Leading edge member for an airfoil of an aircraft

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2021024221-A1
Application number	US-202016938227-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Jul 24, 2020
Priority date	Jul 25, 2019
Publication date	Jan 28, 2021
Grant date	—

Abstract

A leading edge member, an airfoil and an aircraft using the leading edge member to improve de-icing capacity by recirculating hot bleed air in a spanwise direction and to increase the mass and heat flow within the leading edge member. The hot bleed air is injected via an inlet arrangement into a forward hot air chamber defined by the outer skin of the leading edge member and the front spar. Subsequently, the hot air flow travels through a connecting passage opening from the forward hot air chamber through the front spar into the aft hot air chamber. Subsequently, the hot air flows along the entire spanwise length within the aft hot air chamber and splits into an exhaust flow and a recirculation flow. The recirculation flow passes through a recirculation opening and mixes with new hot bleed air, to take another round trip within the leading edge member.

First claim

1 . A leading edge member of an airfoil of an aircraft, the leading edge member having an outer skin and a de-icing device, the de-icing device comprising:
a forward hot air chamber and an aft hot air chamber, the forward and aft hot air chambers extending along a spanwise direction of the leading edge member and being separated by a separation wall along the spanwise direction, the separation wall being configured so as to allow for a circular hot air flow in the spanwise direction; and an inlet arrangement having at least one inlet opening for injecting hot air, the inlet arrangement configured for generating a circular hot air flow within the de-icing device, wherein the de-icing device is configured such that the circular hot air flow causes a hot air recirculation flow from the aft hot air chamber to the forward hot air chamber.

2 . The leading edge member according to claim 1 , wherein the de-icing device comprises a recirculation opening which fluidly connects the aft hot air chamber to the forward hot air chamber and which is arranged such that the hot air recirculation flows from the aft hot air chamber through the recirculation opening to the forward hot air chamber.

3 . The leading edge member according to claim 2 , wherein the de-icing device comprises a connecting passage opening which fluidly connects the forward hot air chamber to the aft hot air chamber and is spaced apart from the inlet arrangement in the spanwise direction so that the hot air flow is guided along an entire spanwise length of the leading edge member.

4 . The leading edge member according to claim 3 , wherein at least one of:
the connecting passage opening is arranged at an opposite end portion in the spanwise direction from the recirculation opening, or at least one of the connecting passage opening or the recirculation opening is formed in the separation wall.

5 . The leading edge member according to claim 1 , wherein the de-icing device comprises an exhaust opening arranged so that the circular hot air flow is split into the recirculation flow and an exhaust flow which is exhausted from the leading edge member.

6 . The leading edge member according to claim 1 , wherein the de-icing device comprises a recirculation compartment arranged at an end portion of the leading edge member, the recirculation compartment containing the inlet arrangement.

7 . The leading edge member according to claim 6 , wherein the recirculation compartment is defined in the spanwise direction between an inner end rib and an adjacent rib of the leading edge member.

8 . The leading edge member according to claim 1 , further comprising a rib member configured for supporting the outer skin, the rib member comprising at least one rib slot within each of the forward hot air chamber and the aft hot air chamber, each recess being configured to form a passageway for the circular hot air flow in cooperation with the outer skin.

9 . The leading edge member according to claim 1 , wherein the inlet arrangement comprises an air deflection device configured to direct the hot air flow from the at least one inlet opening in the spanwise direction.

10 . The leading edge member according to claim 9 , wherein at least one of:
the air deflection device includes the at least one inlet opening, and the inlet opening is formed or tilted such that the hot airflow is directed in the spanwise direction, or the inlet arrangement comprises a feeding tube and the air deflection device includes a deflector which is disposed on a circumferential surface of the feeding tube, the deflector being configured so as to direct the hot air flow in the spanwise direction.

11 . The leading edge member according to claim 1 , wherein the inlet arrangement comprises a feeding tube, the feeding tube having a plurality of inlet openings formed in a circumferential surface of the feeding tube.

12 . The leading edge member according to claim 11 , wherein the feeding tube extends through the leading edge member and is configured to supply another leading edge member with hot air.

13 . The leading edge member according to claim 1 , wherein the inlet arrangement comprises an inlet device having a mixing opening and a plurality of inlet openings circumferentially arranged around the mixing opening such that the recirculation flow flows through the mixing opening and mixes with the newly injected hot air.

14 . An airfoil for an aircraft comprising a leading edge member according to claim 1 , wherein the leading edge member is movably or immovably attached to the airfoil.

15 . An aircraft comprising a leading edge member according to claim 1 .

16 . An aircraft comprising an airfoil according to claim 14 .

Assignees

• Airbus Operations Sas
• Airbus Operations Gmbh

Inventors

• Huet Florent
• Bensmann Stefan
• Erban Marcus
• Gellert Andreas
• Fees Martin

Classifications

• B64C9/22

  at the front of the wing · CPC title

• B64C3/185

  Spars · CPC title

• B64D15/04 Primary

  Hot gas application · CPC title

• B64C3/187

  Ribs · CPC title

• B64D2013/0618

  with arrangements for reducing or managing bleed air, using another air source, e.g. ram air · CPC title