Auxiliary power unit
Encyclopedia
Function
Hydraulic machinery
Hydraulic machines are machinery and tools that use liquid fluid power to do simple work. Heavy equipment is a common example.In this type of machine, hydraulic fluid is transmitted throughout the machine to various hydraulic motors and hydraulic cylinders and which becomes pressurised according to...
accumulator. Once the APU is running, it provides power (electric, pneumatic
Bleed air
Bleed air in gas turbine engines is compressed air taken from within the engine, after the compressor stage and before the fuel is injected in the burners. While in theory bleed air could be drawn in any gas turbine engine, its usage is generally restricted to jet engines used in aircraft...
, or hydraulic, depending on the design) to start the aircraft's main engines.
APUs are also used to run accessories while the engines are shut down. This allows the cabin to be comfortable while the passengers are boarding before the aircraft's engines are started. Electrical power is used to run systems for preflight checks. Some APUs are also connected to a hydraulic pump, allowing crews to operate hydraulic equipment (such as flight controls
Flight controls
Aircraft flight control surfaces allow a pilot to adjust and control the aircraft's flight attitude.Development of an effective set of flight controls was a critical advance in the development of aircraft...
or flaps
Flap (aircraft)
Flaps are normally hinged surfaces mounted on the trailing edges of the wings of a fixed-wing aircraft to reduce the speed an aircraft can be safely flown at and to increase the angle of descent for landing without increasing air speed. They shorten takeoff and landing distances as well as...
) prior to engine start. This function can also be used, on some aircraft, as a backup in flight in case of engine or hydraulic failure.
Aircraft with APUs can also accept electrical and pneumatic power from ground equipment when an APU has failed or is not to be used.
APUs fitted to extended-range twin-engine operations (ETOPS
ETOPS/LROPS
ETOPS is an acronym for extended operations as re-defined by the US Federal Aviation Administration in 2007 . This rule allows twin-engined airliners to fly long-distance routes that were previously off-limits to twin-engined aircraft...
) aircraft are a critical safety device, as they supply backup electricity and compressed air in place of the dead engine or failed main engine generator. While some APUs may not be startable in flight, ETOPS-compliant APUs must be flight-startable at altitudes up to the aircraft service ceiling
Service ceiling
With respect to aircraft, a ceiling is the maximum density altitude an aircraft can reach under a set of conditions.The word ceiling can also refer to the height of the lowest obscuring cloud layer above the ground.-Service ceiling:...
. Recent applications have specified starting up to 43000 ft (13,106.4 m) from a complete cold-soak condition such as the Hamilton Sundstrand
Hamilton Sundstrand
Hamilton Sundstrand, is a global corporation that manufactures and supports aerospace and industrial products for worldwide markets. It was formed from the merger of Hamilton Standard and Sundstrand Corporation in 1999. A subsidiary of United Technologies Corporation, HS is headquartered in Windsor...
APS5000 for the Boeing 787 Dreamliner. If the APU or its electrical generator is not available, the aircraft cannot be released for ETOPS flight and is forced to take a longer non-ETOPS route.
History
The Boeing 727Boeing 727
The Boeing 727 is a mid-size, narrow-body, three-engine, T-tailed commercial jet airliner, manufactured by Boeing. The Boeing 727 first flew in 1963, and for over a decade more were built per year than any other jet airliner. When production ended in 1984 a total of 1,832 aircraft had been produced...
in 1963 was the first jetliner to feature a gas turbine
Gas turbine
A gas turbine, also called a combustion turbine, is a type of internal combustion engine. It has an upstream rotating compressor coupled to a downstream turbine, and a combustion chamber in-between....
APU, allowing it to operate at smaller airports, independent from ground facilities. The APU can be identified on many modern airliners by an exhaust pipe at the aircraft tail.
Sections
A typical gas turbine APU for commercial transport aircraft comprises three main sections:Power section
The power section is the gas generator portion of the engine and produces all the shaft power for the APU.
Load compressor section
The load compressor is generally a shaft-mounted compressor that provides pneumatic power for the aircraft, though some APUs extract bleed air
Bleed air
Bleed air in gas turbine engines is compressed air taken from within the engine, after the compressor stage and before the fuel is injected in the burners. While in theory bleed air could be drawn in any gas turbine engine, its usage is generally restricted to jet engines used in aircraft...
from the power section compressor. There are two actuated devices: the inlet guide vanes that regulate airflow to the load compressor and the surge control valve that maintains stable or surge-free operation of the turbo machine. The third section of the engine is the gearbox.
Gearbox section
The gearbox transfers power from the main shaft of the engine to an oil-cooled generator for electrical power. Within the gearbox, power is also transferred to engine accessories such as the fuel control unit, the lubrication module, and cooling fan. In addition, there is also a starter motor connected through the gear train to perform the starting function of the APU. Some APU designs use a combination starter/generator for APU starting and electrical power generation to reduce complexity.
On the Boeing 787 more-electric aircraft, the APU delivers only electricity to the aircraft. The absence of a pneumatic system simplifies the design, but high demand for electricity requires heavier generators.
Onboard solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) APUs are being researched.
Manufacturers
Two main corporations compete in the aircraft APU market: United Technologies CorporationUnited Technologies Corporation
United Technologies Corporation is an American multinational conglomerate headquartered in the United Technologies Building in Hartford, Connecticut...
(through its subsidiaries Pratt & Whitney Canada
Pratt & Whitney Canada
Pratt & Whitney Canada is a Canadian aircraft engine manufacturer. PWC's headquarters are in Longueuil, Quebec, just outside Montreal. It is a division of the larger US-based Pratt & Whitney , itself a business unit of United Technologies...
, Hamilton Sundstrand
Hamilton Sundstrand
Hamilton Sundstrand, is a global corporation that manufactures and supports aerospace and industrial products for worldwide markets. It was formed from the merger of Hamilton Standard and Sundstrand Corporation in 1999. A subsidiary of United Technologies Corporation, HS is headquartered in Windsor...
and the recently acquired Goodrich Corporation
Goodrich Corporation
The Goodrich Corporation , formerly the B.F. Goodrich Company, is an American aerospace manufacturing company based in Charlotte, North Carolina. Founded in Akron, Ohio in 1870 as Goodrich, Tew & Co. by Dr. Benjamin Franklin Goodrich. The company name was changed to the "B.F...
), and Honeywell
Honeywell
Honeywell International, Inc. is a major conglomerate company that produces a variety of consumer products, engineering services, and aerospace systems for a wide variety of customers, from private consumers to major corporations and governments....
International Inc.
Military aircraft
Smaller military aircraft, such as fighterFighter aircraft
A fighter aircraft is a military aircraft designed primarily for air-to-air combat with other aircraft, as opposed to a bomber, which is designed primarily to attack ground targets...
s and attack aircraft, feature auxiliary power systems which are different from those used in transport aircraft. The functions of engine starting and providing electrical and hydraulic power are divided up among two units, the jet fuel starter and the emergency power unit.
Jet fuel starter
A jet fuel starter (JFS) is a small turboshaftTurboshaft
A turboshaft engine is a form of gas turbine which is optimized to produce free turbine shaft power, rather than jet thrust...
engine designed to drive a jet engine to its self-accelerating RPM. Rather than supplying bleed air to a starter motor in the manner of an APU, a JFS output shaft is mechanically connected to an engine. As soon as the JFS begins to turn, the engine turns; unlike APUs, these starters are not designed to produce electrical power when engines are not running.
Jet fuel starters use a free power turbine section, but the method of connecting it to the engine depends on the aircraft design. In single-engine aircraft such as the A-7 Corsair II
A-7 Corsair II
The Ling-Temco-Vought A-7 Corsair II is a carrier-based subsonic light attack aircraft introduced to replace the United States Navy's Douglas A-4 Skyhawk, initially entering service during the Vietnam War...
and F-16 Fighting Falcon
F-16 Fighting Falcon
The General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon is a multirole jet fighter aircraft originally developed by General Dynamics for the United States Air Force . Designed as an air superiority day fighter, it evolved into a successful all-weather multirole aircraft. Over 4,400 aircraft have been built since...
, the JFS power section is always connected to the main engine through the engine's accessory gearbox. In contrast, the twin-engine F-15 Eagle
F-15 Eagle
The McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle is a twin-engine, all-weather tactical fighter designed by McDonnell Douglas to gain and maintain air superiority in aerial combat. It is considered among the most successful modern fighters with over 100 aerial combat victories with no losses in dogfights...
features a single JFS, and the JFS power section is connected through a central gearbox which can be engaged to one engine at a time.
Emergency power unit
Emergency hydraulic and electric power are provided by a different type of gas turbine engine. Unlike most gas turbines, an emergency power unit has no gas compressorGas compressor
A gas compressor is a mechanical device that increases the pressure of a gas by reducing its volume.Compressors are similar to pumps: both increase the pressure on a fluid and both can transport the fluid through a pipe. As gases are compressible, the compressor also reduces the volume of a gas...
or ignitors, and uses a combination of hydrazine
Hydrazine
Hydrazine is an inorganic compound with the formula N2H4. It is a colourless flammable liquid with an ammonia-like odor. Hydrazine is highly toxic and dangerously unstable unless handled in solution. Approximately 260,000 tons are manufactured annually...
and water
Water
Water is a chemical substance with the chemical formula H2O. A water molecule contains one oxygen and two hydrogen atoms connected by covalent bonds. Water is a liquid at ambient conditions, but it often co-exists on Earth with its solid state, ice, and gaseous state . Water also exists in a...
, rather than jet fuel
Jet fuel
Jet fuel is a type of aviation fuel designed for use in aircraft powered by gas-turbine engines. It is clear to straw-colored in appearance. The most commonly used fuels for commercial aviation are Jet A and Jet A-1 which are produced to a standardized international specification...
. When the hydrazine and water mixture is released and passes across a catalyst of iridium
Iridium
Iridium is the chemical element with atomic number 77, and is represented by the symbol Ir. A very hard, brittle, silvery-white transition metal of the platinum family, iridium is the second-densest element and is the most corrosion-resistant metal, even at temperatures as high as 2000 °C...
, it spontaneously ignites, creating hot expanding gases which drive the turbine. The power created is transmitted through a gearbox to drive an electrical generator and hydraulic pump.
The hydrazine is contained in a sealed, nitrogen charged accumulator
Hydraulic accumulator
A 'hydraulic accumulator' is an energy storage device. It is a pressure storage reservoir in which a non-compressible hydraulic fluid is held under pressure by an external source. That external source can be a spring, a raised weight, or a compressed gas...
. When the system is armed, the hydrazine is released whenever the engine-driven generators go off-line, or if all engine-driven hydraulic pumps fail.
Spacecraft
The Space ShuttleSpace Shuttle
The Space Shuttle was a manned orbital rocket and spacecraft system operated by NASA on 135 missions from 1981 to 2011. The system combined rocket launch, orbital spacecraft, and re-entry spaceplane with modular add-ons...
APUs provided hydraulic
Hydraulic machinery
Hydraulic machines are machinery and tools that use liquid fluid power to do simple work. Heavy equipment is a common example.In this type of machine, hydraulic fluid is transmitted throughout the machine to various hydraulic motors and hydraulic cylinders and which becomes pressurised according to...
pressure. The Space Shuttle had three redundant
Redundancy (engineering)
In engineering, redundancy is the duplication of critical components or functions of a system with the intention of increasing reliability of the system, usually in the case of a backup or fail-safe....
APUs, powered by hydrazine fuel. They functioned during powered ascent, re-entry
Re-Entry
"Re-Entry" was the second album released by UK R&B / Hip Hop collective Big Brovaz. After the album was delayed in May 2006, the band finally release the follow-up to "Nu Flow" on 9 April 2007...
, and landing. During ascent, the APUs provided hydraulic power for gimbal
Gimbal
A gimbal is a pivoted support that allows the rotation of an object about a single axis. A set of two gimbals, one mounted on the other with pivot axes orthogonal, may be used to allow an object mounted on the innermost gimbal to remain immobile regardless of the motion of its support...
ling of Shuttle's engines
Rocket engine
A rocket engine, or simply "rocket", is a jet engineRocket Propulsion Elements; 7th edition- chapter 1 that uses only propellant mass for forming its high speed propulsive jet. Rocket engines are reaction engines and obtain thrust in accordance with Newton's third law...
and control surfaces. During landing, they powered the control surfaces and brake
Brake
A brake is a mechanical device which inhibits motion. Its opposite component is a clutch. The rest of this article is dedicated to various types of vehicular brakes....
s. Landing could be accomplished with only one APU working. On STS-9
STS-9
STS-9 was a NASA Space Shuttle mission which carried the first Spacelab module into orbit to conduct space-based scientific experiments. It was the sixth mission of the Space Shuttle Columbia, and was Columbia's last flight until STS-61-C in January 1986...
, two of Columbias
Space Shuttle Columbia
Space Shuttle Columbia was the first spaceworthy Space Shuttle in NASA's orbital fleet. First launched on the STS-1 mission, the first of the Space Shuttle program, it completed 27 missions before being destroyed during re-entry on February 1, 2003 near the end of its 28th, STS-107. All seven crew...
APUs caught fire, but the craft landed successfully.
Armor
APUs are fitted to some tankTank
A tank is a tracked, armoured fighting vehicle designed for front-line combat which combines operational mobility, tactical offensive, and defensive capabilities...
s to provide electrical power without the high fuel consumption and large infrared signature
Infrared signature
The term infrared signature is used by defense scientists and the military to describe the appearance of objects to infrared sensors. An infrared signature depends on many factors, including the shape and size of the object, temperature and emissivity, reflection of external sources from the...
of the main engine. Both the M1 Abrams
M1 Abrams
The M1 Abrams is a third-generation main battle tank produced in the United States. It is named after General Creighton Abrams, former Army Chief of Staff and Commander of US military forces in Vietnam from 1968 to 1972. The M1 is a well armed, heavily armored, and highly mobile tank designed for...
and variants of the Leopard 2
Leopard 2
The Leopard 2 is a main battle tank developed by Krauss-Maffei in the early 1970s for the West German Army. The tank first entered service in 1979 and succeeded the earlier Leopard 1 as the main battle tank of the German Army. Various versions have served in the armed forces of Germany and twelve...
such as the Spanish and Danish variants carry the APU in the rear right hull section. The British Centurion tank
Centurion tank
The Centurion, introduced in 1945, was the primary British main battle tank of the post-World War II period. It was a successful tank design, with upgrades, for many decades...
used an Austin A-Series
BMC A-Series engine
Austin Motor Company's small straight-4 automobile engine, the A-Series, is one of the most common in the world. Launched in 1951 with the Austin A30, production lasted until 2000 in the Mini. It used a cast-iron block and cylinder head, and a steel crankshaft with 3 main bearings...
inline-4 as its auxiliary power unit. The Turkish self-propelled howitzer T-155 Fırtına
T-155 Firtina
T-155 Fırtına is the Turkish variant of the K9 Thunder 155mm self-propelled howitzer by Samsung Techwin.Though essentially using the main systems of the K9 howitzer, including the South Korean designed 155/52 caliber gun system, majority of the chassis, automatic ammunition feeding mechanism, and...
uses a 2-stroke diesel engine located at the rear right hull to supply power to fire control computers and turret hydraulics.
Commercial vehicles
A refrigerated or frozen food semi trailer or train car may be equipped with an independent APU and fuel tank to maintain low temperatures while in transit, without the need for an external transport-supplied power source.In the United States, federal Department of Transportation
United States Department of Transportation
The United States Department of Transportation is a federal Cabinet department of the United States government concerned with transportation. It was established by an act of Congress on October 15, 1966, and began operation on April 1, 1967...
regulations require 10 hours of rest for every 11 hours of driving. When stopped, drivers often idle their engines to provide heat, light, and power. Idling inefficiently burns fuel and puts wear on engines. Some trucks carry an APU designed to eliminate these long idles. An APU can save up to 20 gallons (Cat 600 – 10 hours downtime @ 2 gallons per hour idling) (≈ 76 litres) of fuel a day, and can extend the useful life of the main engine by around 100,000 miles (≈ 160,000 kilometres), by reducing non-productive run time.
On some older diesel engines, an APU was used instead of an electric motor to start the main engine. These were primarily used on large pieces of construction equipment.
Diesel
Diesel engine
A diesel engine is an internal combustion engine that uses the heat of compression to initiate ignition to burn the fuel, which is injected into the combustion chamber...
with its own cooling system, heating system, generator or alternator system with or without inverter, and air conditioning compressor, housed in an enclosure and mounted to one of the frame rails of a semi-truck. Other designs fully integrate the auxiliary cooling, heating, and electrical components throughout the chassis of the truck. The APU generator engine is a fraction of the main engine's size and uses a fraction of the fuel; some models can run for eight hours on one US gallon (≈ 4 litres) of diesel. The generator also powers the main engine's block and fuel system heaters, so the main engine can be started easily right before departure if the APU is allowed to run for a period beforehand. These units are used to provide climate control and electrical power for the truck's sleeper cab and engine block heater during downtime on the road as mandated by statewide laws for idle reduction.
Electric
Electric APUs have started gaining acceptance. These electric APUs use battery packs instead of the diesel engine on traditional APUs as a source of power. The APU's battery pack is charged when the truck is in motion. When the truck is idle, the stored energy in the battery pack is then used to power an air conditioner, heater, and other devices (televisionTelevision
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
, microwave oven
Microwave oven
A microwave oven is a kitchen appliance that heats food by dielectric heating, using microwave radiation to heat polarized molecules within the food...
,..etc.) in the bunk.
Fuel cells
In recent years, truck and fuel cell manufacturers have teamed up to create, test and demonstrate a fuel cell APU that eliminates nearly all emissions and uses diesel fuel more efficiently. In 2008, a DOE sponsored partnership between Delphi Electronics and Peterbilt demonstrated that a fuel cell could provide power to the electronics and air conditioning of a Peterbilt Model 386 under simulated "idling" conditions for 10 hours. Delphi has said the 5 kW system for Class 8 trucks will be released in 2012, at an $8000–9000 price tag that would be competitive with other "midrange" two-cylinder diesel APUs, should they be able to meet those deadlines and cost estimates.Other forms of transport
Where the elimination of exhaust emissions or noise is particularly important (such as yachts, camper vans), fuel cellFuel cell
A fuel cell is a device that converts the chemical energy from a fuel into electricity through a chemical reaction with oxygen or another oxidizing agent. Hydrogen is the most common fuel, but hydrocarbons such as natural gas and alcohols like methanol are sometimes used...
s and photovoltaic modules are used as APUs for electricity generation.
See also
- Air start systemAir start systemAn air-start system is a power source used to provide the initial rotation to start large diesel and gas turbine engines.Compared to a gasoline engine, diesel engines have very high compression ratios to provide for reliable and complete ignition of the fuel without spark plugs...
- Coffman engine starterCoffman engine starterThe Coffman engine starter was a starting system used on many piston engines in aircraft and armored vehicles of the 1930s and 1940s. The Coffman system was one of the most common brands; another was the Breeze cartridge system, which was produced under Coffman patents...
- A similar system which uses an explosive cartridge to supply gas pressure.