GB2341094A - Treatment of cabin air - Google Patents

Treatment of cabin air Download PDF

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Publication number
GB2341094A
GB2341094A GB9918840A GB9918840A GB2341094A GB 2341094 A GB2341094 A GB 2341094A GB 9918840 A GB9918840 A GB 9918840A GB 9918840 A GB9918840 A GB 9918840A GB 2341094 A GB2341094 A GB 2341094A
Authority
GB
United Kingdom
Prior art keywords
air
aircraft
cabin
thermal plasma
plasma device
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Granted
Application number
GB9918840A
Other versions
GB2341094B (en
GB9918840D0 (en
Inventor
John Stedman
Norman Jorgensen
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
Ricardo AEA Ltd
Original Assignee
AEA Technology PLC
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by AEA Technology PLC filed Critical AEA Technology PLC
Publication of GB9918840D0 publication Critical patent/GB9918840D0/en
Publication of GB2341094A publication Critical patent/GB2341094A/en
Application granted granted Critical
Publication of GB2341094B publication Critical patent/GB2341094B/en
Anticipated expiration legal-status Critical
Expired - Fee Related legal-status Critical Current

Links

Classifications

    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B64—AIRCRAFT; AVIATION; COSMONAUTICS
    • B64D—EQUIPMENT FOR FITTING IN OR TO AIRCRAFT; FLIGHT SUITS; PARACHUTES; ARRANGEMENTS OR MOUNTING OF POWER PLANTS OR PROPULSION TRANSMISSIONS IN AIRCRAFT
    • B64D13/00—Arrangements or adaptations of air-treatment apparatus for aircraft crew or passengers, or freight space, or structural parts of the aircraft
    • B64D13/06—Arrangements or adaptations of air-treatment apparatus for aircraft crew or passengers, or freight space, or structural parts of the aircraft the air being conditioned
    • B64D13/08—Arrangements or adaptations of air-treatment apparatus for aircraft crew or passengers, or freight space, or structural parts of the aircraft the air being conditioned the air being heated or cooled
    • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
    • A61—MEDICAL OR VETERINARY SCIENCE; HYGIENE
    • A61L—METHODS OR APPARATUS FOR STERILISING MATERIALS OR OBJECTS IN GENERAL; DISINFECTION, STERILISATION OR DEODORISATION OF AIR; CHEMICAL ASPECTS OF BANDAGES, DRESSINGS, ABSORBENT PADS OR SURGICAL ARTICLES; MATERIALS FOR BANDAGES, DRESSINGS, ABSORBENT PADS OR SURGICAL ARTICLES
    • A61L9/00—Disinfection, sterilisation or deodorisation of air
    • A61L9/16—Disinfection, sterilisation or deodorisation of air using physical phenomena
    • A61L9/22—Ionisation
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B64—AIRCRAFT; AVIATION; COSMONAUTICS
    • B64G—COSMONAUTICS; VEHICLES OR EQUIPMENT THEREFOR
    • B64G1/00—Cosmonautic vehicles
    • B64G1/22—Parts of, or equipment specially adapted for fitting in or to, cosmonautic vehicles
    • B64G1/46—Arrangements or adaptations of devices for control of environment or living conditions
    • B64G1/48—Arrangements or adaptations of devices for control of environment or living conditions for treatment of the atmosphere
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B64—AIRCRAFT; AVIATION; COSMONAUTICS
    • B64D—EQUIPMENT FOR FITTING IN OR TO AIRCRAFT; FLIGHT SUITS; PARACHUTES; ARRANGEMENTS OR MOUNTING OF POWER PLANTS OR PROPULSION TRANSMISSIONS IN AIRCRAFT
    • B64D13/00—Arrangements or adaptations of air-treatment apparatus for aircraft crew or passengers, or freight space, or structural parts of the aircraft
    • B64D13/06—Arrangements or adaptations of air-treatment apparatus for aircraft crew or passengers, or freight space, or structural parts of the aircraft the air being conditioned
    • B64D2013/0603—Environmental Control Systems
    • B64D2013/0651—Environmental Control Systems comprising filters, e.g. dust filters
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B64—AIRCRAFT; AVIATION; COSMONAUTICS
    • B64D—EQUIPMENT FOR FITTING IN OR TO AIRCRAFT; FLIGHT SUITS; PARACHUTES; ARRANGEMENTS OR MOUNTING OF POWER PLANTS OR PROPULSION TRANSMISSIONS IN AIRCRAFT
    • B64D13/00—Arrangements or adaptations of air-treatment apparatus for aircraft crew or passengers, or freight space, or structural parts of the aircraft
    • B64D13/06—Arrangements or adaptations of air-treatment apparatus for aircraft crew or passengers, or freight space, or structural parts of the aircraft the air being conditioned
    • B64D2013/0603—Environmental Control Systems
    • B64D2013/0688—Environmental Control Systems with means for recirculating cabin air
    • Y—GENERAL TAGGING OF NEW TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS; GENERAL TAGGING OF CROSS-SECTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES SPANNING OVER SEVERAL SECTIONS OF THE IPC; TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS
    • Y02—TECHNOLOGIES OR APPLICATIONS FOR MITIGATION OR ADAPTATION AGAINST CLIMATE CHANGE
    • Y02T—CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION TECHNOLOGIES RELATED TO TRANSPORTATION
    • Y02T50/00—Aeronautics or air transport
    • Y02T50/50—On board measures aiming to increase energy efficiency

Abstract

Commercial aircraft usually re-circulate at least part of the air in the aircraft cabin, replacing a proportion of the air with air from outside the aircraft. The cabin pressure during high altitude flight is maintained at a value above the external pressure though below normal atmospheric pressure. At least the re-circulated air is treated by passing it through a non-thermal plasma device, the device being energised continuously whilst the aircraft is in use. This ensures that any micro-organisms are killed, so insuring that infectious diseases are not transmitted with the re-circulated air. The non-thermal plasma device might be a packed pellet bed, or a silent corona discharge, or a microwave reactor.

Description

2341094 Treatment of Cabin Air This invention relates to a method for
treating air in an aircraft or spacecraft cabin to remove 5 contaminants.
Commercial aircraft usually re-circulate at least part of the air in the aircraft cabin, replacing a proportion of the air with air from outside the aircraft.
or from compressed air cylinders. There is consequently a concern that micro-organisms might be passed from onepers6h to another via the air recirculation system. This potential problem could be avoided by not recirculating the air, and using fresh air from outside the aircraft instead; however, this would increase the fuel consumption of the aircraft. An alternative solution would be to filter the re- circulated air, but energy is wasted in overcoming the pressure drop through the filter, and if the filter were to rupture a concentrated aerosol of micro-organisms would be carried into the passenger cabin. Similar problems may arise in spacecraft.
The use of plasmas to treat gas streams has been suggested for a variety of purposes, and several different types of plasma generating apparatus have been designed. For example GB 2 282 738 describes a flowthrough plasma generator in which a silent discharge is established between two electrodes, and GB 2 273 027 describes a microwave plasma generator. US 5 711 147 describes apparatus for treating exhaust gases using pulsed corona discharge, or dielectric barrier discharge, as one stage. US 4 954 320 describes the use of particulate dielectric material to pack a bed in which a plasma is generated and through which a gas stream is passed; this device may be used for decomposing toxic gases such as phosgene, and to deactivate microbiological spores, and is said to be usable at atmospheric and higher pressures.
According to the present invention there is provided a method of treating air supplied to a cabin of an aircraft or spacecraft to destroy contaminants such as bacteria, the pressure within the cabin being at or below normal atmospheric pressure, and the supplied air being at least partly recirculated air from the cabin, wherein the recirculated air is passed through a non-thermal plasma device, the device being energised continuously whilst air is being recirculated.
The non-thermal plasma device might be a packed pellet bed, or a silent corona discharge, or a microwave reactor. The temperature in such a non-thermal device is typically less than 2000C and may be no higher than 1000C. At such low temperatures the risk of formation of toxic chemicals such as dioxins is negligible, but nevertheless organic molecules are thoroughly oxidised typically forming water and carbon dioxide. within the device the contaminants are subjected to ultraviolet irradiation and to bombardment by free electrons, so that any micro-organisms are killed.
The invention will now be further and more particularly described, by way of example only. The air inside the cabin of a passenger aircraft is pressurised when the aircraft is at altitude, so that the air pressure does not drop below that characteristic of an altitude of for example 3000 m; fresh air is obtained from outside the aircraft and is compressed to cabin pressure, heated to cabin temperature and mixed with re- circulated air from within the cabin. For example the air supplied to the cabin might be half fresh air and half re-circulated air. In this example all the recirculated air is passed through a non-thermal plasma device including a packed bed of particles of high dielectric material (for example barium titanate mixed with some alumina). In such a reactor the particles are desirably of a material of dielectric constant in the range 100 to 1000, or even higher. This plasma device is activated continuously while the air is being recirculated (both on the ground and when in the air). Any micro-organisms such as bacteria or fungi are consequently killed during their passage through the plasma device, so that if one passenger is suffering from an infection there is no risk of transmission of the infection via the air re-circulation system.
It will be appreciated that this technique provides several benefits, in comparison to the use of conventional filters, in that the microorganisms are killed rather than being retained (and hence concentrated); the power required to recirculate the air is reduced in that the pressure drop across the plasma device is much less than that across a filter; the risk of rupture of a filter leading to release of microorganisms is avoided; and operating costs are reduced in that filters do not need to be changed, and used (contaminated) filters do not need to be disposed of.
Other types of non-thermal plasma device, such as a dielectric barrier (or silent discharge) reactor may be used in place of the packed bed reactor.

Claims (4)

Claims
1. A method of treating air supplied to the cabin of an aircraft or spacecraft to destroy contaminants such as bacteria, the pressure within the cabin being at or below normal atmospheric pressure, and the supplied air being at least partly recirculated air from cabin, wherein the recirculated air is passed through a non-thermal plasma device, the device being energised continuously whilst air is being recirculated.-
2. k method of treating air as claimed in claim 1, wherein the supplied air is partly fresh air.
3. A method of treating air as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the non-thermal plasma device includes a packed bed of particles of a dielectric material.
4. A method of treating air supplied to the cabin of an aircraft or spacecraft to destroy contaminants such as bacteria, substantially as hereinbefore cleGc.,elf'. tnzw 15357 MdCm
GB9918840A 1998-09-07 1999-08-11 Treatment of cabin air Expired - Fee Related GB2341094B (en)

Applications Claiming Priority (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
GBGB9819416.0A GB9819416D0 (en) 1998-09-07 1998-09-07 Treatment of aircraft cabin air

Publications (3)

Publication Number Publication Date
GB9918840D0 GB9918840D0 (en) 1999-10-13
GB2341094A true GB2341094A (en) 2000-03-08
GB2341094B GB2341094B (en) 2003-01-15

Family

ID=10838420

Family Applications (2)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
GBGB9819416.0A Ceased GB9819416D0 (en) 1998-09-07 1998-09-07 Treatment of aircraft cabin air
GB9918840A Expired - Fee Related GB2341094B (en) 1998-09-07 1999-08-11 Treatment of cabin air

Family Applications Before (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
GBGB9819416.0A Ceased GB9819416D0 (en) 1998-09-07 1998-09-07 Treatment of aircraft cabin air

Country Status (1)

Country Link
GB (2) GB9819416D0 (en)

Cited By (6)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US6623706B2 (en) 2000-06-20 2003-09-23 Advanced Electron Beams, Inc. Air sterilizing system
FR2852248A1 (en) * 2003-03-11 2004-09-17 Air Liquide Gas disinfecting method for e.g. meeting room, involves creating plasma column outside local thermodynamic balance by exciting and ionizing molecules of gas using electric field of progressive electromagnetic surface waves
WO2004108174A1 (en) * 2003-06-06 2004-12-16 Dwje Limited Aircraft air disinfection system
US7189978B2 (en) 2000-06-20 2007-03-13 Advanced Electron Beams, Inc. Air sterilizing system
WO2008104508A1 (en) * 2007-02-27 2008-09-04 Unilever N.V. Method and system for in-flight catering of soup
EP3854689A4 (en) * 2020-02-28 2022-01-12 Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics High-temperature sterilization air conditioning system for airplane and sterilization method

Citations (4)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
WO1989000355A1 (en) * 1987-07-03 1989-01-12 Astra-Vent Ab An arrangement for transporting air
GB2287630A (en) * 1994-03-14 1995-09-20 Advanced Energy Systems Apparatus and method for treatment of gas by ionization
EP0744802A2 (en) * 1995-05-25 1996-11-27 HE HOLDINGS, INC. dba HUGHES ELECTRONICS Gaseous pollutant destruction apparatus and method using self-resonant corona discharge
GB2304576A (en) * 1995-09-07 1997-03-26 George Richardson Reduction of airborne contaminants

Family Cites Families (3)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US4954320A (en) * 1988-04-22 1990-09-04 The United States Of America As Represented By The Secretary Of The Army Reactive bed plasma air purification
GB9224745D0 (en) * 1992-11-26 1993-01-13 Atomic Energy Authority Uk Microwave plasma generator
GB9320662D0 (en) * 1993-10-07 1993-11-24 Atomic Energy Authority Uk Corona discharge reactor

Patent Citations (4)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
WO1989000355A1 (en) * 1987-07-03 1989-01-12 Astra-Vent Ab An arrangement for transporting air
GB2287630A (en) * 1994-03-14 1995-09-20 Advanced Energy Systems Apparatus and method for treatment of gas by ionization
EP0744802A2 (en) * 1995-05-25 1996-11-27 HE HOLDINGS, INC. dba HUGHES ELECTRONICS Gaseous pollutant destruction apparatus and method using self-resonant corona discharge
GB2304576A (en) * 1995-09-07 1997-03-26 George Richardson Reduction of airborne contaminants

Cited By (8)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US6623706B2 (en) 2000-06-20 2003-09-23 Advanced Electron Beams, Inc. Air sterilizing system
US7189978B2 (en) 2000-06-20 2007-03-13 Advanced Electron Beams, Inc. Air sterilizing system
US7323137B2 (en) 2000-06-20 2008-01-29 Advanced Electron Beams, Inc. Air sterilizing system
US7547892B2 (en) 2000-06-20 2009-06-16 Advanced Electron Beams, Inc. Air sterilizing system
FR2852248A1 (en) * 2003-03-11 2004-09-17 Air Liquide Gas disinfecting method for e.g. meeting room, involves creating plasma column outside local thermodynamic balance by exciting and ionizing molecules of gas using electric field of progressive electromagnetic surface waves
WO2004108174A1 (en) * 2003-06-06 2004-12-16 Dwje Limited Aircraft air disinfection system
WO2008104508A1 (en) * 2007-02-27 2008-09-04 Unilever N.V. Method and system for in-flight catering of soup
EP3854689A4 (en) * 2020-02-28 2022-01-12 Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics High-temperature sterilization air conditioning system for airplane and sterilization method

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
GB9819416D0 (en) 1998-10-28
GB2341094B (en) 2003-01-15
GB9918840D0 (en) 1999-10-13

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Legal Events

Date Code Title Description
732E Amendments to the register in respect of changes of name or changes affecting rights (sect. 32/1977)
PCNP Patent ceased through non-payment of renewal fee

Effective date: 20050811