g. quartz crystal-microbalance [QCM], surface acoustic wave [SAW] devices, tuning forks, cantilevers, flexural plate wave [FPW] devices (microdevices per se B81B) · CPC title

• G01N2291/0215

  Mixtures of three or more gases, e.g. air · CPC title

• B81B1/004

  Through-holes, i.e. extending from one face to the other face of the wafer · CPC title

• G01N29/036

  by measuring frequency or resonance of acoustic waves · CPC title