Environmental control system

Control system on a Boeing 737-800

The Environmental Control System of an airliner provides air supply, thermal control and cabin pressurization for the passengers and crew. Avionics cooling, smoke detection, and fire suppression are also commonly considered part of the Environmental Control System.

Overview

The systems described below are specific to current production Boeing airliners, although the details are essentially identical for passenger jets from Airbus and other companies. An exception was Concorde which had a supplementary air supply system fitted due to the higher altitudes at which it flew, and also the slightly higher cabin pressure it employed.

Air supply

On most jetliners, air is supplied to the ECS by being "bled" from a compressor stage of each turbine engine, upstream of the combustor. The temperature and pressure of this "bleed air" varies widely depending upon which compressor stage and the RPM of the engine.

A "Pressure Regulating Shutoff Valve" (PRSOV) restricts the flow as necessary to maintain the desired pressure for downstream systems. This flow restriction results in efficiency losses. To reduce the amount of restriction required, and thereby increase efficiency, air is commonly drawn from two bleed ports (3 on the Boeing 777).

When the engine is at low thrust, the air is drawn from the "High Pressure Bleed Port." As thrust is increased, the pressure from this port rises until "crossover," where the "High Pressure Shutoff Valve" (HPSOV) closes and air is thereafter drawn from the "Low Pressure Bleed Port."

To achieve the desired temperature, the bleed-air is passed through a heat exchanger called a "pre-cooler." Air from the jet engine fan is blown across the pre-cooler, which is located in the engine strut. A "Fan Air Modulating Valve" (FAMV) varies the cooling airflow, and thereby controls the final air temperature of the bleed air.

On the new Boeing 787, the bleed air will instead be provided by electrically driven compressors, thereby eliminating the inefficiencies caused by bleed port system.

Air conditioning pack

The air conditioning package, or "A/C pack" is usually an air cycle machine (ACM) cooling device. Some aircraft, including early 707 jetliners, used vapor-compression refrigeration like that used in home air conditioners.

An ACM uses no Freon: the air itself is the refrigerant. The ACM is preferred over vapor cycle devices because of reduced weight and maintenance requirements.

On most jetliners, the A/C packs are located in the "Wing to Body Fairing" between the two wings beneath the fuselage. On some jetliners (Douglas Aircraft DC-9 Series) the A/C Packs are located in the tail. The A/C Packs on the McDonnell Douglas DC-10/MD-11 and Lockheed L-1011 are located in the front of the aircraft beneath the flight deck. Nearly all jetliners have two packs, although larger aircraft such as the Boeing 747, Lockheed L-1011, and McDonnell-Douglas DC-10/MD-11 have three.

The quantity of bleed air flowing to the A/C Pack is regulated by the "Flow Control Valve" (FCV). One FCV is installed for each pack. A normally closed "isolation valve" prevents air from the left bleed system from reaching the right pack (and v.v.), although this valve may be opened in the event of loss of one bleed system.

Downstream of the FCV, the bleed air enters the primary "Ram Air Heat Exchanger", where it is cooled by ambient air. The cold air then enters the ACM compressor, where it is re-pressurized, which reheats the air. A pass through the secondary "Ram Air Heat Exchanger" cools the air while maintaining the high pressure. When this cool, high-pressure air is expanded through the ACM turbine, the expanding air can be chilled to sub-zero temperatures. Similar in operation to a turbo-charger unit, the compressor and turbine are on a single shaft. The energy extracted from the air passing through the turbine is used to power the compressor.

The air is then sent through a Water Separator, where the air is forced to spiral along its length and centrifugal forces cause the moisture to be flung through a sieve and toward the outer walls where it is channeled toward a drain and sent overboard. Then, the air usually will pass through a Water Separator Coalescer or, The Sock. The Sock retains the dirt and oil from the engine bleed air to keep the cabin air cleaner. This water removal process prevents ice from forming and clogging the system, and keeps the cockpit and cabin from fogging on ground operation and low altitudes.

The temperature of the Pack Outlet Air is controlled by the adjusting flow through the "Ram Air System" (below), and modulating a "Temperature Control Valve" (TCV) which bypasses a portion of the hot bleed air around the ACM and mixes it with the cold air downstream of the ACM turbine.

Ram Air System

The "Ram Air Inlet" is a small scoop, generally located on the "Wing to Body Fairing." Nearly all jetliners use a modulating door on the ram air inlet to control the amount of cooling airflow through the primary and secondary ram air heat exchangers.

To increase ram air recovery, nearly all jetliners use modulating vanes on the ram air exhaust. A "Ram Air Fan" within the ram system provides ram air flow across the heat exchangers when the aircraft is on the ground. Nearly all modern fixed-wing aircraft use a fan on a common shaft with the ACM, powered by the ACM turbine.

Air distribution

The A/C Pack exhaust air is ducted into the pressurized fuselage, where it is mixed with filtered air from the recirculation fans, and fed into the "mix manifold". On nearly all modern jetliners, the airflow is approximately 50% "outside air" and 50% "filtered air."

Modern jetliners use "High Efficiency Particulate Arresting" HEPA filters, which trap >99% of all bacteria and clustered viruses.

Air from the "mix manifold" is directed to overhead distribution nozzles in the various "zones" of the aircraft. Temperature in each zone may be adjusted by adding small amounts of "Trim Air", which is low-pressure, high temperature air tapped off the A/C Pack upstream of the TCV.

Pressurization

Airflow into the fuselage is approximately constant, and pressure is maintained by varying the opening of the "Out Flow Valve" (OFV). Most modern jetliners have a single OFV located near the bottom aft end of the fuselage, although some larger aircraft like the 747 and 777 have two.

In the event the OFV should fail closed, at least two Positive Pressure Relief Valves (PPRV) and at least one Negative Pressure Relief Valve (NPRV) are provided to protect the fuselage from over- and under- pressurization.

Aircraft cabin pressure is commonly pressurized to a "cabin altitude" of 8000 feet or less. That means that the pressure is 10.9 psia (75 kPa), which is the ambient pressure at 8000 feet (2,400 m). Note that a lower cabin altitude is a higher pressure. The cabin pressure is controlled by a "Cabin Pressure Schedule," which associates each aircraft altitude with a cabin altitude. Since jetliners do not always fly at their maximum rated altitude, the cabin altitude is also generally lower than the maximum permitted. For example, domestic flights rarely exceed a 5500 ft cabin altitude. The new airliners such as the Airbus A380 and Boeing 787 will have lower maximum cabin altitudes which help in fatigue reduction during flights.

Humidity

The atmosphere at typical jetliner cruising altitudes is generally very dry and cold, and the outside air pumped into the cabin on a long flight typically has a relative humidity around 10%. The fact that cabin pressure is generally lower than the pressure at ground level does not of itself contribute to the dryness.

The low cabin humidity has advantages for the structure and avionics of the aircraft: condensation which might cause corrosion or electrical faults is eliminated. Consequently when humid air at lower altitudes is encountered and drawn in, the ECS dries it through the warming and cooling cycle and the water separator mentioned above, so that even with high external relative humidity, inside the cabin it will usually be not much higher than 10% relative humidity.

Although low cabin humidity has health benefits of preventing the growth of fungus and bacteria, the low humidity causes drying of the skin, eyes and mucosal membranes and contributes to dehydration, leading to fatigue, discomfort and health issues. In one study the majority of flight attendants reported discomfort and health issues from low humidity. In a statement to Congress in 2003 a member of the Committee on Air Quality in Passenger Cabins of Commercial Aircraft said "low relative humidity might cause some temporary discomfort (e.g., drying eyes, nasal passages, and skin), but other possible short- or long-term effects have not been established".

A cabin humidity control system may be added to the ECS of some aircraft to keep relative humidity from extremely low levels, consistent with the need to prevent condensation. Furthermore the Boeing 787 and Airbus 350, by using more corrosion-resistant composites in their contruction, can operate with a cabin relative humidity of 16% on long flights.

Health concerns

The bleed air comes from the engines but is "bled" from the engine upstream of the combustor. Air cannot flow backwards though the engine except during a compressor stall (essentially a jet engine backfire), thus the bleed air should be free of combustion contaminants from the normal running of the aircraft's own engines.

However, on occasions components can leak oil (containing highly toxic additives) into the bleed air. This is generally dealt with quickly since failed oil seals will reduce the engine life.

Nevertheless, oil contamination from this and other sources within the engine bay is leading to serious health concerns including an investigation by the Government of Australia.

Myths

• Do crews turn off one A/C Pack during flight to save fuel?

• When one A/C Pack fails or is turned off, the other pack increases flow to ~185% of normal. This is required for safety reasons to maintain cabin pressurization. This may actually increase fuel consumption because the bleed flow is taken asymmetrically from the engines.

• Is there a switch for the crew to provide less air to the cabin unless the passengers complain?

• One of the oldest 747s has a feature to turn off one of the three packs. No recently produced jetliner has this feature. Jetliners are designed to operate with all packs operating at all times.

• Is the air in first class better?

• Airbus and Boeing jetliners supply constant flow per unit length of the cabin. The seats in first class are spaced farther apart, resulting in more air per seat, but the nozzles provide the same amount of air at all locations.
• Since all the air in the main cabin comes from the same manifold, first class receives 50% outside air and 50% filtered recirculated air just like the rest of the cabin. (Note that the proportion of outside air was somewhat higher than this on the Concorde aircraft.)

• Is the air in the flight deck better?

• Most jetliners supply 100% outside air to the flight deck. This is because the flight deck has the highest concentration of avionics and the most glass per unit volume, making the flight deck very hard to keep cool on hot days. By providing 100% outside air to the flight deck, the air supply temperature can be near freezing if required, much cooler than if the air was mixed with recirculated air. A drawback is that the air in the flight deck is much drier on these aircraft.
• Some jetliners provide 50% recirculated air to the flight deck, to increase pilot comfort by raising the humidity.

• Are the cargo compartments pressurized?

• The cargo compartment is generally pressurized to the same level as the cabin and the temperature may be controllable. Some aircraft have crew controlled commands for cargo compartment pressurization and temperature control.

References

• [http://www.thisisecs.com/blog
• HVAC Applications volume of the ASHRAE Handbook, American Society of Heating, Ventilating and Air-Conditioning Engineers, Inc. (ASHRAE), Atlanta, GA, 1999.

External links

• This is ECS-An Aerospace Environmental Control Systems Consulting Firm
• Airbus ECS link
• Boeing ECS link
• Commercial airliner environmental control system
• Hamilton-Sundstrand ECS link
• Honeywell (formerly Allied-Signal) ECS link
• Liebherr ECS link
• JetAir ECS Resources link