SU1837179A1 - Method for testing drain valves of spacecraft fuel tanks for tightness - Google Patents

Description

ί The invention relates to testing equipment and can be used to measure the leakage of the drainage valves of the fuel tanks of the propulsion systems of spacecraft (SC) in preparation for launch.

ί The tightness control of the drain valves of the fuel tanks of the remote control of the spacecraft is of great importance. Excessive excessive vapor pressure of the fuel components (for example, liquid oxygen, etc.) is discharged through drainage valves at the final stage of ground preparation and in flight. However, in case of leakage of the indicated valves, a significant part of the fuel components may leak through them, which (57) Usage: measurement of leakage of the drainage valves of the fuel tanks of spacecraft propulsion systems. SUBSTANCE: control gas is supplied to the valve inlet under pressure. At the same time, they create outside the drainage pipeline in the place of its increased leakage of technical gas pressure, equal to the pressure in the pipeline. The pressures outside and inside the drain pipe are kept equal as the pressure of the test gas inside the pipe rises. Leakage is determined by measuring the increase in pressure in the pipeline for a given period of time, 1 silt.

leads to program failure or even to loss of the spacecraft in flight. Therefore, it is necessary in a timely manner, immediately before filling the remote control with fuel components, to identify leakage of the drainage valves in the saddle, which can be ensured by autonomous control of the tightness of each valve in the spacecraft. This makes it possible to carry out operational repairs of the remote control, for example, by replacing the valve.

The aim of the invention is to provide control of the tightness of the drainage valve, the drainage pipe of which has an increased leak at the passage through the spacecraft.

1837179 A1

The method is carried out using a device, a diagram of which is shown in the drawing.

The controlled drain valve 1 on the inlet side is in communication with the fuel tank 2. The tank 2 has a valve 3 designed to fill the tank and the inlet cavity of the valve 1 connected with it with fuel or control gas. The outlet cavity of the valve 1 with the help of the onboard drainage pipe 4 is led out through the bypasses of the spacecraft through the onboard block 5 in its body 6. The pipe 4, which has a detachable connection 7, is connected to a pressure gauge using the ground (discharged before launch) block 8 and the ground continuation of the drainage pipe 9 10, which is used to measure pressure in the volume of the drainage pipeline. Valve 11 is in the closed position.

When the surface block 8 is dropped off remotely, the drainage pipe is disconnected at joint 7. The joint is the aforementioned place in the drainage pipe with increased leakage.

The cavity 12 between the pads 5 and 8 is sealed with a local annular chamber 13 for the leakage valve tightness control. A pipe 14 is passed through the block 8, one end of which is open into a cavity 12 formed inside the annular chamber 13. The other end of the pipe 14 is through an electrically controlled pneumatic valve (EPC) 15 is connected to a source of compressed gas. The pipe 14 is also connected to the cavity 16 of the differential pressure sensor 17, separated by a membrane 18 from the cavity 19 of the sensor 17. The cavity 19 is connected to the drain pipe 9. The sensor 17 responds to an increase in pressure in the cavity 12 compared to the pressure in the drain pipe 9 and gives a corresponding signal in the control unit 20, which, in turn, gives the command to open the EPA 15.

At the time of equalizing the pressure in the cavity 12 and the pipeline 9, the signal from the sensor 17. Disappears and the block 20 gives the command to close the EPA 15. Thus, the pressure is always equal in the cavity 12 and the pipe 9. It is possible to carry out operations to maintain the specified pressure equality using other devices or manually.

Work on the proposed method is carried out as follows.

The tank 2 and the inlet cavity of the controlled valve 1 connected with it are filled through the valve 3 with the test gas to the test pressure. Measure the initial pressure P _n in the pipe 9 by a manometer 10.

If there is a leakage of the valve 1 in the seat, then in the reported pipelines 4 and 9, pressure begins to increase. In this case, the signal of the sensor 17 and the command of the block 20 by repeatedly opening and closing the EPK15 in the cavity 12 and pipelines 4 and 9 is constantly maintained equal pressure. Thus, the detachable connection 7, which has an increased leakage, is unloaded from the differential pressure, and its leakage ceases to affect the pattern of pressure change in the drainage pipes 4 and 9. which is determined only by the leakage of valve 1. After a fixed time interval Δτ, the final pressure P is measured using a manometer 10 _to . Knowing the value of the volume V of pipelines 4, 9 and the cavities of the pressure gauge 10 connected with them, the tightness Q of valve 1 is determined by the formula

Δτ

The proposed method provides control of the tightness of the drainage valves of fuel tanks, the drainage pipe of which has an increased (hundreds or thousands of times) leakage compared to leakage of the controlled drainage valve. Simplified process and control equipment.

Claims (1)

Claim A method of monitoring the tightness of the drainage valves of the spacecraft’s fuel tanks, which consists in supplying control gas under pressure to the valve inlet and measuring the pressure increase in the drainage pipe for a given period of time, by which leakages are determined, characterized in that, in order to expand technological capabilities by providing control of valves, the drainage pipelines of which have increased leakage at the passage through the contours of the spacecraft, simultaneously with the bottom it creates the control gas outside the drainage pipe at the point of leakage of increased pressure technical gas equal to the pressure in the conduit and maintain them equal to at least improve the control gas pressure within the conduit. 18 19