United States Patent (19) 11) 4,172,048 Dunlap 45 Oct. 23, 1979 54 MIXTURE SUITABLE FOR AN AEROSTAT OTHER PUBLICATIONS 75 Inventor: Richard M. Dunlap, Middletown, R.I. Ishida, Bull. Chem. Soc., Japan, 31 (1958), pp. 143-148. (73) Assignee: The United States of America as Primary Examiner-Howard T. Mars represented by the Secretary of the Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Richard S. Sciascia; Arthur Navy, Washington, D.C. A. McGill; Prithvi C. Lall (21 Appl. No.: 947,810 57 ABSTRACT (22 Filed: Oct. 2, 1978 A balloon filled with a gas mixture of ammonia and 51) Int. Cl? ........................... C09K3/00; B64B 1/40 n-hexane will stay at a constant altitude due to conden 52 U.S. C. ...................................... 252/372; 24.4/31; sation at altitude of the n-hexane. Since both compo 244/97; 244/98; 9/314; 9/316 nents are liquid below about 50 meters in the ocean and 58 Field of Search .................... 252/372; 24.4/31, 97, together with the load are buoyant, the aerostat may be 244/98; 9/314, 316 submarine launched and rise to the surface at which point the ammonia and n-hexane evaporate and take the 56) References Cited balloon and load to its preset altitude. U.S. PATENT DOCUMENTS 3,412,963 11/1968 Struble ................................. 244/46 3 Claims, 2 Drawing Figures U.S. Patent Oct. 23, 1979 4,172,048 8 F. ----- --- 4 - - H - - - --- - 7 Z3. (D O NZ -- - - - C Mxis H. 6 --- - - - - - - - - 28 l || || ||-- -- ! 2 - -- - - - ------ --- O 5 A. (54Ombor) - - 262 Qu - M- - X PsR 4 | NHT M - it'24, O ----- - - a. Cs - L >io HF O S 3 (7Ol.mbar) H22 VO -- - > 2H X 2Ou T CD - - - -- - -- --- 18 a Oboe loos--los - bill a MOLE FRACTION OF n-HEXANE F G. PRESSURE mbor altitude O SATURATED in-HEXANE C4 2OO ATMOLE FRACTION 50408 S STD ATM (1962) SATURATED 4OOE, AMMONIAN i CONDENSATION ALTTUDE 6OOEa W. 3-H- H 8OOH2 OOO 520-Sg H+2O TEMPERATURE C F G. 2 4,172,048 1. 2 altitude to reduce the weight of air displaced and MIXTURE SUITABLE FOR AN AEROSTAT thereby float at a constant altitude. It is required that the condensing component at its partial pressure in the STATEMENT OF GOVERNMENT INTEREST mixture condense at the temperature corresponding to the desired altitude. Thus, for an aerostat to float at 5 The invention described herein may be manufactured km in the U.S. Standard Atmosphere (1962) the temper and used by or for the Government of the United States ature is - 17° C. and the pressure is 540 mbars, the of America for governmental purposes without the condensing gas should be saturated. payment of any royalties thereon or therefor. In Table 1 below several hydrocarbons are shown. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Both ammonia and helium are shown as lifting gases since neither reacts with the hydrocarbons. Ammonia The present invention generally relates to a gas mix and hydrocarbons are both reducing agents, and helium ture for use in an aerostat. More particularly the gas is inert. Since the aerostat may be submarine launched, mixture utilizes two substances one of which condenses ammonia is preferred. Ammonia becomes liquid at shal at an altitude to reduce the weight of the air displaced low ocean depths of about 55 meters, making for conve causing the aerostat to float at a constant altitude. nient packaging. The important results tabulated in Present aerostat technology dictates the use of bot Table 1 include the volume of the gas mixture, V in tled helium and a strong envelope so that the balloon cubic meters; the takeoff load, L0 in kilograms; the would have constant volume and would support consid buoyancy margin, B; the average molecular weight of erable super pressure at the hovering altitude. 20 the binary gas, Mx, and the lifting load with the sub SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION stance condensed, L1 in kilograms. Of the candidates It is therefore a general object of the invention to listed n-hexane combined with ammonia appears to be disclose an improved mixture of gases for use in an the best. It has adequate buoyancy margin in a reason aerostat. It is an additional object that an aerostat con able size. 25 The data for helium instead of ammonia as the lifting taining the mixture of gases be particularly suitable for gas shows cyclopentane to be the best substance. This underwater launch from a submarine. mixture will not condense at any ocean depth and is not This is accomplished in accordance with the present particularly suitable for submarine launch. It is, how invention by providing a mixture of gases in which both ever, a very safe mixture. the gases, n-hexane and ammonia are suitable to be 30 Table 2 below shows the altitude, temperature, pres launched underwater in the liquid state and to assume sure and density of the U.S. Standard Atmosphere the gaseous state upon surfacing in the water. This (1962). For each temperature is computed the saturation would enable an unmanned aerostat to carry many pressure of n-hexane. Each saturation pressure has been kinds of instrumentation. divided by the corresponding atmospheric pressure to BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 35 yield the mole fraction of n-hexane which would result FIG. 1 is a graph of altitude vs. mole fraction of in saturation at that temperature and pressure. Also n-hexane in ammonia to lift 1 kilogram; and computed and tabulated are the molecular weight of the FIG. 2 is a pressure-temperature graph comparing mixture, M, and the volume of mixture required to lift saturated n-hexane and ammonia to standard atmo one kilogram at sea level, V. The essential results are 40 plotted in FIG. 1. Stable altitudes between 1.5 and 6km spheric conditions over a range of altitudes. can be obtained by varying the proportions of n-hexane DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED and ammonia. TABLE 1. Partial pressure at -17 C. when Mole Ms saturated Fraction Lifting Avg. W L1 L0 Substance Formula Mole wit psia/molar of substance Gas M.W. m kg kg B n-hexane C6H4 86.17 .32/22.1 04.09 Ammonia 19.858 2.595 870 935 070 Helium 7.36 1.09 941 971 .030 2,3 dimethyl C6H14 86.17 .6/41.4 0767 Ammonia 22.333 3.563 665 .833 201 butane Helium 10.30 1.27 883 942 062 cyclopentane C5H10 70.13 82/56.5 1046 Ammonia 22.584 3.703 525 763 237 Helium 0.917 1.31 .832 916 084 n-pentane C5H12 72.15 1.5/103.4 1915 Ammonia 27.585 17,081 -3.007 - 1.003 Helium 17.05 1.98 534 767 .304 EMBODIMENT An aerostat may be filled with a mixture of two com ponents, one of which condenses at a predetermined TABLE 2 U.S. STANDARD ATMOSPHERE Saturated Psat C6H14 C6H14 and Alt. Temp. Press. Density n-hexane Mole NH3 w km K. °C. Inbar kg/m. mbar Fraction M m 0 288.1 15 1013, 1.225 141.1 139 26.66 10.23 1 281.6 8.5 899. 1.112 100.6 12 24.77 5.625 2 - 275.1 2.0 795. 1.007 70.5 089 23.16 4.07 3 268.7 - 4.5 70. 9.092 48.6 .069 21.83 3.31 3 4,172,048 TABLE 2-continued U.S. STANDARD ATMOSPHERE Saturated Psat C6H4 C6H4 and Alt. Temp. Press. Density n-hexane Mole NH3 W km. K. °C, mbar kg/m mbar Fraction M m 4 262.2 - 11.0 617. 8.194 32.9 .053 20,72 2.87 5 255.7 - 17.5 540, 7.364 21.87 040 19.83 2.59 6 249.2 -24.0 472, 6,601 14.22 030 9.1 2.40 7 242.7 -30.5 41. S.900 9,03 022 18.55 2.27 8 236.2 - 36.9 357. 5.258 5,60 0.0157 18,12 2.18 The following calculations are for determining the mole vol=22,414 m/kg essential characteristics of binary gases in a constant 15 ds=density liquid n-hexane=0.6603 altitude aerostat: dN=density liquid ammonia=0.817 Envelope capacity should be where y sea level air. .22 M. Wag=Mx=average molecular weight of com 20 ds Km air = (2.595) --- = 4.31n4.31m bined lifting gas and substance ML = molecular weight of lifting gas to avoid burst at 5 km altitude. Solar heating will raise M=molecular weight of substance the internal temperature and raise the altitude of the x=mole fraction of substance when combined with aeroStat. lifting gas. 25 Properties To lift load L with both the lifting gas and the sub C6H14 B.P. = 68.95 C. stance vaporized Temp range, t A B L M 30 -50 to -10' C. 35167 8.399 V = -(1 - ) -10 to -90 C. 31679 7.724. where dA = density of the atmosphere where MA=molecular weight of atmosphere With the substance condensed to a negligible volume 35 and the lifting gas as gaseous form, we can lift a lesser logio Pam Hg- - - A + B load, L, and Pmbar=1.3332 Pmm Hg P is the saturation pressure at temperature T=t--273 M A and B are constants in the Antoine equation L1 = VdA(1 - x - M) So that So that the buoyancy margin is the fraction --.05223 A - B L - L1 45 Pinbar = 1.3332 10-riffs B = + ( -) Total pressure when t".C. Pinbar mole fraction = .0408 depending on the state of the condensing substance -50 1.94 47.5 Pmbar= 68.95 Pi -40 4.37 107.