UNIT 4- PARTB

FUEL QUANTITY & INDICATING

SYSTEM
CONTENTS

 Fuel tanks & Indicating systems

 Capacitance type indicating system

 Float type indicating system

 Effects of fuel temperature changes

 References
Fuel tanks & Indicating system

To know about the fuel quantity indicating system, we mainly need

to know the fuel tank locations in the aircraft .

There are two internal tank location

 Wing tanks &

 Fuselage tanks

 Wing tanks - The tanks that are placed on the left and right wing of
the aircraft are called as wing tanks.

 Fuselage tanks- The tanks placed central body of an aircraft that is

designed to accommodate the crew and passengers (or
cargo) are called as fuselage tanks.
Left wing Auxiliary
Left engine feed

Main tank

Right wing
Right engine
feed
Fuel quantity indicator

Fuel quantity gauges(indicators) are necessary so that the pilot may

know the quantity of fuel remaining in the tanks during operation of
the aircraft.

 Fuel quantities are indicated by the fuel quantity indicator located in the
lower right corner of the pilot's cockpit (at the pilot's right knee).

Beside the fuel quantity indicator, the system components include a built-in
test ( BIT).

A BINGO caution display and an independent FUEL LOW caution light.

ABOUT ELECTRICAL capacitance

 Whenever a potential difference is applied across two conducting

surfaces separated by a non-conducting medium,called
dielectric,they have a property of storing electric charge;this
property is known as capacitance.
capacitance(electron-holding ability)
 C=Q(charge)/V(potential difference)
Unit expressed in terms farads(genarally micro farads)
In the principle of the capacitance to fuel gauge system,picofarad
is the standard unit of measurement
 FACTORS ON WHICH capacitance DEPENDS
C=E0A/D
C directly proportional area,relative permittivity and
inversely proportional distance between 2 plates
 when the switch is placed in position 1 a rush of electrons,
known as the charging current, takes glace from plate A
through the battery to plate B and ceases when the
potential difference between the plates is equal to that of
the battery.
 When the switch is opened, the plates remain positively
and negatively charged since the atoms of plate A have
lost electrons while those at plate B have a surplus. Thus,
electrical energy is stored in the electric field between the
plates of the capacitor.
 Placing the switch in position 2 causes the plates to be
short circuited and the surplus electrons at plate B rush
back to plate A until the atoms of both plates are
electrically neutral and no potential difference exists
between them.
capacitance type fuel gauge system

 capacitance-type fuel-gauge system consists of

 Variable capacitor located in tank

 Amplifier and an indicator

The complete circuit forms electrical bridge which is

continuously rebalanced as a result of differences between tank
capacitor and a reference capacitor
The signal produced is amplified to operate a motor, which
positions a pointer to indicate the capacitance change of the
tank capacitor and thus the change in fuel quantity .
CHANGES IN capacitance DUE TO FUEL AND AIR
EQUATION FOR FUEL capacitance

 K is given by

 K=CT/CA; CA=capacitance of air;

CT=Total capacitance ;
 CT= CA+CF (PUTTING CT= KCA)
CF=CA(K-1)

 For height L of fuel level and height of tank H

Fuel capacitance is given as
CF=(L/H)CA(K-1)
Arrangments of a basic capacitance fuel-gauge system

 It has 2 loops(sections).
Loop A, contains tank capacitor Ct and is a sensing loop because it
detects current due to changes in capacitance. Vs remains constant.

 Loop B, is considered as the balancing loop of bridge, contains a

reference capacitor Cr of fixed value is connected to secondary winding
of transformer so that voltage Vb is variable
motor drives potentiometer wiper and indicator pointer.

 Amplifier is only energized when an unbalanced condition exits in the

bridge
Discrimination Stage- discriminates the phase of signal (voltage)
Operation of circuit

Initially fuel is full Ib=Is,bridge is in balance no voltage is produced across R

As fuel level drops,Cf decreases in turn Ct decreases hence Is decreases.

A signal voltage IbR is amplified phase detected and given to stepper

motor(control phase)

Current in in control-phase lead or lag depends which loop predominating

In this case balancing loop is predominating, control-phase current lags behind that
of reference phase causing the motor and wiper of potentiometer to be driven in such a
direction as to decrease the balancing Ib.

When Ib=Is, bridge again in balance condition, then

motor stops rotating indicator pointer will come to lower vlaue.
Effects of fuel temperature changes

 The volume, density & relative permittivity of the fuels are affected
when the temperature changes.

 During extreme cold, especially at high altitude, the gauge can be checked
to determine when fuel temperatures are approaching those at which there
may be danger of ice crystals forming in the fuel.

 Thus a volumetric gauge system will be subjected to a small error due to

variations in fuel temperatures.