Patent ID: 9657954
Date: 2017-05-23
CPC Classifications: B64D,F24D,F24V,Y02B,Y02T,Y10T

Claim:
1. An aircraft having a drinking water circulation system comprising: a circulation line comprising pipes, wherein the pipes pass in such a vicinity of an outer skin of the aircraft that heat sinks occur in respective regions of the circulation line; a circulation pump unit comprising a pump having a bypass conduit between a pump inlet and a pump outlet, a first valve in the bypass conduit, a motor for operating the pump and a frequency converter, wherein the circulation pump unit and the circulation line together form a circulation circuit and the circulation pump unit is configured to transfer an amount of thermal energy at least one of directly and indirectly to a fluid in the form of drinking water located in the circulation line such that a system temperature is kept above a freezing temperature of the fluid and below 16° Celsius; and a control unit configured to adjust the amount of thermal energy transferrable as waste heat to the fluid by controlling the efficiency of the circulation pump unit according to at least one of the following: wherein the control unit adjusts a transferrable amount of thermal energy by operating the circulation pump unit in at least one of a hydraulically or electrically suboptimal range to affect a heating of the circulation pump unit, which heating is transferred as waste heat to the fluid.