Nak-Gon Baek and Jin-Shik Lim
International Journal of Aeronautical and Space Sicences, vol. 12, no. 4, pp.379-384, 2011

Abstract : This paper performs numerical prediction of fuel temperature in the fuel tanks of unmanned air vehicles for both ground static non-operating and in flight transient conditions. The calculation is carried out using a modified Dufort-Frankel scheme. For this calculation, it is assumed that a non-operating vehicle on the ground is subjected to repeating daily cycles of ambient temperature with solar radiation and wind under 1%, with a 20% probability of hot day conditions. The energy conservation equation is used as the governing equation to calculate heat transfer between the fuel tank surface and the ambient environment. Results of the present analysis may be used as the estimated initial values of fuel temperatures in a vehicle’s fuel tank for the purpose of analyzing transient fuel temperatures during various flight missions. This research also demonstrates that the fuel temperature of the front tank is higher than that of the rear tank, and that the difference between the two temperatures increases in the later phases of flight due to the consumption of fuel.

Keyword : Fuel temperature, Network, Thermal