The development of a solid-state hydrogen sensor for rocket engine leakage detection

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Chung-Chiun

1994-01-01

Hydrogen propellant leakage poses significant operational problems in the rocket propulsion industry as well as for space exploratory applications. Vigorous efforts have been devoted to minimizing hydrogen leakage in assembly, test, and launch operations related to hydrogen propellant. The objective has been to reduce the operational cost of assembling and maintaining hydrogen delivery systems. Specifically, efforts have been made to develop a hydrogen leak detection system for point-contact measurement. Under the auspices of Lewis Research Center, the Electronics Design Center at Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio, has undertaken the development of a point-contact hydrogen gas sensor with potential applications to the hydrogen propellant industry. We envision a sensor array consisting of numbers of discrete hydrogen sensors that can be located in potential leak sites. Silicon-based microfabrication and micromachining techniques are used in the fabrication of these sensor prototypes. Evaluations of the sensor are carried out in-house at Case Western Reserve University as well as at Lewis Research Center and GenCorp Aerojet, Sacramento, California. The hydrogen gas sensor is not only applicable in a hydrogen propulsion system, but also usable in many other civilian and industrial settings. This includes vehicles or facility use, or in the production of hydrogen gas. Dual space and commercial uses of these point-contacted hydrogen sensors are feasible and will directly meet the needs and objectives of NASA as well as various industrial segments.

The development of a solid-state hydrogen sensor for rocket engine leakage detection

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Chung-Chiun

Hydrogen propellant leakage poses significant operational problems in the rocket propulsion industry as well as for space exploratory applications. Vigorous efforts have been devoted to minimizing hydrogen leakage in assembly, test, and launch operations related to hydrogen propellant. The objective has been to reduce the operational cost of assembling and maintaining hydrogen delivery systems. Specifically, efforts have been made to develop a hydrogen leak detection system for point-contact measurement. Under the auspices of Lewis Research Center, the Electronics Design Center at Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio, has undertaken the development of a point-contact hydrogen gas sensor with potential applications to the hydrogen propellant industry. We envision a sensor array consisting of numbers of discrete hydrogen sensors that can be located in potential leak sites. Silicon-based microfabrication and micromachining techniques are used in the fabrication of these sensor prototypes. Evaluations of the sensor are carried out in-house at Case Western Reserve University as well as at Lewis Research Center and GenCorp Aerojet, Sacramento, California. The hydrogen gas sensor is not only applicable in a hydrogen propulsion system, but also usable in many other civilian and industrial settings. This includes vehicles or facility use, or in the production of hydrogen gas. Dual space and commercial uses of these point-contacted hydrogen sensors are feasible and will directly meet the needs and objectives of NASA as well as various industrial segments.

Numerical and experimental analysis of heat transfer in injector plate of hydrogen peroxide hybrid rocket motor

Science.gov (United States)

Cai, Guobiao; Li, Chengen; Tian, Hui

2016-11-01

This paper is aimed to analyze heat transfer in injector plate of hydrogen peroxide hybrid rocket motor by two-dimensional axisymmetric numerical simulations and full-scale firing tests. Long-time working, which is an advantage of hybrid rocket motor over conventional solid rocket motor, puts forward new challenges for thermal protection. Thermal environments of full-scale hybrid rocket motors designed for long-time firing tests are studied through steady-state coupled numerical simulations of flow field and heat transfer in chamber head. The motor adopts 98% hydrogen peroxide (98HP) oxidizer and hydroxyl-terminated poly-butadiene (HTPB) based fuel as the propellants. Simulation results reveal that flowing liquid 98HP in head oxidizer chamber could cool the injector plate of the motor. The cooling of 98HP is similar to the regenerative cooling in liquid rocket engines. However, the temperature of the 98HP in periphery portion of the head oxidizer chamber is higher than its boiling point. In order to prevent the liquid 98HP from unexpected decomposition, a thermal protection method for chamber head utilizing silica-phenolics annular insulating board is proposed. The simulation results show that the annular insulating board could effectively decrease the temperature of the 98HP in head oxidizer chamber. Besides, the thermal protection method for long-time working hydrogen peroxide hybrid rocket motor is verified through full-scale firing tests. The ablation of the insulating board in oxygen-rich environment is also analyzed.

Nuclear rockets

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sarram, M.

1972-01-01

Nuclear energy has found many applications in space projects. This article deals with these applications. The first application is the use of nuclear energy for the production of electricity in space and the second main application is the use of nuclear energy for propulsion purposes in space flight. The main objective is to develop a 75000 pound thrust flight engine call NERVA by heating liquid hydrogen, in a nuclear reactor, from 420F to 4000 0 F. The paper describes in detail the salient features of the NERVA rocket as well as its comparison with the conventional chemical rockets. It is shown that a nuclear rocket using liquid hydrogen as medium is at least 85% more efficient as compared with the chemical rockets such as those used for the APOLLO moon flight

Nuclear Rocket Engine Reactor

CERN Document Server

Lanin, Anatoly

2013-01-01

The development of a nuclear rocket engine reactor (NRER ) is presented in this book. The working capacity of an active zone NRER under mechanical and thermal load, intensive neutron fluxes, high energy generation (up to 30 MBT/l) in a working medium (hydrogen) at temperatures up to 3100 K is displayed. Design principles and bearing capacity of reactors area discussed on the basis of simulation experiments and test data of a prototype reactor. Property data of dense constructional, porous thermal insulating and fuel materials like carbide and uranium carbide compounds in the temperatures interval 300 - 3000 K are presented. Technological aspects of strength and thermal strength resistance of materials are considered. The design procedure of possible emergency processes in the NRER is developed and risks for their origination are evaluated. Prospects of the NRER development for pilotless space devices and piloted interplanetary ships are viewed.

Development of Kabila rocket: A radioisotope heated thermionic plasma rocket engine

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kalomba Mboyi

2015-04-01

Full Text Available A new type of plasma rocket engine, the Kabila rocket, using a radioisotope heated thermionic heating chamber instead of a conventional combustion chamber or catalyst bed is introduced and it achieves specific impulses similar to the ones of conventional solid and bipropellant rockets. Curium-244 is chosen as a radioisotope heat source and a thermal reductive layer is also used to obtain precise thermionic emissions. The self-sufficiency principle is applied by simultaneously heating up the emitting material with the radioisotope decay heat and by powering the different valves of the plasma rocket engine with the same radioisotope decay heat using a radioisotope thermoelectric generator. This rocket engine is then benchmarked against a 1 N hydrazine thruster configuration operated on one of the Pleiades-HR-1 constellation spacecraft. A maximal specific impulse and power saving of respectively 529 s and 32% are achieved with helium as propellant. Its advantages are its power saving capability, high specific impulses and simultaneous ease of storage and restart. It can however be extremely voluminous and potentially hazardous. The Kabila rocket is found to bring great benefits to the existing spacecraft and further research should optimize its geometric characteristics and investigate the physical principals of its operation.

Design of a 500 lbf liquid oxygen and liquid methane rocket engine for suborbital flight

Science.gov (United States)

Trillo, Jesus Eduardo

Liquid methane (LCH4)is the most promising rocket fuel for our journey to Mars and other space entities. Compared to liquid hydrogen, the most common cryogenic fuel used today, methane is denser and can be stored at a more manageable temperature; leading to more affordable tanks and a lighter system. The most important advantage is it can be produced from local sources using in-situ resource utilization (ISRU) technology. This will allow the production of the fuel needed to come back to earth on the surface of Mars, or the space entity being explored, making the overall mission more cost effective by enabling larger usable mass. The major disadvantage methane has over hydrogen is it provides a lower specific impulse, or lower rocket performance. The UTEP Center for Space Exploration and Technology Research (cSETR) in partnership with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has been the leading research center for the advancement of Liquid Oxygen (LOX) and Liquid Methane (LCH4) propulsion technologies. Through this partnership, the CROME engine, a throattable 500 lbf LOX/LCH4 rocket engine, was designed and developed. The engine will serve as the main propulsion system for Daedalus, a suborbital demonstration vehicle being developed by the cSETR. The purpose of Daedalus mission and the engine is to fire in space under microgravity conditions to demonstrate its restartability. This thesis details the design process, decisions, and characteristics of the engine to serve as a complete design guide.

Fuel/propellant mixing in an open-cycle gas core nuclear rocket engine

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Guo, X.; Wehrmeyer, J.A.

1997-01-01

A numerical investigation of the mixing of gaseous uranium and hydrogen inside an open-cycle gas core nuclear rocket engine (spherical geometry) is presented. The gaseous uranium fuel is injected near the centerline of the spherical engine cavity at a constant mass flow rate, and the hydrogen propellant is injected around the periphery of the engine at a five degree angle to the wall, at a constant mass flow rate. The main objective is to seek ways to minimize the mixing of uranium and hydrogen by choosing a suitable injector geometry for the mixing of light and heavy gas streams. Three different uranium inlet areas are presented, and also three different turbulent models (k-var-epsilon model, RNG k-var-epsilon model, and RSM model) are investigated. The commercial CFD code, FLUENT, is used to model the flow field. Uranium mole fraction, axial mass flux, and radial mass flux contours are obtained. copyright 1997 American Institute of Physics

History of the Development of NERVA Nuclear Rocket Engine Technology

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

David L., Black

2000-01-01

During the 17 yr between 1955 and 1972, the Atomic Energy Commission (AEC), the U.S. Air Force (USAF), and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) collaborated on an effort to develop a nuclear rocket engine. Based on studies conducted in 1946, the concept selected was a fully enriched uranium-filled, graphite-moderated, beryllium-reflected reactor, cooled by a monopropellant, hydrogen. The program, known as Rover, was centered at Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory (LASL), funded jointly by the AEC and the USAF, with the intent of designing a rocket engine for long-range ballistic missiles. Other nuclear rocket concepts were studied during these years, such as cermet and gas cores, but are not reviewed herein. Even thought the program went through the termination phase in a very short time, the technology may still be fully recoverable/retrievable to the state of its prior technological readiness in a reasonably short time. Documents; drawings; and technical, purchasing, manufacturing, and materials specifications were all stored for ease of retrieval. If the U.S. space program were to discover a need/mission for this engine, its 1972 'pencils down' status could be updated for the technology developments of the past 28 yr for flight demonstration in 8 or fewer years. Depending on today's performance requirements, temperatures and pressures could be increased and weight decreased considerably

Boiler and Pressure Balls Monopropellant Thermal Rocket Engine

Science.gov (United States)

Greene, William D. (Inventor)

2009-01-01

The proposed technology is a rocket engine cycle utilizing as the propulsive fluid a low molecular weight, cryogenic fluid, typically liquid hydrogen, pressure driven, heated, and expelled through a nozzle to generate high velocity and high specific impulse discharge gas. The proposed technology feeds the propellant through the engine cycle without the use of a separate pressurization fluid and without the use of turbomachinery. Advantages of the proposed technology are found in those elements of state-of-the-art systems that it avoids. It does not require a separate pressurization fluid or a thick-walled primary propellant tank as is typically required for a classical pressure-fed system. Further, it does not require the acceptance of intrinsic reliability risks associated with the use of turbomachinery

Developments in REDES: The Rocket Engine Design Expert System

Science.gov (United States)

Davidian, Kenneth O.

1990-01-01

The Rocket Engine Design Expert System (REDES) was developed at NASA-Lewis to collect, automate, and perpetuate the existing expertise of performing a comprehensive rocket engine analysis and design. Currently, REDES uses the rigorous JANNAF methodology to analyze the performance of the thrust chamber and perform computational studies of liquid rocket engine problems. The following computer codes were included in REDES: a gas properties program named GASP; a nozzle design program named RAO; a regenerative cooling channel performance evaluation code named RTE; and the JANNAF standard liquid rocket engine performance prediction code TDK (including performance evaluation modules ODE, ODK, TDE, TDK, and BLM). Computational analyses are being conducted by REDES to provide solutions to liquid rocket engine thrust chamber problems. REDES was built in the Knowledge Engineering Environment (KEE) expert system shell and runs on a Sun 4/110 computer.

Two-phase flow in the cooling circuit of a cryogenic rocket engine

Science.gov (United States)

Preclik, D.

1992-07-01

Transient two-phase flow was investigated for the hydrogen cooling circuit of the HM7 rocket engine. The nuclear reactor code ATHLET/THESEUS was adapted to cryogenics and applied to both principal and prototype experiments for validation and simulation purposes. The cooling circuit two-phase flow simulation focused on the hydrogen prechilling and pump transient phase prior to ignition. Both a single- and a multichannel model were designed and employed for a valve leakage flow, a nominal prechilling flow, and a prechilling with a subsequent pump-transient flow. The latter case was performed in order to evaluate the difference between a nominal and a delayed turbo-pump start-up. It was found that an extension of the nominal prechilling sequence in the order of 1 second is sufficient to finally provide for liquid injection conditions of hydrogen which, as commonly known, is undesirable for smooth ignition and engine starting transients.

CFD Analysis of Square Flow Channel in Thermal Engine Rocket Adventurer for Space Nuclear Application

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nam, S. H.; Suh, K. Y. [Seoul National University, Seoul (Korea, Republic of); Kang, S. G. [PHILOSOPHIA, Inc., Seoul (Korea, Republic of)

2008-10-15

Solar system exploration relying on chemical rockets suffers from long trip time and high cost. In this regard nuclear propulsion is an attractive option for space exploration. The performance of Nuclear Thermal Rocket (NTR) is more than twice that of the best chemical rocket. Resorting to the pure hydrogen (H{sub 2}) propellant the NTRs can possibly achieve as high as 1,000 s of specific impulse (I{sub sp}) representing the ratio of the thrust over the fuel consumption rate, as compared to only 425 s of H{sub 2}/O{sub 2} rockets. If we reflect on the mission to Mars, NTRs would reduce the round trip time to less than 300 days, instead of over 600 days with chemical rockets. This work presents CFD analysis of one Fuel Element (FE) of Thermal Engine Rocket Adventurer (TERA). In particular, one Square Flow Channel (SFC) is analyzed in Square Lattice Honeycomb (SLHC) fuel to examine the effects of mass flow rate on rocket performance.

CFD Analysis of Square Flow Channel in Thermal Engine Rocket Adventurer for Space Nuclear Application

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nam, S. H.; Suh, K. Y.; Kang, S. G.

2008-01-01

Solar system exploration relying on chemical rockets suffers from long trip time and high cost. In this regard nuclear propulsion is an attractive option for space exploration. The performance of Nuclear Thermal Rocket (NTR) is more than twice that of the best chemical rocket. Resorting to the pure hydrogen (H 2 ) propellant the NTRs can possibly achieve as high as 1,000 s of specific impulse (I sp ) representing the ratio of the thrust over the fuel consumption rate, as compared to only 425 s of H 2 /O 2 rockets. If we reflect on the mission to Mars, NTRs would reduce the round trip time to less than 300 days, instead of over 600 days with chemical rockets. This work presents CFD analysis of one Fuel Element (FE) of Thermal Engine Rocket Adventurer (TERA). In particular, one Square Flow Channel (SFC) is analyzed in Square Lattice Honeycomb (SLHC) fuel to examine the effects of mass flow rate on rocket performance

Engineering thermal engine rocket adventurer for space nuclear application

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nam, Seung H.; Suh, Kune Y.; Kang, Seong G.

2008-01-01

The conceptual design for the first-of-a-kind engineering of Thermal Engine Rocket Adventure (TERA) is described. TERA comprising the Battery Omnibus Reactor Integral System (BORIS) as the heat resource and the Space Propulsion Reactor Integral System (SPRIS) as the propulsion system, is one of the advanced Nuclear Thermal Rocket (NTR) engine utilizing hydrogen (H 2 ) propellant being developed at present time. BORIS in this application is an open cycle high temperature gas cooled reactor that has eighteen fuel elements for propulsion and one fuel element for electricity generation and propellant pumping. Each fuel element for propulsion has its own small nozzle. The nineteen fuel elements are arranged into hexagonal prism shape in the core and surrounded by outer Be reflector. The TERA maximum power is 1,000 MW th , specific impulse 1,000 s, thrust 250,000 N, and the total mass is 550 kg including the reactor, turbo pump and auxiliaries. Each fuel element comprises the fuel assembly, moderators, pressure tube and small nozzle. The TERA fuel assembly is fabricated of 93% enriched 1.5 mm (U, Zr, Nb)C wafers in 25.3% voided Square Lattice Honeycomb (SLHC). The H 2 propellant passes through these flow channels. This study is concerned with thermohydrodynamic analysis of the fuel element for propulsion with hypothetical axial power distribution because nuclear analysis of TERA has not been performed yet. As a result, when the power distribution of INSPI's M-SLHC is applied to the fuel assembly, the local heat concentration of fuel is more serious and the pressure of the initial inlet H 2 is higher than those of constant average power distribution applied. This means the fuel assembly geometry of 1.5 mm fuel wafers and 25.3% voided SLHC needs to be changed in order to reduce thermal and mechanical shocks. (author)

Performance of a RBCC Engine in Rocket-Operation

Science.gov (United States)

Tomioka, Sadatake; Kubo, Takahiro; Noboru Sakuranaka; Tani, Koichiro

Combination of a scramjet (supersonic combustion ramjet) flow-pass with embedded rocket engines (the combined system termed as Rocket-based Combined Cycle engine) are expected to be the most effective propulsion system for space launch vehicles. Either SSTO (Single Stage To Orbit) system or TSTO (Two Stage To Orbit) system with separation at high altitude needs final stage acceleration in space, so that the RBCC (Rocket Based Combined Cycle) engine should be operated as rocket engines. Performance of the scramjet combustor as the extension to the rocket nozzle, was experimentally evaluated by injecting inert gas at various pressure through the embedded rocket chamber while the whole sub-scaled model was placed in a low pressure chamber connected to an air-driven ejector system. The results showed that the thrust coefficient was about 1.2, the low value being found to mainly due to the friction force on the scramjet combustor wall, while blocking the scramjet flow pass’s opening to increase nozzle extension thrust surface, was found to have little effects on the thrust performance. The combustor was shortened to reduce the friction loss, however, degree of reduction was limited as friction decreased rapidly with distance from the onset of the scramjet combustor.

Current status of rocket developments in universities -development of a small hybrid rocket with a swirling oxidizer flow type engine

OpenAIRE

Yuasa, Saburo; Kitagawa, Koki

2005-01-01

To develop an experimental small hybrid rocket with a swirling gaseous oxygen flow type engine, we made a flight model engine. Burning tests of the engine showed that a maximum thrust of 692 N and a specific impulse of 263 s (at sea level) were achieved. We designed a small hybrid rocket with this engine. The rocket measured 1.8 m in length and 15.4 kg in mass. To confirm the flight stability of the rocket, wind tunnel tests using a 112-scale model of the rocket and simulations of the flight ...

Rocket propulsion elements - An introduction to the engineering of rockets (6th revised and enlarged edition)

Science.gov (United States)

Sutton, George P.

The subject of rocket propulsion is treated with emphasis on the basic technology, performance, and design rationale. Attention is given to definitions and fundamentals, nozzle theory and thermodynamic relations, heat transfer, flight performance, chemical rocket propellant performance analysis, and liquid propellant rocket engine fundamentals. The discussion also covers solid propellant rocket fundamentals, hybrid propellant rockets, thrust vector control, selection of rocket propulsion systems, electric propulsion, and rocket testing.

Unique nuclear thermal rocket engine

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Culver, D.W.; Rochow, R.

1993-06-01

In January, 1992, a new, advanced nuclear thermal rocket engine (NTRE) concept intended for manned missions to the moon and to Mars was introduced (Culver, 1992). This NTRE promises to be both shorter and lighter in weight than conventionally designed engines, because its forward flowing reactor is located within an expansion-deflection rocket nozzle. The concept has matured during the year, and this paper discusses a nearer term version that resolves four open issues identified in the initial concept: (1) the reactor design and cooling scheme simplification while retaining a high pressure power balance option; (2) elimination need for a new, uncooled nozzle throat material suitable for long life application; (3) a practical provision for reactor power control; and (4) use of near-term, long-life turbopumps

Liquid Rocket Engine Testing

Science.gov (United States)

Rahman, Shamim

2005-01-01

Comprehensive Liquid Rocket Engine testing is essential to risk reduction for Space Flight. Test capability represents significant national investments in expertise and infrastructure. Historical experience underpins current test capabilities. Test facilities continually seek proactive alignment with national space development goals and objectives including government and commercial sectors.

Reusable Rocket Engine Advanced Health Management System. Architecture and Technology Evaluation: Summary

Science.gov (United States)

Pettit, C. D.; Barkhoudarian, S.; Daumann, A. G., Jr.; Provan, G. M.; ElFattah, Y. M.; Glover, D. E.

1999-01-01

In this study, we proposed an Advanced Health Management System (AHMS) functional architecture and conducted a technology assessment for liquid propellant rocket engine lifecycle health management. The purpose of the AHMS is to improve reusable rocket engine safety and to reduce between-flight maintenance. During the study, past and current reusable rocket engine health management-related projects were reviewed, data structures and health management processes of current rocket engine programs were assessed, and in-depth interviews with rocket engine lifecycle and system experts were conducted. A generic AHMS functional architecture, with primary focus on real-time health monitoring, was developed. Fourteen categories of technology tasks and development needs for implementation of the AHMS were identified, based on the functional architecture and our assessment of current rocket engine programs. Five key technology areas were recommended for immediate development, which (1) would provide immediate benefits to current engine programs, and (2) could be implemented with minimal impact on the current Space Shuttle Main Engine (SSME) and Reusable Launch Vehicle (RLV) engine controllers.

Electron-beam rocket acceleration of hydrogen pellets

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tsai, C.C.; Foster, C.A.; Milora, S.L.; Schechter, D.E.; Whealton, J.H.

1992-01-01

A proof-of-principle device for characterizing electron-beam rocket pellet acceleration has been developed and operated during the last few years. Experimental data have been collected for thousands of accelerated hydrogen pellets under a variety of beam conditions. One intact hydrogen pellet was accelerated to a speed of 578 m/s by an electron beam of 10 kV, 0.8 A, and I ms. The collected data reveal the significant finding that the measured bum velocity of bare hydrogen pellets increases with the square of the beam voltage in a way that is qualitatively consistent with the theoretical prediction based on the neutral gas shielding (NGS) model. The measured bum velocity increases with the beam current or power and then saturates at values two to three times greater than that predicted by the NGS model. The discrepancy may result from low pellet strength and large beam-pellet interaction areas. Moreover, this feature may be the cause of the low measured exhaust velocity, which often exceeds the sonic velocity of the ablated gas. Consistent with the NGS model, the measured exhaust velocity increases in direct proportion to the beam current and in inverse proportion to the beam voltage. To alleviate the pellet strength problem, experiments have been performed with the hydrogen ice contained in a lightweight rocket casing or shell. Pellets in such sabots have the potential to withstand higher beam powers and achieve higher thrust-coupling efficiency. Some experimental results are reported and ways of accelerating pellets to higher velocity are discussed

AJ26 rocket engine testing news briefing

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

NASA's John C. Stennis Space Center Director Gene Goldman (center) stands in front of a 'pathfinder' rocket engine with Orbital Sciences Corp. President and Chief Operating Officer J.R. Thompson (left) and Aerojet President Scott Seymour during a Feb. 24 news briefing at the south Mississippi facility. The leaders appeared together to announce a partnership for testing Aerojet AJ26 rocket engines at Stennis. The engines will be used to power Orbital's Taurus II space vehicles to provide commercial cargo transportation missions to the International Space Station for NASA. During the event, the Stennis partnership with Orbital was cited as an example of the new direction of NASA to work with commercial interests for space travel and transport.

Use of Soft Computing Technologies For Rocket Engine Control

Science.gov (United States)

Trevino, Luis C.; Olcmen, Semih; Polites, Michael

2003-01-01

The problem to be addressed in this paper is to explore how the use of Soft Computing Technologies (SCT) could be employed to further improve overall engine system reliability and performance. Specifically, this will be presented by enhancing rocket engine control and engine health management (EHM) using SCT coupled with conventional control technologies, and sound software engineering practices used in Marshall s Flight Software Group. The principle goals are to improve software management, software development time and maintenance, processor execution, fault tolerance and mitigation, and nonlinear control in power level transitions. The intent is not to discuss any shortcomings of existing engine control and EHM methodologies, but to provide alternative design choices for control, EHM, implementation, performance, and sustaining engineering. The approaches outlined in this paper will require knowledge in the fields of rocket engine propulsion, software engineering for embedded systems, and soft computing technologies (i.e., neural networks, fuzzy logic, and Bayesian belief networks), much of which is presented in this paper. The first targeted demonstration rocket engine platform is the MC-1 (formerly FASTRAC Engine) which is simulated with hardware and software in the Marshall Avionics & Software Testbed laboratory that

Conceptual Engine System Design for NERVA derived 66.7KN and 111.2KN Thrust Nuclear Thermal Rockets

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fittje, James E.; Buehrle, Robert J.

2006-01-01

The Nuclear Thermal Rocket concept is being evaluated as an advanced propulsion concept for missions to the moon and Mars. A tremendous effort was undertaken during the 1960's and 1970's to develop and test NERVA derived Nuclear Thermal Rockets in the 111.2 KN to 1112 KN pound thrust class. NASA GRC is leveraging this past NTR investment in their vehicle concepts and mission analysis studies, and has been evaluating NERVA derived engines in the 66.7 KN to the 111.2 KN thrust range. The liquid hydrogen propellant feed system, including the turbopumps, is an essential component of the overall operation of this system. The NASA GRC team is evaluating numerous propellant feed system designs with both single and twin turbopumps. The Nuclear Engine System Simulation code is being exercised to analyze thermodynamic cycle points for these selected concepts. This paper will present propellant feed system concepts and the corresponding thermodynamic cycle points for 66.7 KN and 111.2 KN thrust NTR engine systems. A pump out condition for a twin turbopump concept will also be evaluated, and the NESS code will be assessed against the Small Nuclear Rocket Engine preliminary thermodynamic data

Estimates of the radiation environment for a nuclear rocket engine

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Courtney, J.C.; Manohara, H.M.; Williams, M.L.

1992-01-01

Ambitious missions in deep space, such as manned expeditions to Mars, require nuclear propulsion if they are to be accomplished in a reasonable length of time. Current technology is adequate to support the use of nuclear fission as a source of energy for propulsion; however, problems associated with neutrons and gammas leaking from the rocket engine must be addressed. Before manned or unmanned space flights are attempted, an extensive ground test program on the rocket engine must be completed. This paper compares estimated radiation levels and nuclear heating rates in and around the rocket engine for both a ground test and space environments

Dual Expander Cycle Rocket Engine with an Intermediate, Closed-cycle Heat Exchanger

Science.gov (United States)

Greene, William D. (Inventor)

2008-01-01

A dual expander cycle (DEC) rocket engine with an intermediate closed-cycle heat exchanger is provided. A conventional DEC rocket engine has a closed-cycle heat exchanger thermally coupled thereto. The heat exchanger utilizes heat extracted from the engine's fuel circuit to drive the engine's oxidizer turbomachinery.

Taming Liquid Hydrogen: The Centaur Upper Stage Rocket

Science.gov (United States)

Dawson, Virginia P.; Bowles, Mark D.

2004-01-01

The Centaur is one of the most powerful rockets in the world. As an upper-stage rocket for the Atlas and Titan boosters it has been a reliable workhorse for NASA for over forty years and has played an essential role in many of NASA's adventures into space. In this CD-ROM you will be able to explore the Centaur's history in various rooms to this virtual museum. Visit the "Movie Theater" to enjoy several video documentaries on the Centaur. Enter the "Interview Booth" to hear and read interviews with scientists and engineers closely responsible for building and operating the rocket. Go to the "Photo Gallery" to look at numerous photos of the rocket throughout its history. Wander into the "Centaur Library" to read various primary documents of the Centaur program. Finally, stop by the "Observation Deck" to watch a virtual Centaur in flight.

Rocket Based Combined Cycle (RBCC) engine inlet

Science.gov (United States)

2004-01-01

Pictured is a component of the Rocket Based Combined Cycle (RBCC) engine. This engine was designed to ultimately serve as the near term basis for Two Stage to Orbit (TSTO) air breathing propulsion systems and ultimately a Single Stage to Orbit (SSTO) air breathing propulsion system.

A Historical Systems Study of Liquid Rocket Engine Throttling Capabilities

Science.gov (United States)

Betts, Erin M.; Frederick, Robert A., Jr.

2010-01-01

This is a comprehensive systems study to examine and evaluate throttling capabilities of liquid rocket engines. The focus of this study is on engine components, and how the interactions of these components are considered for throttling applications. First, an assessment of space mission requirements is performed to determine what applications require engine throttling. A background on liquid rocket engine throttling is provided, along with the basic equations that are used to predict performance. Three engines are discussed that have successfully demonstrated throttling. Next, the engine system is broken down into components to discuss special considerations that need to be made for engine throttling. This study focuses on liquid rocket engines that have demonstrated operational capability on American space launch vehicles, starting with the Apollo vehicle engines and ending with current technology demonstrations. Both deep throttling and shallow throttling engines are discussed. Boost and sustainer engines have demonstrated throttling from 17% to 100% thrust, while upper stage and lunar lander engines have demonstrated throttling in excess of 10% to 100% thrust. The key difficulty in throttling liquid rocket engines is maintaining an adequate pressure drop across the injector, which is necessary to provide propellant atomization and mixing. For the combustion chamber, cooling can be an issue at low thrust levels. For turbomachinery, the primary considerations are to avoid cavitation, stall, surge, and to consider bearing leakage flows, rotordynamics, and structural dynamics. For valves, it is necessary to design valves and actuators that can achieve accurate flow control at all thrust levels. It is also important to assess the amount of nozzle flow separation that can be tolerated at low thrust levels for ground testing.

High speed diagnostics for characterization of oxygen / hydrogen rocket injector flowfields

Science.gov (United States)

Locke, Justin M.

Temporally-resolved diagnostics are needed to characterize the highly-turbulent flowfields of rocket engine combustors. Two different high speed diagnostic techniques have been applied successfully to study the combustion and mixing characteristics of single-element shear-coaxial injector flowfield in a rocket combustor. Tunable diode laser absorption spectroscopy (TDLAS) is applied to make in-situ measurements with combusting gas-gas propellants, and high speed imaging incorporating backlighting is applied to combusting and non-combusting liquid-gas and gas-gas propellants. Tunable diode laser absorption spectroscopy has been used to make path-integrated temperature and H2O mole fraction measurements in a gaseous oxygen / gaseous hydrogen uni-element rocket chamber with hot background flow. Four mixture conditions were studied at a nominal chamber pressure of 115 psia. Near infrared diode lasers were utilized to target rovibrational transitions of water vapor, which is created through the combustion processes. Both direct absorption spectroscopy and wavelength modulation spectroscopy with second harmonic normalized by first harmonic (1f-normalized WMS-2 f) techniques were applied, with the harmonic detection technique found to yield the best results. Centerline measurements were made at two axial locations, in the near-injector region and far-field region further downstream. Time-resolved measurements of temperature and H2O mole fraction in the rocket chamber are presented. The TDLAS measurements shows clear differences between the near-injector and downstream measurement locations. Mean path-integrated temperatures and H2O mole fractions in the near-injector region are lower than the downstream measurement location. Fluctuations in path-integrated temperature and H2O mole fraction in the downstream location are significantly greater than the near-injector region. This suggests increased turbulence and larger-scale mixing processes are occurring in the downstream

Review on film cooling of liquid rocket engines

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

S.R. Shine

2018-03-01

Full Text Available Film cooling in combination with regenerative cooling is presently considered as an efficient method to guarantee safe operation of liquid rocket engines having higher heat flux densities for long duration. This paper aims to bring all the research carried out in the field of liquid rocket engine film cooling since 1950. The analytical and numerical procedure followed, experimental facilities and measurements made and major inferences drawn are reviewed in detail, and compared where ever possible. Review has been made through a discussion of the analyses methodologies and the factors that influence film cooling performance. An effort has also been made to determine the status of the research, pointing out critical gaps, which are still to be explained and addressed by future generations. Keywords: Heat transfer, Liquid rocket thrust chamber, Film cooling, Cooling effectiveness

Software for Collaborative Engineering of Launch Rockets

Science.gov (United States)

Stanley, Thomas Troy

2003-01-01

The Rocket Evaluation and Cost Integration for Propulsion and Engineering software enables collaborative computing with automated exchange of information in the design and analysis of launch rockets and other complex systems. RECIPE can interact with and incorporate a variety of programs, including legacy codes, that model aspects of a system from the perspectives of different technological disciplines (e.g., aerodynamics, structures, propulsion, trajectory, aeroheating, controls, and operations) and that are used by different engineers on different computers running different operating systems. RECIPE consists mainly of (1) ISCRM a file-transfer subprogram that makes it possible for legacy codes executed in their original operating systems on their original computers to exchange data and (2) CONES an easy-to-use filewrapper subprogram that enables the integration of legacy codes. RECIPE provides a tightly integrated conceptual framework that emphasizes connectivity among the programs used by the collaborators, linking these programs in a manner that provides some configuration control while facilitating collaborative engineering tradeoff studies, including design to cost studies. In comparison with prior collaborative-engineering schemes, one based on the use of RECIPE enables fewer engineers to do more in less time.

Scaled Rocket Testing in Hypersonic Flow

Science.gov (United States)

Dufrene, Aaron; MacLean, Matthew; Carr, Zakary; Parker, Ron; Holden, Michael; Mehta, Manish

2015-01-01

NASA's Space Launch System (SLS) uses four clustered liquid rocket engines along with two solid rocket boosters. The interaction between all six rocket exhaust plumes will produce a complex and severe thermal environment in the base of the vehicle. This work focuses on a recent 2% scale, hot-fire SLS base heating test. These base heating tests are short-duration tests executed with chamber pressures near the full-scale values with gaseous hydrogen/oxygen engines and RSRMV analogous solid propellant motors. The LENS II shock tunnel/Ludwieg tube tunnel was used at or near flight duplicated conditions up to Mach 5. Model development was strongly based on the Space Shuttle base heating tests with several improvements including doubling of the maximum chamber pressures and duplication of freestream conditions. Detailed base heating results are outside of the scope of the current work, rather test methodology and techniques are presented along with broader applicability toward scaled rocket testing in supersonic and hypersonic flow.

A new facility for advanced rocket propulsion research

Science.gov (United States)

Zoeckler, Joseph G.; Green, James M.; Raitano, Paul

1993-06-01

A new test facility was constructed at the NASA Lewis Research Center Rocket Laboratory for the purpose of conducting rocket propulsion research at up to 8.9 kN (2000 lbf) thrust, using liquid oxygen and gaseous hydrogen propellants. A laser room adjacent to the test cell provides access to the rocket engine for advanced laser diagnostic systems. The size and location of the test cell provide the ability to conduct large amounts of testing in short time periods, with rapid turnover between programs. These capabilities make the new test facility an important asset for basic and applied rocket propulsion research.

Multivariable optimization of liquid rocket engines using particle swarm algorithms

Science.gov (United States)

Jones, Daniel Ray

Liquid rocket engines are highly reliable, controllable, and efficient compared to other conventional forms of rocket propulsion. As such, they have seen wide use in the space industry and have become the standard propulsion system for launch vehicles, orbit insertion, and orbital maneuvering. Though these systems are well understood, historical optimization techniques are often inadequate due to the highly non-linear nature of the engine performance problem. In this thesis, a Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) variant was applied to maximize the specific impulse of a finite-area combustion chamber (FAC) equilibrium flow rocket performance model by controlling the engine's oxidizer-to-fuel ratio and de Laval nozzle expansion and contraction ratios. In addition to the PSO-controlled parameters, engine performance was calculated based on propellant chemistry, combustion chamber pressure, and ambient pressure, which are provided as inputs to the program. The performance code was validated by comparison with NASA's Chemical Equilibrium with Applications (CEA) and the commercially available Rocket Propulsion Analysis (RPA) tool. Similarly, the PSO algorithm was validated by comparison with brute-force optimization, which calculates all possible solutions and subsequently determines which is the optimum. Particle Swarm Optimization was shown to be an effective optimizer capable of quick and reliable convergence for complex functions of multiple non-linear variables.

Additive Manufacturing a Liquid Hydrogen Rocket Engine

Science.gov (United States)

Jones, Carl P.; Robertson, Elizabeth H.; Koelbl, Mary Beth; Singer, Chris

2016-01-01

Space Propulsion is a 5 day event being held from 2nd May to the 6th May 2016 at the Rome Marriott Park Hotel in Rome, Italy. This event showcases products like Propulsion sub-systems and components, Production and manufacturing issues, Liquid, Solid, Hybrid and Air-breathing Propulsion Systems for Launcher and Upper Stages, Overview of current programmes, AIV issues and tools, Flight testing and experience, Technology building blocks for Future Space Transportation Propulsion Systems : Launchers, Exploration platforms & Space Tourism, Green Propulsion for Space Transportation, New propellants, Rocket propulsion & global environment, Cost related aspects of Space Transportation propulsion, Modelling, Pressure-Thrust oscillations issues, Impact of new requirements and regulations on design etc. in the Automotive, Manufacturing, Fabrication, Repair & Maintenance industries.

Hybrid rocket engine, theoretical model and experiment

Science.gov (United States)

Chelaru, Teodor-Viorel; Mingireanu, Florin

2011-06-01

The purpose of this paper is to build a theoretical model for the hybrid rocket engine/motor and to validate it using experimental results. The work approaches the main problems of the hybrid motor: the scalability, the stability/controllability of the operating parameters and the increasing of the solid fuel regression rate. At first, we focus on theoretical models for hybrid rocket motor and compare the results with already available experimental data from various research groups. A primary computation model is presented together with results from a numerical algorithm based on a computational model. We present theoretical predictions for several commercial hybrid rocket motors, having different scales and compare them with experimental measurements of those hybrid rocket motors. Next the paper focuses on tribrid rocket motor concept, which by supplementary liquid fuel injection can improve the thrust controllability. A complementary computation model is also presented to estimate regression rate increase of solid fuel doped with oxidizer. Finally, the stability of the hybrid rocket motor is investigated using Liapunov theory. Stability coefficients obtained are dependent on burning parameters while the stability and command matrixes are identified. The paper presents thoroughly the input data of the model, which ensures the reproducibility of the numerical results by independent researchers.

Two-step rocket engine bipropellant valve concept

Science.gov (United States)

Capps, J. E.; Ferguson, R. E.; Pohl, H. O.

1969-01-01

Initiating combustion of altitude control rocket engines in a precombustion chamber of ductile material reduces high pressure surges generated by hypergolic propellants. Two-step bipropellant valve concepts control initial propellant flow into precombustion chamber and subsequent full flow into main chamber.

Advanced Vortex Hybrid Rocket Engine (AVHRE), Phase I

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — Orbital Technologies Corporation (ORBITEC) proposes to develop a unique Advanced Vortex Hybrid Rocket Engine (AVHRE) to achieve a highly-reliable, low-cost and...

Nuclear thermal rocket engine operation and control

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gunn, S.V.; Savoie, M.T.; Hundal, R.

1993-06-01

The operation of a typical Rover/Nerva-derived nuclear thermal rocket (NTR) engine is characterized and the control requirements of the NTR are defined. A rationale for the selection of a candidate diverse redundant NTR engine control system is presented and the projected component operating requirements are related to the state of the art of candidate components and subsystems. The projected operational capabilities of the candidate system are delineated for the startup, full-thrust, shutdown, and decay heat removal phases of the engine operation. 9 refs

JANNAF "Test and Evaluation Guidelines for Liquid Rocket Engines": Status and Application

Science.gov (United States)

Parkinson, Douglas; VanLerberghe, Wayne M.; Rahman, Shamim A.

2017-01-01

For many decades, the U.S. rocket propulsion industrial base has performed remarkably in developing complex liquid rocket engines that can propel critical payloads into service for the nation, as well as transport people and hardware for missions that open the frontiers of space exploration for humanity. This has been possible only at considerable expense given the lack of detailed guidance that captures the essence of successful practices and knowledge accumulated over five decades of liquid rocket engine development. In an effort to provide benchmarks and guidance for the next generation of rocket engineers, the Joint Army Navy NASA Air Force (JANNAF) Interagency Propulsion Committee published a liquid rocket engine (LRE) test and evaluation (T&E) guideline document in 2012 focusing on the development challenges and test verification considerations for liquid rocket engine systems. This document has been well received and applied by many current LRE developers as a benchmark and guidance tool, both for government-driven applications as well as for fully commercial ventures. The USAF Space and Missile Systems Center (SMC) has taken an additional near-term step and is directing activity to adapt and augment the content from the JANNAF LRE T&E guideline into a standard for potential application to future USAF requests for proposals for LRE development initiatives and launch vehicles for national security missions. A draft of this standard was already sent out for review and comment, and is intended to be formally approved and released towards the end of 2017. The acceptance and use of the LRE T&E guideline is possible through broad government and industry participation in the JANNAF liquid propulsion committee and associated panels. The sponsoring JANNAF community is expanding upon this initial baseline version and delving into further critical development aspects of liquid rocket propulsion testing at the integrated stage level as well as engine component level, in

Advanced Vortex Hybrid Rocket Engine (AVHRE), Phase II

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — ORBITEC proposes to develop a unique Advanced Vortex Hybrid Rocket Engine (AVHRE) to achieve a safe, highly-reliable, low-cost and uniquely versatile propulsion...

Design considerations for a pressure-driven multi-stage rocket

Science.gov (United States)

Sauerwein, Steven Craig

2002-01-01

The purpose of this study was to examine the feasibility of using propellant tank pressurization to eliminate the use of high-pressure turbopumps in multi-stage liquid-fueled satellite launchers. Several new technologies were examined to reduce the mass of such a rocket. Composite materials have a greater strength-to-weight ratio than metals and can be used to reduce the weight of rocket propellant tanks and structure. Catalytically combined hydrogen and oxygen can be used to heat pressurization gas, greatly reducing the amount of gas required. Ablatively cooled rocket engines can reduce the complexity and cost of the rocket. Methods were derived to estimate the mass of the various rocket components. These included a method to calculate the amount of gas needed to pressurize a propellant tank by modeling the behavior of the pressurization gas as the liquid propellant flows out of the tank. A way to estimate the mass and size of a ablatively cooled composite cased rocket engine. And a method to model the flight of such a rocket through the atmosphere in conjunction with optimization of the rockets trajectory. The results show that while a liquid propellant rocket using tank pressurization are larger than solid propellant rockets and turbopump driven liquid propellant rockets, they are not impractically large.

Critical Performance of Turbopump Mechanical Elements for Rocket Engine

Science.gov (United States)

Takada, Satoshi; Kikuchi, Masataka; Sudou, Takayuki; Iwasaki, Fumiya; Watanabe, Yoshiaki; Yoshida, Makoto

It is generally acknowledged that bearings and axial seals have a tendency to go wrong compared with other rocket engine elements. And when those components have malfunction, missions scarcely succeed. However, fundamental performance (maximum rotational speed, minimum flow rate, power loss, durability, etc.) of those components has not been grasped yet. Purpose of this study is to grasp a critical performance of mechanical seal and hybrid ball bearing of turbopump. In this result, it was found that bearing outer race temperature and bearing coolant outlet temperature changed along saturation line of liquid hydrogen when flow rate was decreased under critical pressure. And normal operation of bearing was possible under conditions of more than 70,000 rpm of rotational speed and more than 0.2 liter/s of coolant flow rate. Though friction coefficient of seal surface increased several times of original value after testing, the seal showed a good performance same as before.

Improving of Hybrid Rocket Engine on the Basis of Optimizing Design Fuel Grain

Science.gov (United States)

Oriekov, K. M.; Ushkin, M. P.

2015-09-01

This article examines the processes intrachamber in hybrid rocket engine (HRE) and the comparative assessment of the use of solid rocket motors (SRM) and HRE for meteorological rockets with a mass of payload of the 364 kg. Results of the research showed the possibility of a significant increase in the ballistic effectiveness of meteorological rocket.

Some Calculated Research Results of the Working Process Parameters of the Low Thrust Rocket Engine Operating on Gaseous Oxygen-Hydrogen Fuel

Science.gov (United States)

Ryzhkov, V.; Morozov, I.

2018-01-01

The paper presents the calculating results of the combustion products parameters in the tract of the low thrust rocket engine with thrust P ∼ 100 N. The article contains the following data: streamlines, distribution of total temperature parameter in the longitudinal section of the engine chamber, static temperature distribution in the cross section of the engine chamber, velocity distribution of the combustion products in the outlet section of the engine nozzle, static temperature near the inner wall of the engine. The presented parameters allow to estimate the efficiency of the mixture formation processes, flow of combustion products in the engine chamber and to estimate the thermal state of the structure.

Theoretical Acoustic Absorber Design Approach for LOX/LCH4 Pintle Injector Rocket Engines

Science.gov (United States)

Candelaria, Jonathan

Liquid rocket engines, or LREs, have served a key role in space exploration efforts. One current effort involves the utilization of liquid oxygen (LOX) and liquid methane (LCH4) LREs to explore Mars with in-situ resource utilization for propellant production. This on-site production of propellant will allow for greater payload allocation instead of fuel to travel to the Mars surface, and refueling of propellants to travel back to Earth. More useable mass yields a greater benefit to cost ratio. The University of Texas at El Paso's (UTEP) Center for Space Exploration and Technology Research Center (cSETR) aims to further advance these methane propulsion systems with the development of two liquid methane - liquid oxygen propellant combination rocket engines. The design of rocket engines, specifically liquid rocket engines, is complex in that many variables are present that must be taken into consideration in the design. A problem that occurs in almost every rocket engine development program is combustion instability, or oscillatory combustion. It can result in the destruction of the rocket, subsequent destruction of the vehicle and compromise the mission. These combustion oscillations can vary in frequency from 100 to 20,000 Hz or more, with varying effects, and occur from different coupling phenomena. It is important to understand the effects of combustion instability, its physical manifestations, how to identify the instabilities, and how to mitigate or dampen them. Linear theory methods have been developed to provide a mathematical understanding of the low- to mid-range instabilities. Nonlinear theory is more complex and difficult to analyze mathematically, therefore no general analytical method that yields a solution exists. With limited resources, time, and the advice of our NASA mentors, a data driven experimental approach utilizing quarter wave acoustic dampener cavities was designed. This thesis outlines the methodology behind the design of an acoustic

An historical perspective of the NERVA nuclear rocket engine technology program. Final Report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Robbins, W.H.; Finger, H.B.

1991-07-01

Nuclear rocket research and development was initiated in the United States in 1955 and is still being pursued to a limited extent. The major technology emphasis occurred in the decade of the 1960s and was primarily associated with the Rover/NERVA Program where the technology for a nuclear rocket engine system for space application was developed and demonstrated. The NERVA (Nuclear Engine for Rocket Vehicle Application) technology developed twenty years ago provides a comprehensive and viable propulsion technology base that can be applied and will prove to be valuable for application to the NASA Space Exploration Initiative (SEI). This paper, which is historical in scope, provides an overview of the conduct of the NERVA Engine Program, its organization and management, development philosophy, the engine configuration, and significant accomplishments

Distributed Rocket Engine Testing Health Monitoring System, Phase I

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — The on-ground and Distributed Rocket Engine Testing Health Monitoring System (DiRETHMS) provides a system architecture and software tools for performing diagnostics...

Distributed Rocket Engine Testing Health Monitoring System, Phase II

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — Leveraging the Phase I achievements of the Distributed Rocket Engine Testing Health Monitoring System (DiRETHMS) including its software toolsets and system building...

Computational Fluid Dynamics Analysis Method Developed for Rocket-Based Combined Cycle Engine Inlet

Science.gov (United States)

1997-01-01

Renewed interest in hypersonic propulsion systems has led to research programs investigating combined cycle engines that are designed to operate efficiently across the flight regime. The Rocket-Based Combined Cycle Engine is a propulsion system under development at the NASA Lewis Research Center. This engine integrates a high specific impulse, low thrust-to-weight, airbreathing engine with a low-impulse, high thrust-to-weight rocket. From takeoff to Mach 2.5, the engine operates as an air-augmented rocket. At Mach 2.5, the engine becomes a dual-mode ramjet; and beyond Mach 8, the rocket is turned back on. One Rocket-Based Combined Cycle Engine variation known as the "Strut-Jet" concept is being investigated jointly by NASA Lewis, the U.S. Air Force, Gencorp Aerojet, General Applied Science Labs (GASL), and Lockheed Martin Corporation. Work thus far has included wind tunnel experiments and computational fluid dynamics (CFD) investigations with the NPARC code. The CFD method was initiated by modeling the geometry of the Strut-Jet with the GRIDGEN structured grid generator. Grids representing a subscale inlet model and the full-scale demonstrator geometry were constructed. These grids modeled one-half of the symmetric inlet flow path, including the precompression plate, diverter, center duct, side duct, and combustor. After the grid generation, full Navier-Stokes flow simulations were conducted with the NPARC Navier-Stokes code. The Chien low-Reynolds-number k-e turbulence model was employed to simulate the high-speed turbulent flow. Finally, the CFD solutions were postprocessed with a Fortran code. This code provided wall static pressure distributions, pitot pressure distributions, mass flow rates, and internal drag. These results were compared with experimental data from a subscale inlet test for code validation; then they were used to help evaluate the demonstrator engine net thrust.

Propellant Flow Actuated Piezoelectric Rocket Engine Igniter, Phase I

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — Spark ignition of a bi-propellant rocket engine is a classic, proven, and generally reliable process. However, timing can be critical, and the control logic,...

Designing Liquid Rocket Engine Injectors for Performance, Stability, and Cost

Science.gov (United States)

Westra, Douglas G.; West, Jeffrey S.

2014-01-01

NASA is developing the Space Launch System (SLS) for crewed exploration missions beyond low Earth orbit. Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) is designing rocket engines for the SLS Advanced Booster (AB) concepts being developed to replace the Shuttle-derived solid rocket boosters. One AB concept uses large, Rocket-Propellant (RP)-fueled engines that pose significant design challenges. The injectors for these engines require high performance and stable operation while still meeting aggressive cost reduction goals for access to space. Historically, combustion stability problems have been a critical issue for such injector designs. Traditional, empirical injector design tools and methodologies, however, lack the ability to reliably predict complex injector dynamics that often lead to combustion stability. Reliance on these tools alone would likely result in an unaffordable test-fail-fix cycle for injector development. Recently at MSFC, a massively parallel computational fluid dynamics (CFD) program was successfully applied in the SLS AB injector design process. High-fidelity reacting flow simulations were conducted for both single-element and seven-element representations of the full-scale injector. Data from the CFD simulations was then used to significantly augment and improve the empirical design tools, resulting in a high-performance, stable injector design.

Investigation of Cooling Water Injection into Supersonic Rocket Engine Exhaust

Science.gov (United States)

Jones, Hansen; Jeansonne, Christopher; Menon, Shyam

2017-11-01

Water spray cooling of the exhaust plume from a rocket undergoing static testing is critical in preventing thermal wear of the test stand structure, and suppressing the acoustic noise signature. A scaled test facility has been developed that utilizes non-intrusive diagnostic techniques including Focusing Color Schlieren (FCS) and Phase Doppler Particle Anemometry (PDPA) to examine the interaction of a pressure-fed water jet with a supersonic flow of compressed air. FCS is used to visually assess the interaction of the water jet with the strong density gradients in the supersonic air flow. PDPA is used in conjunction to gain statistical information regarding water droplet size and velocity as the jet is broken up. Measurement results, along with numerical simulations and jet penetration models are used to explain the observed phenomena. Following the cold flow testing campaign a scaled hybrid rocket engine will be constructed to continue tests in a combusting flow environment similar to that generated by the rocket engines tested at NASA facilities. LaSPACE.

Computer Design Technology of the Small Thrust Rocket Engines Using CAE / CAD Systems

Science.gov (United States)

Ryzhkov, V.; Lapshin, E.

2018-01-01

The paper presents an algorithm for designing liquid small thrust rocket engine, the process of which consists of five aggregated stages with feedback. Three stages of the algorithm provide engineering support for design, and two stages - the actual engine design. A distinctive feature of the proposed approach is a deep study of the main technical solutions at the stage of engineering analysis and interaction with the created knowledge (data) base, which accelerates the process and provides enhanced design quality. The using multifunctional graphic package Siemens NX allows to obtain the final product -rocket engine and a set of design documentation in a fairly short time; the engine design does not require a long experimental development.

Observation of solar hydrogen Ly-αline with the K-10-12 rocket

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Koshio, Takafumi; Masuoka, Toshio; Tono, Ichiro; Watanabe, Norihiko.

1976-01-01

The purpose of the observation is to perform the absolute irradiance measurement of the solar hydrogen Ly-α line (1216 A 0 ) in the exosphere. The solar hydrogen Ly-α line is emitted from the chromosphere, and contributes to the ionization in the lower ionosphere. The ionization chamber was used for the detection of the solar hydrogen Ly-α line. The K-10-9 rocket was launched on Jan. 18, 1976. The irradiance of the solar hydrogen Ly-α line was measured in the exosphere, and the height distribution of O 2 density was studied on the basis of the absorbancy of the HLy-α line. The result was in good agreement with the previously observed results. (Yoshimori, M.)

Development of Advanced Small Hydrogen Engines

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sapru, Krishna; Tan, Zhaosheng; Chao, Ben

2010-09-30

The main objective of the project is to develop advanced, low cost conversions of small (< 25 hp) gasoline internal combustion engines (ICEs) to run on hydrogen fuel while maintaining the same performance and durability. This final technical report summarizes the results of i) the details of the conversion of several small gasoline ICEs to run on hydrogen, ii) the durability test of a converted hydrogen engine and iii) the demonstration of a prototype bundled canister solid hydrogen storage system. Peak power of the hydrogen engine achieves 60% of the power output of the gasoline counterpart. The efforts to boost the engine power with various options including installing the over-sized turbocharger, retrofit of custom-made pistons with high compression ratio, an advanced ignition system, and various types of fuel injection systems are not realized. A converted Honda GC160 engine with ACS system to run with hydrogen fuel is successful. Total accumulative runtime is 785 hours. A prototype bundled canister solid hydrogen storage system having nominal capacity of 1.2 kg is designed, constructed and demonstrated. It is capable of supporting a wide range of output load of a hydrogen generator.

Schlieren image velocimetry measurements in a rocket engine exhaust plume

Science.gov (United States)

Morales, Rudy; Peguero, Julio; Hargather, Michael

2017-11-01

Schlieren image velocimetry (SIV) measures velocity fields by tracking the motion of naturally-occurring turbulent flow features in a compressible flow. Here the technique is applied to measuring the exhaust velocity profile of a liquid rocket engine. The SIV measurements presented include discussion of visibility of structures, image pre-processing for structure visibility, and ability to process resulting images using commercial particle image velocimetry (PIV) codes. The small-scale liquid bipropellant rocket engine operates on nitrous oxide and ethanol as propellants. Predictions of the exhaust velocity are obtained through NASA CEA calculations and simple compressible flow relationships, which are compared against the measured SIV profiles. Analysis of shear layer turbulence along the exhaust plume edge is also presented.

Working-cycle processes in solid-propellant rocket engines (Handbook). Rabochie protsessy v raketnykh dvigateliakh tverdogo topliva /Spravochnik/

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Shishkov, A.A.; Panin, S.D.; Rumiantsev, B.V.

1989-01-01

Physical and mathematical models of processes taking place in solid-propellant rocket engines and gas generators are presented in a systematic manner. The discussion covers the main types of solid propellants, the general design and principal components of solid-propellant rocket engines, the combustion of a solid-propellant charge, thermodynamic calculation of combustion and outflow processes, and analysis of gasdynamic processes in solid-propellant rocket engines. 40 refs.

Rocket Based Combined Cycle (RBCC) Engine

Science.gov (United States)

2004-01-01

Pictured is an artist's concept of the Rocket Based Combined Cycle (RBCC) launch. The RBCC's overall objective is to provide a technology test bed to investigate critical technologies associated with opperational usage of these engines. The program will focus on near term technologies that can be leveraged to ultimately serve as the near term basis for Two Stage to Orbit (TSTO) air breathing propulsions systems and ultimately a Single Stage To Orbit (SSTO) air breathing propulsion system.

Expert System Architecture for Rocket Engine Numerical Simulators: A Vision

Science.gov (United States)

Mitra, D.; Babu, U.; Earla, A. K.; Hemminger, Joseph A.

1998-01-01

Simulation of any complex physical system like rocket engines involves modeling the behavior of their different components using mostly numerical equations. Typically a simulation package would contain a set of subroutines for these modeling purposes and some other ones for supporting jobs. A user would create an input file configuring a system (part or whole of a rocket engine to be simulated) in appropriate format understandable by the package and run it to create an executable module corresponding to the simulated system. This module would then be run on a given set of input parameters in another file. Simulation jobs are mostly done for performance measurements of a designed system, but could be utilized for failure analysis or a design job such as inverse problems. In order to use any such package the user needs to understand and learn a lot about the software architecture of the package, apart from being knowledgeable in the target domain. We are currently involved in a project in designing an intelligent executive module for the rocket engine simulation packages, which would free any user from this burden of acquiring knowledge on a particular software system. The extended abstract presented here will describe the vision, methodology and the problems encountered in the project. We are employing object-oriented technology in designing the executive module. The problem is connected to the areas like the reverse engineering of any simulation software, and the intelligent systems for simulation.

Review on pressure swirl injector in liquid rocket engine

Science.gov (United States)

Kang, Zhongtao; Wang, Zhen-guo; Li, Qinglian; Cheng, Peng

2018-04-01

The pressure swirl injector with tangential inlet ports is widely used in liquid rocket engine. Commonly, this type of pressure swirl injector consists of tangential inlet ports, a swirl chamber, a converging spin chamber, and a discharge orifice. The atomization of the liquid propellants includes the formation of liquid film, primary breakup and secondary atomization. And the back pressure and temperature in the combustion chamber could have great influence on the atomization of the injector. What's more, when the combustion instability occurs, the pressure oscillation could further affects the atomization process. This paper reviewed the primary atomization and the performance of the pressure swirl injector, which include the formation of the conical liquid film, the breakup and atomization characteristics of the conical liquid film, the effects of the rocket engine environment, and the response of the injector and atomization on the pressure oscillation.

Nuclear-powered rocket of the future

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yunqiao, B

1979-06-01

A possible manned mission to Mars with a crew of 7 in an 80-meter-long nuclear-powered rocket will take 180 days to reach its destination, will spend 10 to 14 days on the surface, and will take 200 days to return. A nuclear-powered engine (using U-235 or U-239) is the most likely means of propulsion. Four designs are described. The superheated exhaust engine will use a reactor to heat liquid hydrogen to over 4000/sup 0/C, after which it will be ejected from the exhaust. A plasma compression engine will use electric current produced by a reactor to heat hydrogen to plasma temperature (70,000/sup 0/C), after which it will be ejected through the exhaust by a magnetic field. In a gaseous-core reactor engine, gaseous fuel will heat liquid hydrogen to over 9,000/sup 0/C and use it as the propellant. The boldest solution is a proposal to use small nuclear explosions as the propulsive force. The first alternative will probably not produce enough thrust, while there will be a difficulty producing sufficient electricity in the second alternative. The other two alternatives seem promising.

Hybrid rocket engine research program at Ryerson University

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Karpynczyk, J.; Greatrix, D.R. [Ryerson Polytechnic Univ., Toronto, ON (Canada). Dept. of Aerospace Engineering

2007-07-01

Hybrid rocket engines (HREs) are a combination of solid and liquid propellant rocket engine designs. A solid fuel grain is located in the main combustion chamber and nozzle aft, while a stored liquid or gaseous oxidizer source supplies the required oxygen content through a throttle valve, for combustion downstream in the main chamber. HREs have drawn significant interest in certain flight applications, as they can be advantageous in terms of cost, ease and safety in storage, controllability in flight, and availability of propellant constituents. Key factors that will lead to further practical usage of HREs for flight applications are their predictability and reproducibility of operational performance. This paper presented information on studies being conducted at Ryerson University aimed at analyzing and testing the performance of HREs. It discussed and illustrated the conventional HRE and analyzed engine performance considerations such as the fuel regression rate, mass flux about the fuel surface, burning rate, and zero transformation parameter. Other factors relating to HRE performance that were presented included induced forward and aft oxidizer flow swirl effects as a means for augmenting the fuel regression rate, stoichiometric grain length issues, and feed system stability. Last, the paper presented a simplified schematic diagram of a proposed thrust/test stand for HRE test firings. 2 refs., 3 figs.

Paraffin-based hybrid rocket engines applications: A review and a market perspective

Science.gov (United States)

Mazzetti, Alessandro; Merotto, Laura; Pinarello, Giordano

2016-09-01

Hybrid propulsion technology for aerospace applications has received growing attention in recent years due to its important advantages over competitive solutions. Hybrid rocket engines have a great potential for several aeronautics and aerospace applications because of their safety, reliability, low cost and high performance. As a consequence, this propulsion technology is feasible for a number of innovative missions, including space tourism. On the other hand, hybrid rocket propulsion's main drawback, i.e. the difficulty in reaching high regression rate values using standard fuels, has so far limited the maturity level of this technology. The complex physico-chemical processes involved in hybrid rocket engines combustion are of major importance for engine performance prediction and control. Therefore, further investigation is ongoing in order to achieve a more complete understanding of such phenomena. It is well known that one of the most promising solutions for overcoming hybrid rocket engines performance limits is the use of liquefying fuels. Such fuels can lead to notably increased solid fuel regression rate due to the so-called "entrainment phenomenon". Among liquefying fuels, paraffin-based formulations have great potentials as solid fuels due to their low cost, availability (as they can be derived from industrial waste), low environmental impact and high performance. Despite the vast amount of literature available on this subject, a precise focus on market potential of paraffins for hybrid propulsion aerospace applications is lacking. In this work a review of hybrid rocket engines state of the art was performed, together with a detailed analysis of the possible applications of such a technology. A market study was carried out in order to define the near-future foreseeable development needs for hybrid technology application to the aforementioned missions. Paraffin-based fuels are taken into account as the most promising segment for market development

Benchmarking the internal combustion engine and hydrogen

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wallace, J.S.

2006-01-01

The internal combustion engine is a cost-effective and highly reliable energy conversion technology. Exhaust emission regulations introduced in the 1970's triggered extensive research and development that has significantly improved in-use fuel efficiency and dramatically reduced exhaust emissions. The current level of gasoline vehicle engine development is highlighted and representative emissions and efficiency data are presented as benchmarks. The use of hydrogen fueling for IC engines has been investigated over many decades and the benefits and challenges arising are well-known. The current state of hydrogen-fueled engine development will be reviewed and evaluated against gasoline-fueled benchmarks. The prospects for further improvements to hydrogen-fueled IC engines will be examined. While fuel cells are projected to offer greater energy efficiency than IC engines and zero emissions, the availability of fuel cells in quantity at reasonable cost is a barrier to their widespread adaptation for the near future. In their current state of development, hydrogen fueled IC engines are an effective technology to create demand for hydrogen fueling infrastructure until fuel cells become available in commercial quantities. During this transition period, hydrogen fueled IC engines can achieve PZEV/ULSLEV emissions. (author)

Analysis of supercritical methane in rocket engine cooling channels

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Denies, L.; Zandbergen, B.T.C.; Natale, P.; Ricci, D.; Invigorito, M.

2016-01-01

Methane is a promising propellant for liquid rocket engines. As a regenerative coolant, it would be close to its critical point, complicating cooling analysis. This study encompasses the development and validation of a new, open-source computational fluid dynamics (CFD) method for analysis of

Thermohydraulic Design Analysis Modeling for Korea Advanced NUclear Thermal Engine Rocket for Space Application

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nam, Seung Hyun; Choi, Jae Young; Venneria, Paolo F.; Jeong, Yong Hoon; Chang, Soon Heung [KAIST, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2015-05-15

Space exploration is a realistic and profitable goal for long-term humanity survival, although the harsh space environment imposes lots of severe challenges to space pioneers. To date, almost all space programs have relied upon Chemical Rockets (CRs) rating superior thrust level to transit from the Earth's surface to its orbit. However, CRs inherently have insurmountable barrier to carry out deep space missions beyond Earth's orbit due to its low propellant efficiency, and ensuing enormous propellant requirement and launch costs. Meanwhile, nuclear rockets typically offer at least two times the propellant efficiency of a CR and thus notably reduce the propellant demand. Particularly, a Nuclear Thermal Rocket (NTR) is a leading candidate for near-term manned missions to Mars and beyond because it satisfies a relatively high thrust as well as a high efficiency. The superior efficiency of NTRs is due to both high energy density of nuclear fuel and the low molecular weight propellant of Hydrogen (H{sub 2}) over the chemical reaction by-products. A NTR uses thermal energy released from a nuclear fission reactor to heat the H{sub 2} propellant and then exhausted the highly heated propellant through a propelling nozzle to produce thrust. A propellant efficiency parameter of rocket engines is specific impulse (I{sub s}p) which represents the ratio of the thrust over the propellant consumption rate. If the average exhaust H{sub 2} temperature of a NTR is around 3,000 K, the I{sub s}p can be achieved as high as 1,000 s as compared with only 450 - 500 s of the best CRs. For this reason, NTRs are favored for various space applications such as orbital tugs, lunar transports, and manned missions to Mars and beyond. The best known NTR development effort was conducted from 1955 to1974 under the ROVER and NERVA programs in the USA. These programs had successfully designed and tested many different reactors and engines. After these projects, the researches on NERVA derived

A Detailed Assessment for the Potential use of Waste Hydrogen Gas at Stennis Space Center

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — Stennis Space Center (SSC) is NASA’s primary liquid rocket engine test facility. As such, large amounts of liquid hydrogen are used as a rocket propellant. This...

Distributed Health Monitoring System for Reusable Liquid Rocket Engines

Science.gov (United States)

Lin, C. F.; Figueroa, F.; Politopoulos, T.; Oonk, S.

2009-01-01

The ability to correctly detect and identify any possible failure in the systems, subsystems, or sensors within a reusable liquid rocket engine is a major goal at NASA John C. Stennis Space Center (SSC). A health management (HM) system is required to provide an on-ground operation crew with an integrated awareness of the condition of every element of interest by determining anomalies, examining their causes, and making predictive statements. However, the complexity associated with relevant systems, and the large amount of data typically necessary for proper interpretation and analysis, presents difficulties in implementing complete failure detection, identification, and prognostics (FDI&P). As such, this paper presents a Distributed Health Monitoring System for Reusable Liquid Rocket Engines as a solution to these problems through the use of highly intelligent algorithms for real-time FDI&P, and efficient and embedded processing at multiple levels. The end result is the ability to successfully incorporate a comprehensive HM platform despite the complexity of the systems under consideration.

Two stage turbine for rockets

Science.gov (United States)

Veres, Joseph P.

1993-01-01

The aerodynamic design and rig test evaluation of a small counter-rotating turbine system is described. The advanced turbine airfoils were designed and tested by Pratt & Whitney. The technology represented by this turbine is being developed for a turbopump to be used in an advanced upper stage rocket engine. The advanced engine will use a hydrogen expander cycle and achieve high performance through efficient combustion of hydrogen/oxygen propellants, high combustion pressure, and high area ratio exhaust nozzle expansion. Engine performance goals require that the turbopump drive turbines achieve high efficiency at low gas flow rates. The low mass flow rates and high operating pressures result in very small airfoil heights and diameters. The high efficiency and small size requirements present a challenging turbine design problem. The shrouded axial turbine blades are 50 percent reaction with a maximum thickness to chord ratio near 1. At 6 deg from the tangential direction, the nozzle and blade exit flow angles are well below the traditional design minimum limits. The blade turning angle of 160 deg also exceeds the maximum limits used in traditional turbine designs.

Reusable Rocket Engine Turbopump Health Management System

Science.gov (United States)

Surko, Pamela

1994-01-01

A health monitoring expert system software architecture has been developed to support condition-based health monitoring of rocket engines. Its first application is in the diagnosis decisions relating to the health of the high pressure oxidizer turbopump (HPOTP) of Space Shuttle Main Engine (SSME). The post test diagnostic system runs off-line, using as input the data recorded from hundreds of sensors, each running typically at rates of 25, 50, or .1 Hz. The system is invoked after a test has been completed, and produces an analysis and an organized graphical presentation of the data with important effects highlighted. The overall expert system architecture has been developed and documented so that expert modules analyzing other line replaceable units may easily be added. The architecture emphasizes modularity, reusability, and open system interfaces so that it may be used to analyze other engines as well.

Performance of an Axisymmetric Rocket Based Combined Cycle Engine During Rocket Only Operation Using Linear Regression Analysis

Science.gov (United States)

Smith, Timothy D.; Steffen, Christopher J., Jr.; Yungster, Shaye; Keller, Dennis J.

1998-01-01

The all rocket mode of operation is shown to be a critical factor in the overall performance of a rocket based combined cycle (RBCC) vehicle. An axisymmetric RBCC engine was used to determine specific impulse efficiency values based upon both full flow and gas generator configurations. Design of experiments methodology was used to construct a test matrix and multiple linear regression analysis was used to build parametric models. The main parameters investigated in this study were: rocket chamber pressure, rocket exit area ratio, injected secondary flow, mixer-ejector inlet area, mixer-ejector area ratio, and mixer-ejector length-to-inlet diameter ratio. A perfect gas computational fluid dynamics analysis, using both the Spalart-Allmaras and k-omega turbulence models, was performed with the NPARC code to obtain values of vacuum specific impulse. Results from the multiple linear regression analysis showed that for both the full flow and gas generator configurations increasing mixer-ejector area ratio and rocket area ratio increase performance, while increasing mixer-ejector inlet area ratio and mixer-ejector length-to-diameter ratio decrease performance. Increasing injected secondary flow increased performance for the gas generator analysis, but was not statistically significant for the full flow analysis. Chamber pressure was found to be not statistically significant.

Combustion dynamics in cryogenic rocket engines: Research programme at DLR Lampoldshausen

Science.gov (United States)

Hardi, Justin S.; Traudt, Tobias; Bombardieri, Cristiano; Börner, Michael; Beinke, Scott K.; Armbruster, Wolfgang; Nicolas Blanco, P.; Tonti, Federica; Suslov, Dmitry; Dally, Bassam; Oschwald, Michael

2018-06-01

The Combustion Dynamics group in the Rocket Propulsion Department at the German Aerospace Center (DLR), Lampoldshausen, strives to advance the understanding of dynamic processes in cryogenic rocket engines. Leveraging the test facilities and experimental expertise at DLR Lampoldshausen, the group has taken a primarily experimental approach to investigating transient flows, ignition, and combustion instabilities for over one and a half decades. This article provides a summary of recent achievements, and an overview of current and planned research activities.

Analytical concepts for health management systems of liquid rocket engines

Science.gov (United States)

Williams, Richard; Tulpule, Sharayu; Hawman, Michael

1990-01-01

Substantial improvement in health management systems performance can be realized by implementing advanced analytical methods of processing existing liquid rocket engine sensor data. In this paper, such techniques ranging from time series analysis to multisensor pattern recognition to expert systems to fault isolation models are examined and contrasted. The performance of several of these methods is evaluated using data from test firings of the Space Shuttle main engines.

Preliminary Thermo-hydraulic Core Design Analysis of Korea Advanced Nuclear Thermal Engine Rocket for Space Application

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nam, Seung Hyun; Lee, Jeong Ik; Chang, Soon Heung [Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2014-05-15

Nclear rockets improve the propellant efficiency more than twice compared to CRs and thus significantly reduce the propellant requirement. The superior efficiency of nuclear rockets is due to the combination of the huge energy density and a single low molecular weight propellant utilization. Nuclear Thermal Rockets (NTRs) are particularly suitable for manned missions to Mars because it satisfies a relatively high thrust as well as a high propellant efficiency. NTRs use thermal energy released from a nuclear fission reactor to heat a single low molecular weight propellant, i. e., Hydrogen (H{sub 2}) and then exhausted the extremely heated propellant through a thermodynamic nozzle to produce thrust. A propellant efficiency parameter of rocket engines is specific impulse (I{sub sp}) which represents the ratio of the thrust over the rate of propellant consumption. The difference of I{sub sp} makes over three times propellant savings of NTRs for a manned Mars mission compared to CRs. NTRs can also be configured to operate bimodally by converting the surplus nuclear energy to auxiliary electric power required for the operation of a spacecraft. Moreover, the concept and technology of NTRs are very simple, already proven, and safe. Thus, NTRs can be applied to various space missions such as solar system exploration, International Space Station (ISS) transport support, Near Earth Objects (NEOs) interception, etc. Nuclear propulsion is the most promising and viable option to achieve challenging deep space missions. Particularly, the attractions of a NTR include excellent thrust and propellant efficiency, bimodal capability, proven technology, and safe and reliable performance. The ROK has also begun the research for space nuclear systems as a volunteer of the international space race and a major world nuclear energy country. KANUTER is one of the advanced NTR engines currently under development at KAIST. This bimodal engine is operated in two modes of propulsion with 100 MW

Axisymmetric Numerical Modeling of Pulse Detonation Rocket Engines

Science.gov (United States)

Morris, Christopher I.

2005-01-01

Pulse detonation rocket engines (PDREs) have generated research interest in recent years as a chemical propulsion system potentially offering improved performance and reduced complexity compared to conventional rocket engines. The detonative mode of combustion employed by these devices offers a thermodynamic advantage over the constant-pressure deflagrative combustion mode used in conventional rocket engines and gas turbines. However, while this theoretical advantage has spurred considerable interest in building PDRE devices, the unsteady blowdown process intrinsic to the PDRE has made realistic estimates of the actual propulsive performance problematic. The recent review article by Kailasanath highlights some of the progress that has been made in comparing the available experimental measurements with analytical and numerical models. In recent work by the author, a quasi-one-dimensional, finite rate chemistry CFD model was utilized to study the gasdynamics and performance characteristics of PDREs over a range of blowdown pressure ratios from 1-1000. Models of this type are computationally inexpensive, and enable first-order parametric studies of the effect of several nozzle and extension geometries on PDRE performance over a wide range of conditions. However, the quasi-one-dimensional approach is limited in that it cannot properly capture the multidimensional blast wave and flow expansion downstream of the PDRE, nor can it resolve nozzle flow separation if present. Moreover, the previous work was limited to single-pulse calculations. In this paper, an axisymmetric finite rate chemistry model is described and utilized to study these issues in greater detail. Example Mach number contour plots showing the multidimensional blast wave and nozzle exhaust plume are shown. The performance results are compared with the quasi-one-dimensional results from the previous paper. Both Euler and Navier-Stokes solutions are calculated in order to determine the effect of viscous

Space shuttle with common fuel tank for liquid rocket booster and main engines (supertanker space shuttle)

Science.gov (United States)

Thorpe, Douglas G.

1991-01-01

An operation and schedule enhancement is shown that replaces the four-body cluster (Space Shuttle Orbiter (SSO), external tank, and two solid rocket boosters) with a simpler two-body cluster (SSO and liquid rocket booster/external tank). At staging velocity, the booster unit (liquid-fueled booster engines and vehicle support structure) is jettisoned while the remaining SSO and supertank continues on to orbit. The simpler two-bodied cluster reduces the processing and stack time until SSO mate from 57 days (for the solid rocket booster) to 20 days (for the liquid rocket booster). The areas in which liquid booster systems are superior to solid rocket boosters are discussed. Alternative and future generation vehicles are reviewed to reveal greater performance and operations enhancements with more modifications to the current methods of propulsion design philosophy, e.g., combined cycle engines, and concentric propellant tanks.

Numerical investigations of hybrid rocket engines

Science.gov (United States)

Betelin, V. B.; Kushnirenko, A. G.; Smirnov, N. N.; Nikitin, V. F.; Tyurenkova, V. V.; Stamov, L. I.

2018-03-01

Paper presents the results of numerical studies of hybrid rocket engines operating cycle including unsteady-state transition stage. A mathematical model is developed accounting for the peculiarities of diffusion combustion of fuel in the flow of oxidant, which is composed of oxygen-nitrogen mixture. Three dimensional unsteady-state simulations of chemically reacting gas mixture above thermochemically destructing surface are performed. The results show that the diffusion combustion brings to strongly non-uniform fuel mass regression rate in the flow direction. Diffusive deceleration of chemical reaction brings to the decrease of fuel regression rate in the longitudinal direction.

Space Launch System Base Heating Test: Sub-Scale Rocket Engine/Motor Design, Development and Performance Analysis

Science.gov (United States)

Mehta, Manish; Seaford, Mark; Kovarik, Brian; Dufrene, Aaron; Solly, Nathan; Kirchner, Robert; Engel, Carl D.

2014-01-01

The Space Launch System (SLS) base heating test is broken down into two test programs: (1) Pathfinder and (2) Main Test. The Pathfinder Test Program focuses on the design, development, hot-fire test and performance analyses of the 2% sub-scale SLS core-stage and booster element propulsion systems. The core-stage propulsion system is composed of four gaseous oxygen/hydrogen RS-25D model engines and the booster element is composed of two aluminum-based model solid rocket motors (SRMs). The first section of the paper discusses the motivation and test facility specifications for the test program. The second section briefly investigates the internal flow path of the design. The third section briefly shows the performance of the model RS-25D engines and SRMs for the conducted short duration hot-fire tests. Good agreement is observed based on design prediction analysis and test data. This program is a challenging research and development effort that has not been attempted in 40+ years for a NASA vehicle.

Hydrogen engine performance analysis project. Second annual report

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Adt, Jr., R. R.; Swain, M. R.; Pappas, J. M.

1980-01-01

Progress in a 3 year research program to evaluate the performance and emission characteristics of hydrogen-fueled internal combustion engines is reported. Fifteen hydrogen engine configurations will be subjected to performance and emissions characterization tests. During the first two years, baseline data for throttled and unthrottled, carburetted and timed hydrogen induction, Pre IVC hydrogen-fueled engine configurations, with and without exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) and water injection, were obtained. These data, along with descriptions of the test engine and its components, the test apparatus, experimental techniques, experiments performed and the results obtained, are given. Analyses of other hydrogen-engine project data are also presented and compared with the results of the present effort. The unthrottled engine vis-a-vis the throttled engine is found, in general, to exhibit higher brake thermal efficiency. The unthrottled engine also yields lower NO/sub x/ emissions, which were found to be a strong function of fuel-air equivalence ratio. (LCL)

Affordable Development and Demonstration of a Small Nuclear Thermal Rocket (NTR) Engine and Stage: How Small Is Big Enough?

Science.gov (United States)

Borowski, Stanley K.; Sefcik, Robert J.; Fittje, James E.; McCurdy, David R.; Qualls, Arthur L.; Schnitzler, Bruce G.; Werner, James E.; Weitzberg, Abraham; Joyner, Claude R.

2016-01-01

89-centimeters) -long FE, the SNRE's larger diameter core contains approximately 300 more FEs needed to produce an additional 210 thermal megawatts of power. To reduce the cost of the FTD mission, a simple one-burn lunar flyby mission was considered to reduce the liquid hydrogen (LH2) propellant loading, the stage size and complexity. Use of existing and flight proven liquid rocket and stage hardware (e.g., from the RL10B-2 engine and Delta Cryogenic Second Stage) was also maximized to further aid affordability. This paper examines the pros and cons of using these two small engine options, including their potential to support future human exploration missions to the Moon, near Earth asteroids (NEA), and Mars, and recommends a preferred size. It also provides a preliminary assessment of the key activities, development options, and schedule required to affordably build, ground test and fly a small NTR engine and stage within a 10-year timeframe.

Hydrogen engine performance analysis. First annual report

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Adt, Jr., R. R.; Swain, M. R.; Pappas, J. M.

1978-08-01

Many problems associated with the design and development of hydrogen-air breathing internal combustion engines for automotive applications have been identified by various domestic and foreign researchers. This project addresses the problems identified in the literature, seeks to evaluate potential solutions to these problems, and will obtain and document a design data-base convering the performance, operational and emissions characteristics essential for making rational decisions regarding the selection and design of prototype hydrogen-fueled, airbreathing engines suitable for manufacture for general automotive use. Information is included on the operation, safety, emission, and cost characteristics of hydrogen engines, the selection of a test engine and testing facilities, and experimental results. Baseline data for throttled and unthrottled, carburetted, hydrogen engine configurations with and without exhaust gas recirculation and water injection are presented. In addition to basic data gathering concerning performance and emissions, the test program conducted was formulated to address in detail the two major problems that must be overcome if hydrogen-fueled engines are to become viable: flashback and comparatively high NO/sub x/ emissions at high loads. In addition, the results of other hydrogen engine investigators were adjusted, using accepted methods, in order to make comparisons with the results of the present study. The comparisons revealed no major conflicts. In fact, with a few exceptions, there was found to be very good agreement between the results of the various studies.

How Does Rocket Propulsion Work? The most common answer to ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

internal combustion engines. The fuel or propellant is stored in the fuel tank. Here we will consider liquid hydrogen as the fuel. For the combustion to take place in outer space or in the absence of atmospheric oxygen the rocket carries along an oxidizer; here we will consider liquid oxygen as the oxidizer. The oxidizer or in.

Basic tuning of hydrogen powered car and artificial intelligent prediction of hydrogen engine characteristics

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ho, Tien [School of Engineering, University of Tasmania, GPO Box 252-65, Hobart, Tasmania, 7001 (Australia); Karri, Vishy [Australian College of Kuwait, P.O. Box 1411, Safat 13015 (Kuwait)

2010-09-15

Many studies of renewable energy have shown hydrogen is one of the major green energy in the future. This has lead to the development of many automotive application of using hydrogen as a fuel especially in internal combustion engine. Nonetheless, there has been a slow growth and less knowledge details in building up the prototype and control methodology of the hydrogen internal combustion engine. In this paper, The Toyota Corolla 4 cylinder, 1.8l engine running on petrol was systematically modified in such a way that it could be operated on either gasoline or hydrogen at the choice of the driver. Within the scope of this project, several ancillary instruments such as a new inlet manifold, hydrogen fuel injection, storage system and leak detection safety system were implemented. Attention is directed towards special characteristics related to the basic tuning of hydrogen engine such as: air to fuel ratio operating conditions, ignition timing and injection timing in terms of different engine speed and throttle position. Based on the experimental data, a suite of neural network models were tested to accurately predict the effect of different engine operating conditions (speed and throttle position) on the hydrogen powered car engine characteristics. Predictions were found to be {+-}3% to the experimental values for all of case studies. This work provided better understanding of the effect of hydrogen engine characteristic parameters on different engine operating conditions. (author)

Using Innovative Technologies for Manufacturing Rocket Engine Hardware

Science.gov (United States)

Betts, E. M.; Eddleman, D. E.; Reynolds, D. C.; Hardin, N. A.

2011-01-01

Many of the manufacturing techniques that are currently used for rocket engine component production are traditional methods that have been proven through years of experience and historical precedence. As the United States enters into the next space age where new launch vehicles are being designed and propulsion systems are being improved upon, it is sometimes necessary to adopt innovative techniques for manufacturing hardware. With a heavy emphasis on cost reduction and improvements in manufacturing time, rapid manufacturing techniques such as Direct Metal Laser Sintering (DMLS) are being adopted and evaluated for their use on NASA s Space Launch System (SLS) upper stage engine, J-2X, with hopes of employing this technology on a wide variety of future projects. DMLS has the potential to significantly reduce the processing time and cost of engine hardware, while achieving desirable material properties by using a layered powder metal manufacturing process in order to produce complex part geometries. Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) has recently hot-fire tested a J-2X gas generator (GG) discharge duct that was manufactured using DMLS. The duct was inspected and proof tested prior to the hot-fire test. Using a workhorse gas generator (WHGG) test fixture at MSFC's East Test Area, the duct was subjected to extreme J-2X hot gas environments during 7 tests for a total of 537 seconds of hot-fire time. The duct underwent extensive post-test evaluation and showed no signs of degradation. DMLS manufacturing has proven to be a viable option for manufacturing rocket engine hardware, and further development and use of this manufacturing method is recommended.

Hydrogen-Assisted IC Engine Combustion as a Route to Hydrogen Implementation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Andre Boehman; Daniel Haworth

2008-09-30

The 'Freedom Car' Initiative announced by the Bush Administration has placed a significant emphasis on development of a hydrogen economy in the United States. While the hydrogen-fueled fuel-cell vehicle that is the focus of the 'Freedom Car' program would rely on electrochemical energy conversion, and despite the large amount of resources being devoted to its objectives, near-term implementation of hydrogen in the transportation sector is not likely to arise from fuel cell cars. Instead, fuel blending and ''hydrogen-assisted'' combustion are more realizable pathways for wide-scale hydrogen utilization within the next ten years. Thus, a large potential avenue for utilization of hydrogen in transportation applications is through blending with natural gas, since there is an existing market for natural-gas vehicles of various classes, and since hydrogen can provide a means of achieving even stricter emissions standards. Another potential avenue is through use of hydrogen to 'assist' diesel combustion to permit alternate combustion strategies that can achieve lower emissions and higher efficiency. This project focused on developing the underlying fundamental information to support technologies that will facilitate the introduction of coal-derived hydrogen into the market. Two paths were envisioned for hydrogen utilization in transportation applications. One is for hydrogen to be mixed with other fuels, specifically natural gas, to enhance performance in existing natural gas-fueled vehicles (e.g., transit buses) and provide a practical and marketable avenue to begin using hydrogen in the field. A second is to use hydrogen to enable alternative combustion modes in existing diesel engines, such as homogeneous charge compression ignition, to permit enhanced efficiency and reduced emissions. Thus, this project on hydrogen-assisted combustion encompassed two major objectives: (1) Optimization of hydrogen-natural gas mixture

On-Board Hydrogen Gas Production System For Stirling Engines

Science.gov (United States)

Johansson, Lennart N.

2004-06-29

A hydrogen production system for use in connection with Stirling engines. The production system generates hydrogen working gas and periodically supplies it to the Stirling engine as its working fluid in instances where loss of such working fluid occurs through usage through operation of the associated Stirling engine. The hydrogen gas may be generated by various techniques including electrolysis and stored by various means including the use of a metal hydride absorbing material. By controlling the temperature of the absorbing material, the stored hydrogen gas may be provided to the Stirling engine as needed. A hydrogen production system for use in connection with Stirling engines. The production system generates hydrogen working gas and periodically supplies it to the Stirling engine as its working fluid in instances where loss of such working fluid occurs through usage through operation of the associated Stirling engine. The hydrogen gas may be generated by various techniques including electrolysis and stored by various means including the use of a metal hydride absorbing material. By controlling the temperature of the absorbing material, the stored hydrogen gas may be provided to the Stirling engine as needed.

Design and analysis of a single stage to orbit nuclear thermal rocket reactor engine

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Labib, Satira, E-mail: Satira.Labib@duke-energy.com; King, Jeffrey, E-mail: kingjc@mines.edu

2015-06-15

Graphical abstract: - Highlights: • Three NTR reactors are optimized for the single stage launch of 1–15 MT payloads. • The proposed rocket engines have specific impulses in excess of 700 s. • Reactivity and submersion criticality requirements are satisfied for each reactor. - Abstract: Recent advances in the development of high power density fuel materials have renewed interest in nuclear thermal rockets (NTRs) as a viable propulsion technology for future space exploration. This paper describes the design of three NTR reactor engines designed for the single stage to orbit launch of payloads from 1 to 15 metric tons. Thermal hydraulic and rocket engine analyses indicate that the proposed rocket engines are able to reach specific impulses in excess of 800 s. Neutronics analyses performed using MCNP5 demonstrate that the hot excess reactivity, shutdown margin, and submersion criticality requirements are satisfied for each NTR reactor. The reactors each consist of a 40 cm diameter core packed with hexagonal tungsten cermet fuel elements. The core is surrounded by radial and axial beryllium reflectors and eight boron carbide control drums. The 40 cm long reactor meets the submersion criticality requirements (a shutdown margin of at least $1 subcritical in all submersion scenarios) with no further modifications. The 80 and 120 cm long reactors include small amounts of gadolinium nitride as a spectral shift absorber to keep them subcritical upon submersion in seawater or wet sand following a launch abort.

Design and analysis of a single stage to orbit nuclear thermal rocket reactor engine

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Labib, Satira; King, Jeffrey

2015-01-01

Graphical abstract: - Highlights: • Three NTR reactors are optimized for the single stage launch of 1–15 MT payloads. • The proposed rocket engines have specific impulses in excess of 700 s. • Reactivity and submersion criticality requirements are satisfied for each reactor. - Abstract: Recent advances in the development of high power density fuel materials have renewed interest in nuclear thermal rockets (NTRs) as a viable propulsion technology for future space exploration. This paper describes the design of three NTR reactor engines designed for the single stage to orbit launch of payloads from 1 to 15 metric tons. Thermal hydraulic and rocket engine analyses indicate that the proposed rocket engines are able to reach specific impulses in excess of 800 s. Neutronics analyses performed using MCNP5 demonstrate that the hot excess reactivity, shutdown margin, and submersion criticality requirements are satisfied for each NTR reactor. The reactors each consist of a 40 cm diameter core packed with hexagonal tungsten cermet fuel elements. The core is surrounded by radial and axial beryllium reflectors and eight boron carbide control drums. The 40 cm long reactor meets the submersion criticality requirements (a shutdown margin of at least $1 subcritical in all submersion scenarios) with no further modifications. The 80 and 120 cm long reactors include small amounts of gadolinium nitride as a spectral shift absorber to keep them subcritical upon submersion in seawater or wet sand following a launch abort

High-speed schlieren imaging of rocket exhaust plumes

Science.gov (United States)

Coultas-McKenney, Caralyn; Winter, Kyle; Hargather, Michael

2016-11-01

Experiments are conducted to examine the exhaust of a variety of rocket engines. The rocket engines are mounted in a schlieren system to allow high-speed imaging of the engine exhaust during startup, steady state, and shutdown. A variety of rocket engines are explored including a research-scale liquid rocket engine, consumer/amateur solid rocket motors, and water bottle rockets. Comparisons of the exhaust characteristics, thrust and cost for this range of rockets is presented. The variety of nozzle designs, target functions, and propellant type provides unique variations in the schlieren imaging.

Transient Mathematical Modeling for Liquid Rocket Engine Systems: Methods, Capabilities, and Experience

Science.gov (United States)

Seymour, David C.; Martin, Michael A.; Nguyen, Huy H.; Greene, William D.

2005-01-01

The subject of mathematical modeling of the transient operation of liquid rocket engines is presented in overview form from the perspective of engineers working at the NASA Marshall Space Flight Center. The necessity of creating and utilizing accurate mathematical models as part of liquid rocket engine development process has become well established and is likely to increase in importance in the future. The issues of design considerations for transient operation, development testing, and failure scenario simulation are discussed. An overview of the derivation of the basic governing equations is presented along with a discussion of computational and numerical issues associated with the implementation of these equations in computer codes. Also, work in the field of generating usable fluid property tables is presented along with an overview of efforts to be undertaken in the future to improve the tools use for the mathematical modeling process.

Two-dimensional motions of rockets

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kang, Yoonhwan; Bae, Saebyok

2007-01-01

We analyse the two-dimensional motions of the rockets for various types of rocket thrusts, the air friction and the gravitation by using a suitable representation of the rocket equation and the numerical calculation. The slope shapes of the rocket trajectories are discussed for the three types of rocket engines. Unlike the projectile motions, the descending parts of the trajectories tend to be gentler and straighter slopes than the ascending parts for relatively large launching angles due to the non-vanishing thrusts. We discuss the ranges, the maximum altitudes and the engine performances of the rockets. It seems that the exponential fuel exhaustion can be the most potent engine for the longest and highest flights

Net-Shape HIP Powder Metallurgy Components for Rocket Engines

Science.gov (United States)

Bampton, Cliff; Goodin, Wes; VanDaam, Tom; Creeger, Gordon; James, Steve

2005-01-01

True net shape consolidation of powder metal (PM) by hot isostatic pressing (HIP) provides opportunities for many cost, performance and life benefits over conventional fabrication processes for large rocket engine structures. Various forms of selectively net-shape PM have been around for thirty years or so. However, it is only recently that major applications have been pursued for rocket engine hardware fabricated in the United States. The method employs sacrificial metallic tooling (HIP capsule and shaped inserts), which is removed from the part after HIP consolidation of the powder, by selective acid dissolution. Full exploitation of net-shape PM requires innovative approaches in both component design and materials and processing details. The benefits include: uniform and homogeneous microstructure with no porosity, irrespective of component shape and size; elimination of welds and the associated quality and life limitations; removal of traditional producibility constraints on design freedom, such as forgeability and machinability, and scale-up to very large, monolithic parts, limited only by the size of existing HIP furnaces. Net-shape PM HIP also enables fabrication of complex configurations providing additional, unique functionalities. The progress made in these areas will be described. Then critical aspects of the technology that still require significant further development and maturation will be discussed from the perspective of an engine systems builder and end-user of the technology.

Using Innovative Techniques for Manufacturing Rocket Engine Hardware

Science.gov (United States)

Betts, Erin M.; Reynolds, David C.; Eddleman, David E.; Hardin, Andy

2011-01-01

Many of the manufacturing techniques that are currently used for rocket engine component production are traditional methods that have been proven through years of experience and historical precedence. As we enter into a new space age where new launch vehicles are being designed and propulsion systems are being improved upon, it is sometimes necessary to adopt new and innovative techniques for manufacturing hardware. With a heavy emphasis on cost reduction and improvements in manufacturing time, manufacturing techniques such as Direct Metal Laser Sintering (DMLS) are being adopted and evaluated for their use on J-2X, with hopes of employing this technology on a wide variety of future projects. DMLS has the potential to significantly reduce the processing time and cost of engine hardware, while achieving desirable material properties by using a layered powder metal manufacturing process in order to produce complex part geometries. Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) has recently hot-fire tested a J-2X gas generator discharge duct that was manufactured using DMLS. The duct was inspected and proof tested prior to the hot-fire test. Using the Workhorse Gas Generator (WHGG) test setup at MSFC?s East Test Area test stand 116, the duct was subject to extreme J-2X gas generator environments and endured a total of 538 seconds of hot-fire time. The duct survived the testing and was inspected after the test. DMLS manufacturing has proven to be a viable option for manufacturing rocket engine hardware, and further development and use of this manufacturing method is recommended.

Unsteady response of flow system around balance piston in a rocket pump

Science.gov (United States)

Kawasaki, S.; Shimura, T.; Uchiumi, M.; Hayashi, M.; Matsui, J.

2013-03-01

In the rocket engine turbopump, a self-balancing type of axial thrust balancing system using a balance piston is often applied. In this study, the balancing system in liquid-hydrogen (LH2) rocket pump was modeled combining the mechanical structure and the flow system, and the unsteady response of the balance piston was investigated. The axial vibration characteristics of the balance piston with a large amplitude were determined, sweeping the frequency of the pressure fluctuation on the inlet of the balance piston. This vibration was significantly affected by the compressibility of LH2.

Hydrogen hybrid vehicle engine development: Experimental program

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Van Blarigan, P. [Sandia National Lab., Livermore, CA (United States)

1995-09-01

A hydrogen fueled engine is being developed specifically for the auxiliary power unit (APU) in a series type hybrid vehicle. Hydrogen is different from other internal combustion (IC) engine fuels, and hybrid vehicle IC engine requirements are different from those of other IC vehicle engines. Together these differences will allow a new engine design based on first principles that will maximize thermal efficiency while minimizing principal emissions. The experimental program is proceeding in four steps: (1) Demonstration of the emissions and the indicated thermal efficiency capability of a standard CLR research engine modified for higher compression ratios and hydrogen fueled operation. (2) Design and test a new combustion chamber geometry for an existing single cylinder research engine, in an attempt to improve on the baseline indicated thermal efficiency of the CLR engine. (3) Design and build, in conjunction with an industrial collaborator, a new full scale research engine designed to maximize brake thermal efficiency. Include a full complement of combustion diagnostics. (4) Incorporate all of the knowledge thus obtained in the design and fabrication, by an industrial collaborator, of the hydrogen fueled engine for the hybrid vehicle power train illustrator. Results of the CLR baseline engine testing are presented, as well as preliminary data from the new combustion chamber engine. The CLR data confirm the low NOx produced by lean operation. The preliminary indicated thermal efficiency data from the new combustion chamber design engine show an improvement relative to the CLR engine. Comparison with previous high compression engine results shows reasonable agreement.

Computational Fluid Dynamic Modeling of Rocket Based Combined Cycle Engine Flowfields

Science.gov (United States)

Daines, Russell L.; Merkle, Charles L.

1994-01-01

Computational Fluid Dynamic techniques are used to study the flowfield of a fixed geometry Rocket Based Combined Cycle engine operating in rocket ejector mode. Heat addition resulting from the combustion of injected fuel causes the subsonic engine flow to choke and go supersonic in the slightly divergent combustor-mixer section. Reacting flow computations are undertaken to predict the characteristics of solutions where the heat addition is determined by the flowfield. Here, adaptive gridding is used to improve resolution in the shear layers. Results show that the sonic speed is reached in the unheated portions of the flow first, while the heated portions become supersonic later. Comparison with results from another code show reasonable agreement. The coupled solutions show that the character of the combustion-based thermal choking phenomenon can be controlled reasonably well such that there is opportunity to optimize the length and expansion ratio of the combustor-mixer.

Using Innovative Technologies for Manufacturing and Evaluating Rocket Engine Hardware

Science.gov (United States)

Betts, Erin M.; Hardin, Andy

2011-01-01

Many of the manufacturing and evaluation techniques that are currently used for rocket engine component production are traditional methods that have been proven through years of experience and historical precedence. As we enter into a new space age where new launch vehicles are being designed and propulsion systems are being improved upon, it is sometimes necessary to adopt new and innovative techniques for manufacturing and evaluating hardware. With a heavy emphasis on cost reduction and improvements in manufacturing time, manufacturing techniques such as Direct Metal Laser Sintering (DMLS) and white light scanning are being adopted and evaluated for their use on J-2X, with hopes of employing both technologies on a wide variety of future projects. DMLS has the potential to significantly reduce the processing time and cost of engine hardware, while achieving desirable material properties by using a layered powdered metal manufacturing process in order to produce complex part geometries. The white light technique is a non-invasive method that can be used to inspect for geometric feature alignment. Both the DMLS manufacturing method and the white light scanning technique have proven to be viable options for manufacturing and evaluating rocket engine hardware, and further development and use of these techniques is recommended.

Hydrogen safety

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Frazier, W.R.

1991-01-01

The NASA experience with hydrogen began in the 1950s when the National Advisory Committee on Aeronautics (NACA) research on rocket fuels was inherited by the newly formed National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). Initial emphasis on the use of hydrogen as a fuel for high-altitude probes, satellites, and aircraft limited the available data on hydrogen hazards to small quantities of hydrogen. NASA began to use hydrogen as the principal liquid propellant for launch vehicles and quickly determined the need for hydrogen safety documentation to support design and operational requirements. The resulting NASA approach to hydrogen safety requires a joint effort by design and safety engineering to address hydrogen hazards and develop procedures for safe operation of equipment and facilities. NASA also determined the need for rigorous training and certification programs for personnel involved with hydrogen use. NASA's current use of hydrogen is mainly for large heavy-lift vehicle propulsion, which necessitates storage of large quantities for fueling space shots and for testing. Future use will involve new applications such as thermal imaging

Experimental results with hydrogen fueled internal combustion engines

Science.gov (United States)

De Boer, P. C. T.; Mclean, W. J.; Homan, H. S.

1975-01-01

The paper focuses on the most important experimental findings for hydrogen-fueled internal combustion engines, with particular reference to the application of these findings to the assessment of the potential of hydrogen engines. Emphasis is on the various tradeoffs that can be made, such as between maximum efficiency, maximum power, and minimum NO emissions. The various possibilities for induction and ignition are described. Some projections are made about areas in which hydrogen engines may find their initial application and about optimum ways to design such engines. It is shown that hydrogen-fueled reciprocal internal combustion engines offer important advantages with respect to thermal efficiency and exhaust emissions. Problems arising from preignition can suitably be avoided by restricting the fuel-air equivalence ratio to values below about 0.5. The direct cylinder injection appears to be a very attractive way to operate the engine, because it combines a wide range of possible power outputs with a high thermal efficiency and very low NO emissions at part loads.

Comparison of the performance of a spark-ignited gasoline engine blended with hydrogen and hydrogen-oxygen mixtures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang, Shuofeng; Ji, Changwei; Zhang, Jian; Zhang, Bo

2011-01-01

This paper compared the effects of hydrogen and hydrogen-oxygen blends (hydroxygen) additions on the performance of a gasoline engine at 1400 rpm and a manifolds absolute pressure of 61.5 kPa. The tests were carried out on a 1.6 L gasoline engine equipped with a hydrogen and oxygen injection system. A hybrid electronic control unit was applied to adjust the hydrogen and hydroxygen volume fractions in the intake increasing from 0% to about 3% and keep the hydrogen-to-oxygen mole ratio at 2:1 in hydroxygen tests. For each testing condition, the gasoline flow rate was adjusted to maintain the mixture global excess air ratio at 1.00. The test results confirmed that engine fuel energy flow rate was decreased after hydrogen addition but increased with hydroxygen blending. When hydrogen or hydroxygen volume fraction in the intake was lower than 2%, the hydroxygen-blended gasoline engine produced a higher thermal efficiency than the hydrogen-blended gasoline engine. Both the additions of hydrogen and hydroxygen help reduce flame development and propagation periods of the gasoline engine. HC emissions were reduced whereas NOx emissions were raised with the increase of hydrogen and hydroxygen addition levels. CO was slightly increased after hydrogen blending, but reduced with hydroxygen addition. -- Highlights: → We compared the effects of hydrogen and hydroxygen additions on the gasoline engine performance. → The hydroxygen should be added into the engine only at low blending levels. → CO is decreased with hydroxygen addition whereas increased with hydrogen blending.

Fundamentals of aircraft and rocket propulsion

CERN Document Server

El-Sayed, Ahmed F

2016-01-01

This book provides a comprehensive basics-to-advanced course in an aero-thermal science vital to the design of engines for either type of craft. The text classifies engines powering aircraft and single/multi-stage rockets, and derives performance parameters for both from basic aerodynamics and thermodynamics laws. Each type of engine is analyzed for optimum performance goals, and mission-appropriate engines selection is explained. Fundamentals of Aircraft and Rocket Propulsion provides information about and analyses of: thermodynamic cycles of shaft engines (piston, turboprop, turboshaft and propfan); jet engines (pulsejet, pulse detonation engine, ramjet, scramjet, turbojet and turbofan); chemical and non-chemical rocket engines; conceptual design of modular rocket engines (combustor, nozzle and turbopumps); and conceptual design of different modules of aero-engines in their design and off-design state. Aimed at graduate and final-year undergraduate students, this textbook provides a thorough grounding in th...

Construction and design of solid-propellant rocket engines. Konstruktsiia i proektirovanie raketnykh dvigatelei tverdogo topliva

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Fakhrutdinov, I.K.; Kotel' nikov, A.V.

1987-01-01

Methods for assessing the durability of different components of solid-propellant rocket engines are presented. The following aspects of engine development are discussed: task formulation, parameter calculation, construction scheme selection, materials, and durability assessment. 45 references.

SSTO rockets. A practical possibility

Science.gov (United States)

Bekey, Ivan

1994-07-01

Most experts agree that single-stage-to-orbit (SSTO) rockets would become feasible if more advanced technologies were available to reduce the vehicle dry weight, increase propulsion system performance, or both. However, these technologies are usually judged to be very ambitious and very far off. This notion persists despite major advances in technology and vehicle design in the past decade. There appears to be four major misperceptions about SSTOs, regarding their mass fraction, their presumed inadequate performance margin, their supposedly small payloads, and their extreme sensitivity to unanticipated vehicle weight growth. These misperceptions can be dispelled for SSTO rockets using advanced technologies that could be matured and demonstrated in the near term. These include a graphite-composite primary structure, graphite-composite and Al-Li propellant tanks with integral reusable thermal protection, long-life tripropellant or LOX-hydrogen engines, and several technologies related to operational effectiveness, including vehicle health monitoring, autonomous avionics/flight control, and operable launch and ground handling systems.

Experimental investigation of solid rocket motors for small sounding rockets

Science.gov (United States)

Suksila, Thada

2018-01-01

Experimentation and research of solid rocket motors are important subjects for aerospace engineering students. However, many institutes in Thailand rarely include experiments on solid rocket motors in research projects of aerospace engineering students, mainly because of the complexity of mixing the explosive propellants. This paper focuses on the design and construction of a solid rocket motor for total impulse in the class I-J that can be utilised as a small sounding rocket by researchers in the near future. Initially, the test stands intended for measuring the pressure in the combustion chamber and the thrust of the solid rocket motor were designed and constructed. The basic design of the propellant configuration was evaluated. Several formulas and ratios of solid propellants were compared for achieving the maximum thrust. The convenience of manufacturing and casting of the fabricated solid rocket motors were a critical consideration. The motor structural analysis such as the combustion chamber wall thickness was also discussed. Several types of nozzles were compared and evaluated for ensuring the maximum thrust of the solid rocket motors during the experiments. The theory of heat transfer analysis in the combustion chamber was discussed and compared with the experimental data.

Multicamera High Dynamic Range High-Speed Video of Rocket Engine Tests and Launches

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — High-speed video recording of rocket engine tests has several challenges. The scenes that are imaged have both bright and dark regions associated with plume emission...

Code Validation of CFD Heat Transfer Models for Liquid Rocket Engine Combustion Devices

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Coy, E. B

2007-01-01

.... The design of the rig and its capabilities are described. A second objective of the test rig is to provide CFD validation data under conditions relevant to liquid rocket engine thrust chambers...

Gas-Generator Augmented Expander Cycle Rocket Engine

Science.gov (United States)

Greene, William D. (Inventor)

2011-01-01

An augmented expander cycle rocket engine includes first and second turbopumps for respectively pumping fuel and oxidizer. A gas-generator receives a first portion of fuel output from the first turbopump and a first portion of oxidizer output from the second turbopump to ignite and discharge heated gas. A heat exchanger close-coupled to the gas-generator receives in a first conduit the discharged heated gas, and transfers heat to an adjacent second conduit carrying fuel exiting the cooling passages of a primary combustion chamber. Heat is transferred to the fuel passing through the cooling passages. The heated fuel enters the second conduit of the heat exchanger to absorb more heat from the first conduit, and then flows to drive a turbine of one or both of the turbopumps. The arrangement prevents the turbopumps exposure to combusted gas that could freeze in the turbomachinery and cause catastrophic failure upon attempted engine restart.

Reusable rocket engine preventive maintenance scheduling using genetic algorithm

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chen, Tao; Li, Jiawen; Jin, Ping; Cai, Guobiao

2013-01-01

This paper deals with the preventive maintenance (PM) scheduling problem of reusable rocket engine (RRE), which is different from the ordinary repairable systems, by genetic algorithm. Three types of PM activities for RRE are considered and modeled by introducing the concept of effective age. The impacts of PM on all subsystems' aging processes are evaluated based on improvement factor model. Then the reliability of engine is formulated by considering the accumulated time effect. After that, optimization model subjected to reliability constraint is developed for RRE PM scheduling at fixed interval. The optimal PM combination is obtained by minimizing the total cost in the whole life cycle for a supposed engine. Numerical investigations indicate that the subsystem's intrinsic reliability characteristic and the improvement factor of maintain operations are the most important parameters in RRE's PM scheduling management

Rocket Science: The Shuttle's Main Engines, though Old, Are not Forgotten in the New Exploration Initiative

Science.gov (United States)

Covault, Craig

2005-01-01

The Space Shuttle Main Engine (SSME), developed 30 years ago, remains a strong candidate for use in the new Exploration Initiative as part of a shuttle-derived heavy-lift expendable booster. This is because the Boeing-Rocket- dyne man-rated SSME remains the most highly efficient liquid rocket engine ever developed. There are only enough parts for 12-15 existing SSMEs, however, so one NASA option is to reinitiate SSME production to use it as a throw-away, as opposed to a reusable, powerplant for NASA s new heavy-lift booster.

Trade-off analysis of high-aspect-ratio-cooling-channels for rocket engines

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pizzarelli, Marco; Nasuti, Francesco; Onofri, Marcello

2013-01-01

Highlights: • Aspect ratio has a significant effect on cooling efficiency and hydraulic losses. • Minimizing power loss is of paramount importance in liquid rocket engine cooling. • A suitable quasi-2D model is used to get fast cooling system analysis. • Trade-off with assigned weight, temperature, and channel height or wall thickness. • Aspect ratio is found that minimizes power loss in the cooling circuit. -- Abstract: High performance liquid rocket engines are often characterized by rectangular cooling channels with high aspect ratio (channel height-to-width ratio) because of their proven superior cooling efficiency with respect to a conventional design. However, the identification of the optimum aspect ratio is not a trivial task. In the present study a trade-off analysis is performed on a cooling channel system that can be of interest for rocket engines. This analysis requires multiple cooling channel flow calculations and thus cannot be efficiently performed by CFD solvers. Therefore, a proper numerical approach, referred to as quasi-2D model, is used to have fast and accurate predictions of cooling system properties. This approach relies on its capability of describing the thermal stratification that occurs in the coolant and in the wall structure, as well as the coolant warming and pressure drop along the channel length. Validation of the model is carried out by comparison with solutions obtained with a validated CFD solver. Results of the analysis show the existence of an optimum channel aspect ratio that minimizes the requested pump power needed to overcome losses in the cooling circuit

Research Technology (ASTP) Rocket Based Combined Cycle (RBCC) Engine

Science.gov (United States)

2004-01-01

Pictured is an artist's concept of the Rocket Based Combined Cycle (RBCC) launch. The RBCC's overall objective is to provide a technology test bed to investigate critical technologies associated with opperational usage of these engines. The program will focus on near term technologies that can be leveraged to ultimately serve as the near term basis for Two Stage to Orbit (TSTO) air breathing propulsions systems and ultimately a Single Stage To Orbit (SSTO) air breathing propulsion system.

Advances for laser ignition of internal combustion and rocket engines

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schwarz, E.

2011-01-01

The scope of the PhD thesis presented here is the investigation of theoretical and practical aspects of laser-induced spark ignition and laser thermal ignition. Laser ignition systems are currently undergoing a rapidly development with growing intensity involving more and more research groups who mainly concentrate on the field of car and large combustion engines. This research is primarily driven by the engagement to meet the increasingly strict emission limits and by the intention to use the limited energy reserves more efficiently. For internal combustion engines, laser plasma-induced ignition will allow to combine the goals for legally required reductions of pollutant emissions and higher engine efficiencies. Also for rocket engines laser ignition turns out to be very attractive. A highly reliable ignition system like laser ignition would represent an option for introducing non-toxic propellants in order to replace highly toxic and carcinogenic hydrazine-based propellants commonly used in launch vehicle upper stages and satellites. The most important results on laser ignition and laser plasma generation, accomplished by the author and, in some respects, enriched by cooperation with colleagues are presented in the following. The emphasis of this thesis is placed on the following issues: - Two-color effects on laser plasma generation - Theoretical considerations about the focal volume concerning plasma generation - Plasma transmission experiments - Ignition experiments on laser-induced ignition - Ignition experiments on thermally-induced ignition - Feasibility study on laser ignition of rocket engines The purpose of the two-color laser plasma experiments is to investigate possible constructive interference effects of driving fields that are not monochromatic, but contain (second) harmonic radiation with respect to the goal of lowering the plasma generation threshold. Such effects have been found in a number of related processes, such as laser ablation or high

Software for Preprocessing Data from Rocket-Engine Tests

Science.gov (United States)

Cheng, Chiu-Fu

2004-01-01

Three computer programs have been written to preprocess digitized outputs of sensors during rocket-engine tests at Stennis Space Center (SSC). The programs apply exclusively to the SSC E test-stand complex and utilize the SSC file format. The programs are the following: Engineering Units Generator (EUGEN) converts sensor-output-measurement data to engineering units. The inputs to EUGEN are raw binary test-data files, which include the voltage data, a list identifying the data channels, and time codes. EUGEN effects conversion by use of a file that contains calibration coefficients for each channel. QUICKLOOK enables immediate viewing of a few selected channels of data, in contradistinction to viewing only after post-test processing (which can take 30 minutes to several hours depending on the number of channels and other test parameters) of data from all channels. QUICKLOOK converts the selected data into a form in which they can be plotted in engineering units by use of Winplot (a free graphing program written by Rick Paris). EUPLOT provides a quick means for looking at data files generated by EUGEN without the necessity of relying on the PV-WAVE based plotting software.

System Engineering and Technical Challenges Overcome in the J-2X Rocket Engine Development Project

Science.gov (United States)

Ballard, Richard O.

2012-01-01

Beginning in 2006, NASA initiated the J-2X engine development effort to develop an upper stage propulsion system to enable the achievement of the primary objectives of the Constellation program (CxP): provide continued access to the International Space Station following the retirement of the Space Station and return humans to the moon. The J-2X system requirements identified to accomplish this were very challenging and the time expended over the five years following the beginning of the J- 2X effort have been noteworthy in the development of innovations in both the fields for liquid rocket propulsion and system engineering.

Two-Dimensional Motions of Rockets

Science.gov (United States)

Kang, Yoonhwan; Bae, Saebyok

2007-01-01

We analyse the two-dimensional motions of the rockets for various types of rocket thrusts, the air friction and the gravitation by using a suitable representation of the rocket equation and the numerical calculation. The slope shapes of the rocket trajectories are discussed for the three types of rocket engines. Unlike the projectile motions, the…

Experimental determination of plume properties in full-scale hydrogen-oxygen rockets

Science.gov (United States)

Brown, D. G.; Limbaugh, C. C.; Zaccardi, V. A.; Eskridge, R.

1989-01-01

An IR emission/absorption technique for determining radial profiles of static temperature and species partial pressure for cylindrically symmetric combustion gases typical of the effluent of turbine engines and liquid-propellant rockets is described. In the technique, the IR plume radiance and absorption is measured using a 1 x 256-element platinum silicide detector array which is filtered to obtain plume emission measurements in the H2O band near 3.0 microns. A minicomputer is employed to control data acquisition and reduction.

Radiological effluents released from nuclear rocket and ramjet engine tests at the Nevada Test Site 1959 through 1969: Fact Book

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Friesen, H.N.

1995-06-01

Nuclear rocket and ramjet engine tests were conducted on the Nevada Test Site (NTS) in Area 25 and Area 26, about 80 miles northwest of Las Vegas, Nevada, from July 1959 through September 1969. This document presents a brief history of the nuclear rocket engine tests, information on the off-site radiological monitoring, and descriptions of the tests.

Studies of an extensively axisymmetric rocket based combined cycle (RBCC) engine powered single-stage-to-orbit (SSTO) vehicle

Science.gov (United States)

Foster, Richard W.; Escher, William J. D.; Robinson, John W.

1989-01-01

The present comparative performance study has established that rocket-based combined cycle (RBCC) propulsion systems, when incorporated by essentially axisymmetric SSTO launch vehicle configurations whose conical forebody maximizes both capture-area ratio and total capture area, are capable of furnishing payload-delivery capabilities superior to those of most multistage, all-rocket launchers. Airbreathing thrust augmentation in the rocket-ejector mode of an RBCC powerplant is noted to make a major contribution to final payload capability, by comparison to nonair-augmented rocket engine propulsion systems.

A prediction study of a spark ignition supercharged hydrogen engine

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Al-Baghdadi, Maher A.R. Sadiq.; Al-Janabi, Haroun A.K. Shahad

2003-01-01

Hydrogen is found to be a suitable alternative fuel for spark ignition engines with certain drawbacks, such as high NO x emission and small power output. However, supercharging may solve such problems. In this study, the effects of equivalence ratio, compression ratio and inlet pressure on the performance and NO x emission of a four stroke supercharged hydrogen engine have been analyzed using a specially developed computer program. The results are verified and compared with experimental data obtained from tests on a Ricardo E6/US engine. A chart specifying the safe operation zone of the hydrogen engine has been produced. The safe operation zone means no pre-ignition, acceptable NO x emission, high engine efficiency and lower specific fuel consumption in comparison with the gasoline engine. The study also shows that supercharging is a more effective method to increase the output of a hydrogen engine rather than increasing the compression ratio of the engine at the knock limited equivalence ratio

A prediction study of a spark ignition supercharged hydrogen engine

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Al-Baghdadi, M.A.R.S.; Al-Janabi, H.A.K.S. [University of Babylon (Iraq). Dept. of Mechanical Engineering

2003-12-01

Hydrogen is found to be a suitable alternative fuel for spark ignition engines with certain drawbacks, such as high NO{sub x} emission and small power output. However, supercharging may solve such problems. In this study, the effects of equivalence ratio, compression ratio and inlet pressure on the performance and NO{sub x} emission of a four stroke supercharged hydrogen engine have been analyzed using a specially developed computer program. The results are verified and compared with experimental data obtained from tests on a Ricardo E6/US engine. A chart specifying the safe operation zone of the hydrogen engine has been produced. The safe operation zone means no pre-ignition, acceptable NO{sub x} emission, high engine efficiency and lower specific fuel consumption in comparison with the gasoline engine. The study also shows that supercharging is a more effective method to increase the output of a hydrogen engine rather than increasing the compression ratio of the engine at the knock limited equivalence ratio. (author)

Experimental investigations of the hydrogen addition effects on diesel engine performance

Science.gov (United States)

Mirica, I.; Pana, C.; Negurescu, N.; Cernat, A.; Nutu, C.

2016-08-01

In the global content regarding the impact on the environmental of the gases emissions resulted from the fossil fuels combustion, an interest aspect discussed on the 21st Session of the Conference of the Parties from the 2015 Paris Climate Conference and the gradual diminution of the worldwide oil reserves contribute to the necessity of searching of alternative energy from durable and renewable resources. At the use of hydrogen as addition in air to diesel engine, the level of CO, HC and smoke from the exhaust gases will decrease due to the improvement of the combustion process. At low and medium partial loads and low hydrogen energetic ratios used the NOX emission level can decrease comparative to classic diesel engine. The hydrogen use as fuel for diesel engine leads to the improving of the energetic and emissions performance of the engine due to combustion improvement and reduction of carbon content. The paper presents, in a comparative way, results of the experimental researches carried on a truck compression ignition engine fuelled with diesel fuel and with hydrogen diesel fuel and hydrogen as addition in air at different engine operation regimes. The results obtained during experimental investigations show better energetic and pollution performance of the engine fuelled with hydrogen as addition in air comparative to classic engine. The influences of hydrogen addition on engine operation are shown.

Nuclear Thermal Rocket Element Environmental Simulator (NTREES)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Emrich, William J. Jr.

2008-01-01

To support a potential future development of a nuclear thermal rocket engine, a state-of-the-art non nuclear experimental test setup has been constructed to evaluate the performance characteristics of candidate fuel element materials and geometries in representative environments. The test device simulates the environmental conditions (minus the radiation) to which nuclear rocket fuel components could be subjected during reactor operation. Test articles mounted in the simulator are inductively heated in such a manner as to accurately reproduce the temperatures and heat fluxes normally expected to occur as a result of nuclear fission while at the same time being exposed to flowing hydrogen. This project is referred to as the Nuclear Thermal Rocket Element Environment Simulator or NTREES. The NTREES device is located at the Marshall Space flight Center in a laboratory which has been modified to accommodate the high powers required to heat the test articles to the required temperatures and to handle the gaseous hydrogen flow required for the tests. Other modifications to the laboratory include the installation of a nitrogen gas supply system and a cooling water supply system. During the design and construction of the facility, every effort was made to comply with all pertinent regulations to provide assurance that the facility could be operated in a safe and efficient manner. The NTREES system can currently supply up to 50 kW of inductive heating to the fuel test articles, although the facility has been sized to eventually allow test article heating levels of up to several megawatts

Modeling of Uneven Flow and Electromagnetic Field Parameters in the Combustion Chamber of Liquid Rocket Engine with a Near-wall Layer Available

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A. V. Rudinskii

2015-01-01

Full Text Available The paper concerns modeling of an uneven flow and electromagnetic field parameters in the combustion chamber of the liquid rocket engine with a near-wall layer available.The research objective was to evaluate quantitatively influence of changing model chamber mode of the liquid rocket engine on the electro-physical characteristics of the hydrocarbon fuel combustion by-products.The main method of research was based on development of a final element model of the flowing path of the rocket engine chamber and its adaptation to the boundary conditions.The paper presents a developed two-dimensional non-stationary mathematical model of electro-physical processes in the liquid rocket engine chamber using hydrocarbon fuel. The model takes into consideration the features of a gas-dynamic contour of the engine chamber and property of thermo-gas-dynamic characteristics of the ionized products of combustion of hydrocarbonic fuel. Distributions of magnetic field intensity and electric conductivity received and analyzed taking into account a low-temperature near-wall layer. Special attention is paid to comparison of obtained calculation values of the electric current, which is taken out from intrachamber space of the engine with earlier published data of other authors.

Optical measurements in rocket engine liquid sprays

Science.gov (United States)

Feikema, Douglas A.

1994-01-01

The performance of liquid propellant rocket engines is dependent upon many elements of the entire system. One of the most fundamental and most critical is the performance of the injector elements. Their characterization is an important part of the development of combustion devices. Optical measurements within these environments have proven to be invaluable tools in quantifying the physical environment of two phase flows. The effort reported herein involves the measurement of drop velocity, drop size, and most importantly mass flux using Phase-Doppler Particle Anemometry within a spray generated by a single swirl injector element operating in atmospheric pressure conditions. The mass flux has been determined and validated by mechanical patternation methods and by profile integration of the mass flux.

Evaluation of undeveloped rocket engine cycle applications to advanced transportation

Science.gov (United States)

1990-01-01

Undeveloped pump-fed, liquid propellant rocket engine cycles were assessed and evaluated for application to Next Manned Transportation System (NMTS) vehicles, which would include the evolving Space Transportation System (STS Evolution), the Personnel Launch System (PLS), and the Advanced Manned Launch System (AMLS). Undeveloped engine cycles selected for further analysis had potential for increased reliability, more maintainability, reduced cost, and improved (or possibly level) performance when compared to the existing SSME and proposed STME engines. The split expander (SX) cycle, the full flow staged combustion (FFSC) cycle, and a hybrid version of the FFSC, which has a LOX expander drive for the LOX pump, were selected for definition and analysis. Technology requirements and issues were identified and analyses of vehicle systems weight deltas using the SX and FFSC cycles in AMLS vehicles were performed. A strawman schedule and cost estimate for FFSC subsystem technology developments and integrated engine system demonstration was also provided.

Investigation of the cooling film distribution in liquid rocket engine

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Luís Antonio Silva

2011-05-01

Full Text Available This study presents the results of the investigation of a cooling method widely used in the combustion chambers, which is called cooling film, and it is applied to a liquid rocket engine that uses as propellants liquid oxygen and kerosene. Starting from an engine cooling, whose film is formed through the fuel spray guns positioned on the periphery of the injection system, the film was experimentally examined, it is formed by liquid that seeped through the inner wall of the combustion chamber. The parameter used for validation and refinement of the theoretical penetration of the film was cooling, as this parameter is of paramount importance to obtain an efficient thermal protection inside the combustion chamber. Cold tests confirmed a penetrating cold enough cooling of the film for the length of the combustion chamber of the studied engine.

Hydrogen fuel cell engines and related technologies

Science.gov (United States)

2001-12-01

The manual documents the first training course developed on the use of hydrogen fuel cells in transportation. The manual contains eleven modules covering hydrogen properties, use and safety; fuel cell technology and its systems, fuel cell engine desi...

A unique nuclear thermal rocket engine using a particle bed reactor

Science.gov (United States)

Culver, Donald W.; Dahl, Wayne B.; McIlwain, Melvin C.

1992-01-01

Aerojet Propulsion Division (APD) studied 75-klb thrust Nuclear Thermal Rocket Engines (NTRE) with particle bed reactors (PBR) for application to NASA's manned Mars mission and prepared a conceptual design description of a unique engine that best satisfied mission-defined propulsion requirements and customer criteria. This paper describes the selection of a sprint-type Mars transfer mission and its impact on propulsion system design and operation. It shows how our NTRE concept was developed from this information. The resulting, unusual engine design is short, lightweight, and capable of high specific impulse operation, all factors that decrease Earth to orbit launch costs. Many unusual features of the NTRE are discussed, including nozzle area ratio variation and nozzle closure for closed loop after cooling. Mission performance calculations reveal that other well known engine options do not support this mission.

A History of Welding on the Space Shuttle Main Engine (1975 to 2010)

Science.gov (United States)

Zimmerman, Frank R.; Russell, Carolyn K.

2010-01-01

The Space Shuttle Main Engine (SSME) is a high performance, throttleable, liquid hydrogen fueled rocket engine. High thrust and specific impulse (Isp) are achieved through a staged combustion engine cycle, combined with high combustion pressure (approx.3000psi) generated by the two-stage pump and combustion process. The SSME is continuously throttleable from 67% to 109% of design thrust level. The design criteria for this engine maximize performance and weight, resulting in a 7,800 pound rocket engine that produces over a half million pounds of thrust in vacuum with a specific impulse of 452/sec. It is the most reliable rocket engine in the world, accumulating over one million seconds of hot-fire time and achieving 100% flight success in the Space Shuttle program. A rocket engine with the unique combination of high reliability, performance, and reusability comes at the expense of manufacturing simplicity. Several innovative design features and fabrication techniques are unique to this engine. This is as true for welding as any other manufacturing process. For many of the weld joints it seemed mean cheating physics and metallurgy to meet the requirements. This paper will present a history of the welding used to produce the world s highest performance throttleable rocket engine.

Easier Analysis With Rocket Science

Science.gov (United States)

2003-01-01

Analyzing rocket engines is one of Marshall Space Flight Center's specialties. When Marshall engineers lacked a software program flexible enough to meet their needs for analyzing rocket engine fluid flow, they overcame the challenge by inventing the Generalized Fluid System Simulation Program (GFSSP), which was named the co-winner of the NASA Software of the Year award in 2001. This paper describes the GFSSP in a wide variety of applications

Design of a 2000 lbf LOX/LCH4 Throttleable Rocket Engine for a Vertical Lander

Science.gov (United States)

Lopez, Israel

Liquid oxygen (LOX) and liquid methane (LCH4) has been recognized as an attractive rocket propellant combination because of its in-situ resource utilization (ISRU) capabilities, namely in Mars. ISRU would allow launch vehicles to carry greater payloads and promote missions to Mars. This has led to an increasing interest to develop spacecraft technologies that employ this propellant combination. The UTEP Center for Space Exploration and Technology Research (cSETR) has focused part of its research efforts to developing LOX/LCH4 systems. One of those projects includes the development of a vertical takeoff and landing vehicle called JANUS. This vehicle will employ a LOX/LCH 4 propulsion system. The main propulsion engine is called CROME-X and is currently being developed as part of this project. This rocket engine will employ LOX/LCH4 propellants and is intended to operate from 2000-500 lbf thrust range. This thesis describes the design and development of CROME-X. Specifically, it describes the design process for the main engine components, the design criteria for each, and plans for future engine development.

Conversion of a gasoline internal combustion engine to operate on hydrogen fuel

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bates, M.; Dincer, I.

2009-01-01

This study deals with the conversion of a gasoline spark ignition internal combustion engine to operate on hydrogen fuel while producing similar power, economy and reliability as gasoline. The conversion engine will have the fuel system redesigned and ignition and fuel timing changed. Engine construction material is of great importance due to the low ignition energy of hydrogen, making aluminum a desirable material in the intake manifold and combustion chamber. The engine selected to convert is a 3400 SFI dual over head cam General Motors engine. Hydrogen reacts with metals causing hydrogen embrittlement which leads to failure due to cracking. There are standards published by American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) to avoid such a problem. Tuning of the hydrogen engine proved to be challenging due to the basic tuning tools of a gasoline engine such as a wide band oxygen sensor that could not measure the 34:1 fuel air mixture needed for the hydrogen engine. Once the conversion was complete the engine was tested on a chassis dynamometer to compare the hydrogen horsepower and torque produced to that of a gasoline engine. Results showed that the engine is not operating correctly. The engine is not getting the proper amount of fuel needed for complete combustion when operated in a loaded state over 3000 rpm. The problem was found to be the use of the stock injector driver that could not deliver enough power for the proper operation of the larger CM4980 injectors. (author)

Nuclear thermal rockets using indigenous Martian propellants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zubrin, R.M.

1989-01-01

This paper considers a novel concept for a Martian descent and ascent vehicle, called NIMF (for nuclear rocket using indigenous Martian fuel), the propulsion for which will be provided by a nuclear thermal reactor which will heat an indigenous Martian propellant gas to form a high-thrust rocket exhaust. The performance of each of the candidate Martian propellants, which include CO2, H2O, CH4, N2, CO, and Ar, is assessed, and the methods of propellant acquisition are examined. Attention is also given to the issues of chemical compatibility between candidate propellants and reactor fuel and cladding materials, and the potential of winged Mars supersonic aircraft driven by this type of engine. It is shown that, by utilizing the nuclear landing craft in combination with a hydrogen-fueled nuclear thermal interplanetary vehicle and a heavy lift booster, it is possible to achieve a manned Mars mission in one launch. 6 refs

An improved heat transfer configuration for a solid-core nuclear thermal rocket engine

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Clark, J.S.; Walton, J.T.; Mcguire, M.L.

1992-07-01

Interrupted flow, impingement cooling, and axial power distribution are employed to enhance the heat-transfer configuration of a solid-core nuclear thermal rocket engine. Impingement cooling is introduced to increase the local heat-transfer coefficients between the reactor material and the coolants. Increased fuel loading is used at the inlet end of the reactor to enhance heat-transfer capability where the temperature differences are the greatest. A thermal-hydraulics computer program for an unfueled NERVA reactor core is employed to analyze the proposed configuration with attention given to uniform fuel loading, number of channels through the impingement wafers, fuel-element length, mass-flow rate, and wafer gap. The impingement wafer concept (IWC) is shown to have heat-transfer characteristics that are better than those of the NERVA-derived reactor at 2500 K. The IWC concept is argued to be an effective heat-transfer configuration for solid-core nuclear thermal rocket engines. 11 refs

PNNL Development and Analysis of Material-Based Hydrogen Storage Systems for the Hydrogen Storage Engineering Center of Excellence

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Brooks, Kriston P. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Alvine, Kyle J. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Johnson, Kenneth I. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Klymyshyn, Nicholas A. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Pires, Richard P. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Ronnebro, Ewa [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Simmons, Kevin L. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Weimar, Mark R. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Westman, Matthew P. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)

2016-02-29

The Hydrogen Storage Engineering Center of Excellence is a team of universities, industrial corporations, and federal laboratories with the mandate to develop lower-pressure, materials-based, hydrogen storage systems for hydrogen fuel cell light-duty vehicles. Although not engaged in the development of new hydrogen storage materials themselves, it is an engineering center that addresses engineering challenges associated with the currently available hydrogen storage materials. Three material-based approaches to hydrogen storage are being researched: 1) chemical hydrogen storage materials 2) cryo-adsorbents, and 3) metal hydrides. As a member of this Center, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) has been involved in the design and evaluation of systems developed with each of these three hydrogen storage materials. This report is a compilation of the work performed by PNNL for this Center.

Performance of a hydrogen-enriched ethanol engine at unthrottled and lean conditions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang, Bo; Ji, Changwei; Wang, Shuofeng

2016-01-01

Highlights: • H_2 addition eased cyclic variation of ethanol engine at unthrottled condition. • H_2-blended ethanol engine gains better efficiency at lean conditions. • Bmep of H_2-blended ethanol engine could be controlled by lean burning. • H_2 addition results in reduced exhaust loss and HC emissions. - Abstract: Concerning the throttling loss under part load conditions, it is feasible to further improve the engine thermal efficiency through operating the engine under the unthrottled condition and controlling its load by changing the excess air ratio. However, the narrow flammability of ethanol may lead the ethanol engine to encounter high cyclic variations under unthrottled and lean conditions. The addition of hydrogen is potentially helpful for solving this problem. In this test, the engine was run under an speed of 1400 rpm and unthrottled conditions. The hydrogen volume fractions in the intake were respectively kept at 0% and 3%. For a given hydrogen blending level, the ethanol flow rate was reduced to enable the engine to run under lean conditions. The results showed that the engine efficiency was improved with the blending of hydrogen. The highest thermal efficiency was improved by 6.07% after blending 3% hydrogen to the intake air. The addition of hydrogen could increase the engine torque output at lean conditions. Both cooling and exhaust losses were decreased after the hydrogen enrichment while adopting the lean combustion strategy. The hydrogen addition contributed to the extended lean burn limit and decreased cyclic variation under lean conditions. HC and CO emissions were decreased whereas NOx emissions were increased after the blending of hydrogen.

Coupled Lagrangian impingement spray model for doublet impinging injectors under liquid rocket engine operating conditions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Qiang WEI

2017-08-01

Full Text Available To predict the effect of the liquid rocket engine combustion chamber conditions on the impingement spray, the conventional uncoupled spray model for impinging injectors is extended by considering the coupling of the jet impingement process and the ambient gas field. The new coupled model consists of the plain-orifice sub-model, the jet-jet impingement sub-model and the droplet collision sub-model. The parameters of the child droplet are determined with the jet-jet impingement sub-model using correlations about the liquid jet parameters and the chamber conditions. The overall model is benchmarked under various impingement angles, jet momentum and off-center ratios. Agreement with the published experimental data validates the ability of the model to predict the key spray characteristics, such as the mass flux and mixture ratio distributions in quiescent air. Besides, impinging sprays under changing ambient pressure and non-uniform gas flow are investigated to explore the effect of liquid rocket engine chamber conditions. First, a transient impingement spray during engine start-up phase is simulated with prescribed pressure profile. The minimum average droplet diameter is achieved when the orifices work in cavitation state, and is about 30% smaller than the steady single phase state. Second, the effect of non-uniform gas flow produces off-center impingement and the rotated spray fan by 38°. The proposed model suggests more reasonable impingement spray characteristics than the uncoupled one and can be used as the first step in the complex simulation of coupling impingement spray and combustion in liquid rocket engines.

Coupled Lagrangian impingement spray model for doublet impinging injectors under liquid rocket engine operating conditions

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

Qiang WEI; Guozhu LIANG

2017-01-01

To predict the effect of the liquid rocket engine combustion chamber conditions on the impingement spray,the conventional uncoupled spray model for impinging injectors is extended by considering the couplingof the jet impingement process and the ambient gas field.The new coupled model consists of the plain-orifice sub-model,the jet-jet impingement sub-model and the droplet collision sub-model.The parameters of the child droplet are determined with the jet-jet impingement sub-model using correlations about the liquid jet parameters and the chamber conditions.The overall model is benchmarked under various impingement angles,jet momentum and offcenter ratios.Agreement with the published experimental data validates the ability of the model to predict the key spray characteristics,such as the mass flux and mixture ratio distributions in quiescent air.Besides,impinging sprays under changing ambient pressure and non-uniform gas flow are investigated to explore the effect of liquid rocket engine chamber conditions.First,a transient impingement spray during engine start-up phase is simulated with prescribed pressure profile.The minimum average droplet diameter is achieved when the orifices work in cavitation state,and is about 30％ smaller than the steady single phase state.Second,the effect of non-uniform gas flow produces off-center impingement and the rotated spray fan by 38°.The proposed model suggests more reasonable impingement spray characteristics than the uncoupled one and can be used as the first step in the complex simulation of coupling impingement spray and combustion in liquid rocket engines.

Recent Experimental Efforts on High-Pressure Supercritical Injection for Liquid Rockets and Their Implications

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bruce Chehroudi

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Pressure and temperature of the liquid rocket thrust chambers into which propellants are injected have been in an ascending trajectory to gain higher specific impulse. It is quite possible then that the thermodynamic condition into which liquid propellants are injected reaches or surpasses the critical point of one or more of the injected fluids. For example, in cryogenic hydrogen/oxygen liquid rocket engines, such as Space Shuttle Main Engine (SSME or Vulcain (Ariane 5, the injected liquid oxygen finds itself in a supercritical condition. Very little detailed information was available on the behavior of liquid jets under such a harsh environment nearly two decades ago. The author had the opportunity to be intimately involved in the evolutionary understanding of injection processes at the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL, spanning sub- to supercritical conditions during this period. The information included here attempts to present a coherent summary of experimental achievements pertinent to liquid rockets, focusing only on the injection of nonreacting cryogenic liquids into a high-pressure environment surpassing the critical point of at least one of the propellants. Moreover, some implications of the results acquired under such an environment are offered in the context of the liquid rocket combustion instability problem.

Identification of Noise Sources During Rocket Engine Test Firings and a Rocket Launch Using a Microphone Phased-Array

Science.gov (United States)

Panda, Jayanta; Mosher, Robert N.; Porter, Barry J.

2013-01-01

A 70 microphone, 10-foot by 10-foot, microphone phased array was built for use in the harsh environment of rocket launches. The array was setup at NASA Wallops launch pad 0A during a static test firing of Orbital Sciences' Antares engines, and again during the first launch of the Antares vehicle. It was placed 400 feet away from the pad, and was hoisted on a scissor lift 40 feet above ground. The data sets provided unprecedented insight into rocket noise sources. The duct exit was found to be the primary source during the static test firing; the large amount of water injected beneath the nozzle exit and inside the plume duct quenched all other sources. The maps of the noise sources during launch were found to be time-dependent. As the engines came to full power and became louder, the primary source switched from the duct inlet to the duct exit. Further elevation of the vehicle caused spilling of the hot plume, resulting in a distributed noise map covering most of the pad. As the entire plume emerged from the duct, and the ondeck water system came to full power, the plume itself became the loudest noise source. These maps of the noise sources provide vital insight for optimization of sound suppression systems for future Antares launches.

Study and Development of Face-Contact, Bellows Mechanical Seal for Liquid Hydrogen Turbopump

OpenAIRE

NOSAKA, Masataka; SUZUKI, Mineo; MIYAKAWA, Yukio; KAMIJO, Kenjiro; KIKUCHI, Masataka; MORI, Masahiro; 野坂, 正隆; 鈴木, 峰男; 宮川, 行雄; 上絛, 謙二郎; 菊池, 正孝; 森, 雅裕

1981-01-01

The development of a 10-ton thrust liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen (LOX and LH2) rocket engine is under way at the National Space Development Agency. In advance of the development of a liquid hydrogen turbopump, the National Aerospace Laboratory carried out study and development of a face-contact, bellows mechanical seal for a liquid hydrogen turbopump in co-operation with the National Space Development Agency. The present report describes the fundamental experiments of the mechanical seal ...

Effects of rocket engines on laser during lunar landing

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wan, Xiong, E-mail: wanxiong1@126.com [Key Laboratory of Space Active Opto-Electronics Technology, Shanghai Institute of Technical Physics, Chinese Academy of Science, Shanghai 200083 (China); Key Laboratory of Nondestructive Test (Ministry of Education), Nanchang Hangkong University, Nanchang 330063 (China); Shu, Rong; Huang, Genghua [Key Laboratory of Space Active Opto-Electronics Technology, Shanghai Institute of Technical Physics, Chinese Academy of Science, Shanghai 200083 (China)

2013-11-15

In the Chinese moon exploration project “ChangE-3”, the laser telemeter and lidar are important equipments on the lunar landing vehicle. A low-thrust vernier rocket engine works during the soft landing, whose plume may influence on the laser equipments. An experiment has first been accomplished to evaluate the influence of the plume on the propagation characteristics of infrared laser under the vacuum condition. Combination with our theoretical analysis has given an appropriate assessment of the plume's effects on the infrared laser hence providing a valuable basis for the design of lunar landing systems.

Effects of rocket engines on laser during lunar landing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wan, Xiong; Shu, Rong; Huang, Genghua

2013-01-01

In the Chinese moon exploration project “ChangE-3”, the laser telemeter and lidar are important equipments on the lunar landing vehicle. A low-thrust vernier rocket engine works during the soft landing, whose plume may influence on the laser equipments. An experiment has first been accomplished to evaluate the influence of the plume on the propagation characteristics of infrared laser under the vacuum condition. Combination with our theoretical analysis has given an appropriate assessment of the plume's effects on the infrared laser hence providing a valuable basis for the design of lunar landing systems

Characteristics of an electron-beam rocket pellet accelerator

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tsai, C.C.; Foster, C.A.; Schechter, D.E.

1989-01-01

An electron-beam rocket pellet accelerator has been designed, built, assembled, and tested as a proof-of-principle (POP) apparatus. The main goal of accelerators based on this concept is to use intense electron-beam heating and ablation of a hydrogen propellant stick to accelerate deuterium and/or tritium pellets to ultrahigh speeds (10 to 20 km/s) for plasma fueling of next-generation fusion devices such as the International Thermonuclear Engineering Reactor (ITER). The POP apparatus is described and initial results of pellet acceleration experiments are presented. Conceptual ultrahigh-speed pellet accelerators are discussed. 14 refs., 8 figs

Engine Cycle Analysis of Air Breathing Microwave Rocket with Reed Valves

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fukunari, Masafumi; Komatsu, Reiji; Yamaguchi, Toshikazu; Komurasaki, Kimiya; Arakawa, Yoshihiro; Katsurayama, Hiroshi

2011-01-01

The Microwave Rocket is a candidate for a low cost launcher system. Pulsed plasma generated by a high power millimeter wave beam drives a blast wave, and a vehicle acquires impulsive thrust by exhausting the blast wave. The thrust generation process of the Microwave Rocket is similar to a pulse detonation engine. In order to enhance the performance of its air refreshment, the air-breathing mechanism using reed valves is under development. Ambient air is taken to the thruster through reed valves. Reed valves are closed while the inside pressure is high enough. After the time when the shock wave exhausts at the open end, an expansion wave is driven and propagates to the thrust-wall. The reed valve is opened by the negative gauge pressure induced by the expansion wave and its reflection wave. In these processes, the pressure oscillation is important parameter. In this paper, the pressure oscillation in the thruster was calculated by CFD combined with the flux through from reed valves, which is estimated analytically. As a result, the air-breathing performance is evaluated using Partial Filling Rate (PFR), the ratio of thruster length to diameter L/D, and ratio of opening area of reed valves to superficial area α. An engine cycle and predicted thrust was explained.

Hot Hydrogen Test Facility

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

W. David Swank

2007-01-01

The core in a nuclear thermal rocket will operate at high temperatures and in hydrogen. One of the important parameters in evaluating the performance of a nuclear thermal rocket is specific impulse, ISp. This quantity is proportional to the square root of the propellant's absolute temperature and inversely proportional to square root of its molecular weight. Therefore, high temperature hydrogen is a favored propellant of nuclear thermal rocket designers. Previous work has shown that one of the life-limiting phenomena for thermal rocket nuclear cores is mass loss of fuel to flowing hydrogen at high temperatures. The hot hydrogen test facility located at the Idaho National Lab (INL) is designed to test suitability of different core materials in 2500 C hydrogen flowing at 1500 liters per minute. The facility is intended to test non-uranium containing materials and therefore is particularly suited for testing potential cladding and coating materials. In this first installment the facility is described. Automated Data acquisition, flow and temperature control, vessel compatibility with various core geometries and overall capabilities are discussed

Hydrogen as an Auxiliary Fuel in Compression-Ignition Engines

Science.gov (United States)

Gerrish, Harold C; Foster, H

1936-01-01

An investigation was made to determine whether a sufficient amount of hydrogen could be efficiently burned in a compression-ignition engine to compensate for the increase of lift of an airship due to the consumption of the fuel oil. The performance of a single-cylinder four-stroke-cycle compression-ignition engine operating on fuel oil alone was compared with its performance when various quantities of hydrogen were inducted with the inlet air. Engine-performance data, indicator cards, and exhaust-gas samples were obtained for each change in engine-operating conditions.

Analysis of startup strategies for a particle bed reactor nuclear rocket engine

Science.gov (United States)

Suzuki, D. E.

1993-06-01

This paper develops and analyzes engine system startup strategies for a particle bed reactor (PBR) nuclear rocket engine. The strategies are designed to maintain stable flow through the PBR fuel element while reaching the design conditions as quickly as possible. The analyses are conducted using a computer model of a representative particle bed reactor and engine system. Elements of the startup strategy considered include: the coordinated control of reactor power and coolant flow; turbine inlet temperature and flow control; and use of an external starter system. The simulation results indicate that the use of an external starter system enables the engine to reach design conditions very quickly while maintaining the flow well away from the unstable regime. If a bootstrap start is used instead, the transient does not progress as fast and approaches closer to the unstable flow regime, but allows for greater engine reusability. These results can provide important information for engine designers and mission planners.

Towards Rocket Engine Components with Increased Strength and Robust Operating Characteristics

Science.gov (United States)

Marcu, Bogdan; Hadid, Ali; Lin, Pei; Balcazar, Daniel; Rai, Man Mohan; Dorney, Daniel J.

2005-01-01

High-energy rotating machines, powering liquid propellant rocket engines, are subject to various sources of high and low cycle fatigue generated by unsteady flow phenomena. Given the tremendous need for reliability in a sustainable space exploration program, a fundamental change in the design methodology for engine components is required for both launch and space based systems. A design optimization system based on neural-networks has been applied and demonstrated in the redesign of the Space Shuttle Main Engine (SSME) Low Pressure Oxidizer Turbo Pump (LPOTP) turbine nozzle. One objective of the redesign effort was to increase airfoil thickness and thus increase its strength while at the same time detuning the vane natural frequency modes from the vortex shedding frequency. The second objective was to reduce the vortex shedding amplitude. The third objective was to maintain this low shedding amplitude even in the presence of large manufacturing tolerances. All of these objectives were achieved without generating any detrimental effects on the downstream flow through the turbine, and without introducing any penalty in performance. The airfoil redesign and preliminary assessment was performed in the Exploration Technology Directorate at NASA ARC. Boeing/Rocketdyne and NASA MSFC independently performed final CFD assessments of the design. Four different CFD codes were used in this process. They include WIL DCA T/CORSAIR (NASA), FLUENT (commercial), TIDAL (Boeing Rocketdyne) and, a new family (AardvarWPhantom) of CFD analysis codes developed at NASA MSFC employing LOX fluid properties and a Generalized Equation Set formulation. Extensive aerodynamic performance analysis and stress analysis carried out at Boeing Rocketdyne and NASA MSFC indicate that the redesign objectives have been fully met. The paper presents the results of the assessment analysis and discusses the future potential of robust optimal design for rocket engine components.

Development Testing of 1-Newton ADN-Based Rocket Engines

Science.gov (United States)

Anflo, K.; Gronland, T.-A.; Bergman, G.; Nedar, R.; Thormählen, P.

2004-10-01

With the objective to reduce operational hazards and improve specific and density impulse as compared with hydrazine, the Research and Development (R&D) of a new monopropellant for space applications based on AmmoniumDiNitramide (ADN), was first proposed in 1997. This pioneering work has been described in previous papers1,2,3,4 . From the discussion above, it is clear that cost savings as well as risk reduction are the main drivers to develop a new generation of reduced hazard propellants. However, this alone is not enough to convince a spacecraft builder to choose a new technology. Cost, risk and schedule reduction are good incentives, but a spacecraft supplier will ask for evidence that this new propulsion system meets a number of requirements within the following areas: This paper describes the ongoing effort to develop a storable liquid monopropellant blend, based on AND, and its specific rocket engines. After building and testing more than 20 experimental rocket engines, the first Engineering Model (EM-1) has now accumulated more than 1 hour of firing-time. The results from test firings have validated the design. Specific impulse, combustion stability, blow-down capability and short pulse capability are amongst the requirements that have been demonstrated. The LMP-103x propellant candidate has been stored for more than 1 year and initial material compatibility screening and testing has started. 1. Performance &life 2. Impact on spacecraft design &operation 3. Flight heritage Hereafter, the essential requirements for some of these areas are outlined. These issues are discussed in detail in a previous paper1 . The use of "Commercial Of The Shelf" (COTS) propulsion system components as much as possible is essential to minimize the overall cost, risk and schedule. This leads to the conclusion that the Technology Readiness Level (TRL) 5 has been reached for the thruster and propellant. Furthermore, that the concept of ADN-based propulsion is feasible.

CECE: Expanding the Envelope of Deep Throttling Technology in Liquid Oxygen/Liquid Hydrogen Rocket Engines for NASA Exploration Missions

Science.gov (United States)

Giuliano, Victor J.; Leonard, Timothy G.; Lyda, Randy T.; Kim, Tony S.

2010-01-01

As one of the first technology development programs awarded by NASA under the Vision for Space Exploration, the Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne (PWR) Deep Throttling, Common Extensible Cryogenic Engine (CECE) program was selected by NASA in November 2004 to begin technology development and demonstration toward a deep throttling, cryogenic engine supporting ongoing trade studies for NASA s Lunar Lander descent stage. The CECE program leverages the maturity and previous investment of a flight-proven hydrogen/oxygen expander cycle engine, the PWR RL10, to develop and demonstrate an unprecedented combination of reliability, safety, durability, throttlability, and restart capabilities in high-energy, cryogenic, in-space propulsion. The testbed selected for the deep throttling demonstration phases of this program was a minimally modified RL10 engine, allowing for maximum current production engine commonality and extensibility with minimum program cost. Four series of demonstrator engine tests have been successfully completed between April 2006 and April 2010, accumulating 7,436 seconds of hot fire time over 47 separate tests. While the first two test series explored low power combustion (chug) and system instabilities, the third test series investigated and was ultimately successful in demonstrating several mitigating technologies for these instabilities and achieved a stable throttling ratio of 13:1. The fourth test series significantly expanded the engine s operability envelope by successfully demonstrating a closed-loop control system and extensive transient modeling to enable lower power engine starting, faster throttle ramp rates, and mission-specific ignition testing. The final hot fire test demonstrated a chug-free, minimum power level of 5.9%, corresponding to an overall 17.6:1 throttling ratio achieved. In total, these tests have provided an early technology demonstration of an enabling cryogenic propulsion concept with invaluable system-level technology data

Role of hydrogen on engineering education. ICHET example

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yazici, M. Suha [International Centre for Hydrogen Energy Technologies, Istanbul (Turkey)

2010-07-01

International Center for Hydrogen Energy Technologies (ICHET) has been successfully supporting engineering students with practical experience on ''hydrogen and fuel cell systems built upon their theoretical engineering learning through classroom. A series of activities designed to increase the knowledge and awareness of engineering students and advancedresearchers has been implemented. These activities can be classified under meetings, system integration and training activities. Meeting activities include short courses, technology specific workshops and conferences, sponsorships and summer schools. System integration for prototype demonstrations forms the basis for hand-on practical learning through university-industry collaboration, demonstration activities and application specific supports. Training activities involve internships, part-time employment and laboratory educations. All these activities facilitate knowledge transfer, exchange of information at regional, national and international levels and involve academics, researchers, experts and service providers to further develop their knowledge and interest on hydrogen energy technologies. (orig.)

A reliability as an independent variable (RAIV) methodology for optimizing test planning for liquid rocket engines

Science.gov (United States)

Strunz, Richard; Herrmann, Jeffrey W.

2011-12-01

The hot fire test strategy for liquid rocket engines has always been a concern of space industry and agency alike because no recognized standard exists. Previous hot fire test plans focused on the verification of performance requirements but did not explicitly include reliability as a dimensioning variable. The stakeholders are, however, concerned about a hot fire test strategy that balances reliability, schedule, and affordability. A multiple criteria test planning model is presented that provides a framework to optimize the hot fire test strategy with respect to stakeholder concerns. The Staged Combustion Rocket Engine Demonstrator, a program of the European Space Agency, is used as example to provide the quantitative answer to the claim that a reduced thrust scale demonstrator is cost beneficial for a subsequent flight engine development. Scalability aspects of major subsystems are considered in the prior information definition inside the Bayesian framework. The model is also applied to assess the impact of an increase of the demonstrated reliability level on schedule and affordability.

An experimental study on performance and emission characteristics of a hydrogen fuelled spark ignition engine

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kahraman, Erol [Program of Energy Engineering, Izmir Institute of Technology, Urla, Izmir 35430 (Turkey); Cihangir Ozcanli, S.; Ozerdem, Baris [Department of Mechanical Engineering, Izmir Institute of Technology, Urla, Izmir 35430 (Turkey)

2007-08-15

In the present paper, the performance and emission characteristics of a conventional four cylinder spark ignition (SI) engine operated on hydrogen and gasoline are investigated experimentally. The compressed hydrogen at 20 MPa has been introduced to the engine adopted to operate on gaseous hydrogen by external mixing. Two regulators have been used to drop the pressure first to 300 kPa, then to atmospheric pressure. The variations of torque, power, brake thermal efficiency, brake mean effective pressure, exhaust gas temperature, and emissions of NO{sub x}, CO, CO{sub 2}, HC, and O{sub 2} versus engine speed are compared for a carbureted SI engine operating on gasoline and hydrogen. Energy analysis also has studied for comparison purpose. The test results have been demonstrated that power loss occurs at low speed hydrogen operation whereas high speed characteristics compete well with gasoline operation. Fast burning characteristics of hydrogen have permitted high speed engine operation. Less heat loss has occurred for hydrogen than gasoline. NO{sub x} emission of hydrogen fuelled engine is about 10 times lower than gasoline fuelled engine. Finally, both first and second law efficiencies have improved with hydrogen fuelled engine compared to gasoline engine. It has been proved that hydrogen is a very good candidate as an engine fuel. The obtained data are also very useful for operational changes needed to optimize the hydrogen fueled SI engine design. (author)

Fuzzy/Neural Software Estimates Costs of Rocket-Engine Tests

Science.gov (United States)

Douglas, Freddie; Bourgeois, Edit Kaminsky

2005-01-01

The Highly Accurate Cost Estimating Model (HACEM) is a software system for estimating the costs of testing rocket engines and components at Stennis Space Center. HACEM is built on a foundation of adaptive-network-based fuzzy inference systems (ANFIS) a hybrid software concept that combines the adaptive capabilities of neural networks with the ease of development and additional benefits of fuzzy-logic-based systems. In ANFIS, fuzzy inference systems are trained by use of neural networks. HACEM includes selectable subsystems that utilize various numbers and types of inputs, various numbers of fuzzy membership functions, and various input-preprocessing techniques. The inputs to HACEM are parameters of specific tests or series of tests. These parameters include test type (component or engine test), number and duration of tests, and thrust level(s) (in the case of engine tests). The ANFIS in HACEM are trained by use of sets of these parameters, along with costs of past tests. Thereafter, the user feeds HACEM a simple input text file that contains the parameters of a planned test or series of tests, the user selects the desired HACEM subsystem, and the subsystem processes the parameters into an estimate of cost(s).

Investigation on the lean combustion performance of a hydrogen-enriched n-butanol engine

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang, Bo; Ji, Changwei; Wang, Shuofeng

2017-01-01

Highlights: • H_2 addition avails improving thermal efficiency of n-butanol engines. • Lean burn limit of n-butanol engine is extended by H_2 addition. • H_2 addition shortens the n-butanol engine combustion duration. • HC and CO from the n-butanol engine are decreased by H_2 addition. - Abstract: n-Butanol is a feasible fuel candidate for spark-ignition engines. The current paper carried out an experiment to explore effects of hydrogen addition on further improving the performance of a n-butanol engine under the part load and lean conditions. Within the test, the engine intake pressure and speed were respectively kept at 61.5 kPa and 1400 rpm. The volumetric fractions of hydrogen in the total intake gas (hydrogen + air) were constrained at 0 and 3%, respectively. Under a certain hydrogen blending level, the global excess air ratio of in-cylinder charge which was changed from the stoichiometric to near the lean burn limit was adjusted by varying the n-butanol injection duration. The experimental results confirmed that the brake thermal efficiency was heightened and the lean burn limit was extended after the hydrogen addition. Besides, compared with the pure n-butanol combustion, the hydrogen enrichment enables the engine to gain dropped ignition delay and rapid combustion duration. Moreover, CO and HC from the pure n-butanol engine were reduced by the hydrogen addition. NOx were generally reduced when the excess air ratio was raised. This suggested that NOx from the hydrogen-enriched butanol engine could also be controlled by lean combustion.

Study of solid rocket motor for space shuttle booster, volume 2, book 1

Science.gov (United States)

1972-01-01

The technical requirements for the solid propellant rocket engine to be used with the space shuttle orbiter are presented. The subjects discussed are: (1) propulsion system definition, (2) solid rocket engine stage design, (3) solid rocket engine stage recovery, (4) environmental effects, (5) manrating of the solid rocket engine stage, (6) system safety analysis, and (7) ground support equipment.

Ozone Depletion Caused by Rocket Engine Emissions: A Fundamental Limit on the Scale and Viability of Space-Based Geoengineering Schemes

Science.gov (United States)

Ross, M. N.; Toohey, D.

2008-12-01

Emissions from solid and liquid propellant rocket engines reduce global stratospheric ozone levels. Currently ~ one kiloton of payloads are launched into earth orbit annually by the global space industry. Stratospheric ozone depletion from present day launches is a small fraction of the ~ 4% globally averaged ozone loss caused by halogen gases. Thus rocket engine emissions are currently considered a minor, if poorly understood, contributor to ozone depletion. Proposed space-based geoengineering projects designed to mitigate climate change would require order of magnitude increases in the amount of material launched into earth orbit. The increased launches would result in comparable increases in the global ozone depletion caused by rocket emissions. We estimate global ozone loss caused by three space-based geoengineering proposals to mitigate climate change: (1) mirrors, (2) sunshade, and (3) space-based solar power (SSP). The SSP concept does not directly engineer climate, but is touted as a mitigation strategy in that SSP would reduce CO2 emissions. We show that launching the mirrors or sunshade would cause global ozone loss between 2% and 20%. Ozone loss associated with an economically viable SSP system would be at least 0.4% and possibly as large as 3%. It is not clear which, if any, of these levels of ozone loss would be acceptable under the Montreal Protocol. The large uncertainties are mainly caused by a lack of data or validated models regarding liquid propellant rocket engine emissions. Our results offer four main conclusions. (1) The viability of space-based geoengineering schemes could well be undermined by the relatively large ozone depletion that would be caused by the required rocket launches. (2) Analysis of space- based geoengineering schemes should include the difficult tradeoff between the gain of long-term (~ decades) climate control and the loss of short-term (~ years) deep ozone loss. (3) The trade can be properly evaluated only if our

Hydrogen enrichment of an internal combustion engine via closed loop thermochemical recuperation

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Zwitserlood, J.G.; Hofman, T.; Erickson, P.A.

2013-01-01

Hydrogen enrichment in an internal combustion engine can greatly improve efficiency and at the same time reduce emissions without the need for extensive engine modifications. One option for a hydrogen source for the enrichment is actively producing hydrogen on-board the vehicle through steam

Public perception related to a hydrogen hybrid internal combustion engine transit bus demonstration and hydrogen fuel

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hickson, Allister; Phillips, Al; Morales, Gene

2007-01-01

Hydrogen has been widely considered as a potentially viable alternative to fossil fuels for use in transportation. In addition to price competitiveness with fossil fuels, a key to its adoption will be public perceptions of hydrogen technologies and hydrogen fuel. This paper examines public perceptions of riders of a hydrogen hybrid internal combustion engine bus and hydrogen as a fuel source

Technology for Transient Simulation of Vibration during Combustion Process in Rocket Thruster

Science.gov (United States)

Zubanov, V. M.; Stepanov, D. V.; Shabliy, L. S.

2018-01-01

The article describes the technology for simulation of transient combustion processes in the rocket thruster for determination of vibration frequency occurs during combustion. The engine operates on gaseous propellant: oxygen and hydrogen. Combustion simulation was performed using the ANSYS CFX software. Three reaction mechanisms for the stationary mode were considered and described in detail. The way for obtaining quick CFD-results with intermediate combustion components using an EDM model was found. The way to generate the Flamelet library with CFX-RIF was described. A technique for modeling transient combustion processes in the rocket thruster was proposed based on the Flamelet library. A cyclic irregularity of the temperature field like vortex core precession was detected in the chamber. Frequency of flame precession was obtained with the proposed simulation technique.

Development and analysis of startup strategies for particle bed nuclear rocket engine

Science.gov (United States)

Suzuki, David E.

1993-06-01

The particle bed reactor (PBR) nuclear thermal propulsion rocket engine concept is the focus of the Air Force's Space Nuclear Thermal Propulsion program. While much progress has been made in developing the concept, several technical issues remain. Perhaps foremost among these concerns is the issue of flow stability through the porous, heated bed of fuel particles. There are two complementary technical issues associated with this concern: the identification of the flow stability boundary and the design of the engine controller to maintain stable operation. This thesis examines a portion of the latter issue which has yet to be addressed in detail. Specifically, it develops and analyzes general engine system startup strategies which maintain stable flow through the PBR fuel elements while reaching the design conditions as quickly as possible. The PBR engine studies are conducted using a computer model of a representative particle bed reactor and engine system. The computer program utilized is an augmented version of SAFSIM, an existing nuclear thermal propulsion modeling code; the augmentation, dubbed SAFSIM+, was developed by the author and provides a more complete engine system modeling tool.

PERFORMANCE EVALUATION OF EXTERNAL MIXTURE FORMATION STRATEGY IN HYDROGEN-FUELED ENGINE

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mohammed Kamil

2011-12-01

Full Text Available Mohammed Kamil1, M. M. Rahman2 and Rosli A. Bakar2Hydrogen induction strategy in an internal combustion engine plays a vital role in increasing the power density and prohibiting combustion anomalies. This paper inspects the performance characteristics of cylinder hydrogen-fueled engine with port injection feeding strategy. To that end, a one-dimensional gas dynamic model has been built to represent the flow and heat transfer in the components of the engine. The governing equations are introduced followed by the performance parameters and model description. Air-fuel ratio was varied from a stoichiometric limit to a lean limit. The rotational speed of the engine was also changed from 1000 to 4500 RPM. The injector location was fixed in the mid-point of the intake port. The general behavior of the hydrogen engine was similar to that of a gasoline engine, apart from a reduction in the power density, which was due to a decrease in the volumetric efficiency. This emphasizes the ability of retrofitting traditional engines for hydrogen fuel with minor modifications. The decrease in the volumetric efficiency needs to be rectified.

High Frequency Combustion Instabilities of LOx/CH4 Spray Flames in Rocket Engine Combustion Chambers

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Sliphorst, M.

2011-01-01

Ever since the early stages of space transportation in the 1940’s, and the related liquid propellant rocket engine development, combustion instability has been a major issue. High frequency combustion instability (HFCI) is the interaction between combustion and the acoustic field in the combustion

Hybrid vehicle system studies and optimized hydrogen engine design

Science.gov (United States)

Smith, J. R.; Aceves, S.

1995-04-01

We have done system studies of series hydrogen hybrid automobiles that approach the PNGV design goal of 34 km/liter (80 mpg), for 384 km (240 mi) and 608 km (380 mi) ranges. Our results indicate that such a vehicle appears feasible using an optimized hydrogen engine. We have evaluated the impact of various on-board storage options on fuel economy. Experiments in an available engine at the Sandia CRF demonstrated NO(x) emissions of 10 to 20 ppM at an equivalence ratio of 0.4, rising to about 500 ppm at 0.5 equivalence ratio using neat hydrogen. Hybrid simulation studies indicate that exhaust NO(x) concentrations must be less than 180 ppM to meet the 0.2 g/mile ULEV or Federal Tier II emissions regulations. LLNL has designed and fabricated a first generation optimized hydrogen engine head for use on an existing Onan engine. This head features 15:1 compression ratio, dual ignition, water cooling, two valves and open quiescent combustion chamber to minimize heat transfer losses. Initial testing shows promise of achieving an indicated efficiency of nearly 50% and emissions of less than 100 ppM NO(x). Hydrocarbons and CO are to be measured, but are expected to be very low since their only source is engine lubricating oil. A successful friction reduction program on the Onan engine should result in a brake thermal efficiency of about 42% compared to today's gasoline engines of 32%. Based on system studies requirements, the next generation engine will be about 2 liter displacement and is projected to achieve 46% brake thermal efficiency with outputs of 15 kW for cruise and 40 kW for hill climb.

Start up system for hydrogen generator used with an internal combustion engine

Science.gov (United States)

Houseman, J.; Cerini, D. J. (Inventor)

1977-01-01

A hydrogen generator provides hydrogen rich product gases which are mixed with the fuel being supplied to an internal combustion engine for the purpose of enabling a very lean mixture of that fuel to be used, whereby nitrous oxides emitted by the engine are minimized. The hydrogen generator contains a catalyst which must be heated to a pre-determined temperature before it can react properly. To simplify the process of heating up the catalyst at start-up time, either some of the energy produced by the engine such as engine exhaust gas, or electrical energy produced by the engine, or the engine exhaust gas may be used to heat up air which is then used to heat the catalyst.

Development and Performance of the 10 kN Hybrid Rocket Motor for the Stratos II Sounding Rocket

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Werner, R.M.; Knop, T.R.; Wink, J; Ehlen, J; Huijsman, R; Powell, S; Florea, R.; Wieling, W; Cervone, A.; Zandbergen, B.T.C.

2016-01-01

This paper presents the development work of the 10 kN hybrid rocket motor DHX-200 Aurora. The DHX-200 Aurora was developed by Delft Aerospace Rocket Engineering (DARE) to power the Stratos II and Stratos II+ sounding rocket, with the later one being launched in October 2015. Stratos II and Stratos

Rocket-Based Combined Cycle Engine Technology Development: Inlet CFD Validation and Application

Science.gov (United States)

DeBonis, J. R.; Yungster, S.

1996-01-01

A CFD methodology has been developed for inlet analyses of Rocket-Based Combined Cycle (RBCC) Engines. A full Navier-Stokes analysis code, NPARC, was used in conjunction with pre- and post-processing tools to obtain a complete description of the flow field and integrated inlet performance. This methodology was developed and validated using results from a subscale test of the inlet to a RBCC 'Strut-Jet' engine performed in the NASA Lewis 1 x 1 ft. supersonic wind tunnel. Results obtained from this study include analyses at flight Mach numbers of 5 and 6 for super-critical operating conditions. These results showed excellent agreement with experimental data. The analysis tools were also used to obtain pre-test performance and operability predictions for the RBCC demonstrator engine planned for testing in the NASA Lewis Hypersonic Test Facility. This analysis calculated the baseline fuel-off internal force of the engine which is needed to determine the net thrust with fuel on.

Application of Probabilistic Methods to Assess Risk Due to Resonance in the Design of J-2X Rocket Engine Turbine Blades

Science.gov (United States)

Brown, Andrew M.; DeHaye, Michael; DeLessio, Steven

2011-01-01

The LOX-Hydrogen J-2X Rocket Engine, which is proposed for use as an upper-stage engine for numerous earth-to-orbit and heavy lift launch vehicle architectures, is presently in the design phase and will move shortly to the initial development test phase. Analysis of the design has revealed numerous potential resonance issues with hardware in the turbomachinery turbine-side flow-path. The analysis of the fuel pump turbine blades requires particular care because resonant failure of the blades, which are rotating in excess of 30,000 revolutions/minutes (RPM), could be catastrophic for the engine and the entire launch vehicle. This paper describes a series of probabilistic analyses performed to assess the risk of failure of the turbine blades due to resonant vibration during past and present test series. Some significant results are that the probability of failure during a single complete engine hot-fire test is low (1%) because of the small likelihood of resonance, but that the probability increases to around 30% for a more focused turbomachinery-only test because all speeds will be ramped through and there is a greater likelihood of dwelling at more speeds. These risk calculations have been invaluable for use by program management in deciding if risk-reduction methods such as dampers are necessary immediately or if the test can be performed before the risk-reduction hardware is ready.

Variable composition hydrogen/natural gas mixtures for increased engine efficiency and decreased emissions

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sierens, R.; Rosseel, E.

2000-01-01

It is well known that adding hydrogen to natural gas extends the lean limit of combustion and that in this way extremely low emission levels can be obtained: even the equivalent zero emission vehicle (EZEV) requirements can be reached. The emissions reduction is especially important at light engine loads. In this paper results are presented for a GM V8 engine. Natural gas, pure hydrogen and different blends of these two fuels have been tested. The fuel supply system used provides natural gas/hydrogen mixtures in variable proportion, regulated independently of the engine operating condition. The influence of the fuel composition on the engine operating characteristics and exhaust emissions has been examined, mainly but not exclusively for 10 and 20% hydrogen addition. At least 10% hydrogen addition is necessary for a significant improvement in efficiency. Due to the conflicting requirements for low hydrocarbons and low NO{sub x} determining the optimum hythane composition is not straight-forward. For hythane mixtures with a high hydrogen fraction, it is found that a hydrogen content of 80% or less guarantees safe engine operation (no backfire nor knock), whatever the air excess factor. It is shown that to obtain maximum engine efficiency for the whole load range while taking low exhaust emissions into account, the mixture composition should be varied with respect to engine load.

Acoustically Forced Coaxial Hydrogen / Liquid Oxygen Jet Flames

Science.gov (United States)

2016-05-15

Conference Paper 3. DATES COVERED (From - To) 18 Mar 2016 – 15 May 2016 4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE Acoustically Forced Coaxial Hydrogen / Liquid Oxygen Jet...perform, display, or disclose the work. 13. SUPPLEMENTARY NOTES For presentation at 28th Annual Conference on Liquid Atomization and Spray Systems...serious problems in the development of liquid rocket engines. In order to understand and predict them, it is necessary to understand how representative

Effect of buoyancy on fuel containment in an open-cycle gas-core nuclear rocket engine.

Science.gov (United States)

Putre, H. A.

1971-01-01

Analysis aimed at determining the scaling laws for the buoyancy effect on fuel containment in an open-cycle gas-core nuclear rocket engine, so conducted that experimental conditions can be related to engine conditions. The fuel volume fraction in a short coaxial flow cavity is calculated with a programmed numerical solution of the steady Navier-Stokes equations for isothermal, variable density fluid mixing. A dimensionless parameter B, called the Buoyancy number, was found to correlate the fuel volume fraction for large accelerations and various density ratios. This parameter has the value B = 0 for zero acceleration, and B = 350 for typical engine conditions.

Operation of a cryogenic rocket engine an outline with down-to-earth and up-to-space remarks

CERN Document Server

Kitsche, Wolfgang

2010-01-01

This book presents the operational aspects of the rocket engine on a test facility. It will be useful to engineers and scientists who are in touch with the test facility. To aerospace students it shall provide an insight of the job on the test facility. And to interest readers it shall provide an impression of this thrilling area of aerospace.

Investigation of Dual-Vortical-Flow Hybrid Rocket Engine without Flame Holding Mechanism

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A. Lai

2018-01-01

Full Text Available A 250 kgf thrust hybrid rocket engine was designed, tested, and verified in this work. Due to the injection and flow pattern of this engine, this engine was named dual-vortical-flow engine. This propulsion system uses N2O as oxidizer and HDPE as fuel. This engine was numerically investigated using a CFD tool that can handle reacting flow with finite-rate chemistry and coupled with the real-fluid model. The engine was further verified via a hot-fire test for 12 s. The ground Isp of the engine was 232 s and 221 s for numerical and hot-fire tests, respectively. An oscillation frequency with an order of 100 Hz was observed in both numerical and hot-fire tests with less than 5% of pressure oscillation. Swirling pattern on the fuel surface was also observed in both numerical and hot-fire test, which proves that this swirling dual-vortical-flow engine works exactly as designed. The averaged regression rate of the fuel surface was found to be 0.6~0.8 mm/s at the surface of disk walls and 1.5~1.7 mm/s at the surface of central core of the fuel grain.

Experimental study of hydrogen as a fuel additive in internal combustion engines

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Saanum, Inge

2008-07-01

Combustion of hydrocarbons in internal combustion engines results in emissions that can be harmful both to human health and to the environment. Although the engine technology is improving, the emissions of NO{sub x}, PM and UHC are still challenging. Besides, the overall consumption of fossil fuel and hence the emissions of CO{sub 2} are increasing because of the increasing number of vehicles. This has lead to a focus on finding alternative fuels and alternative technologies that may result in lower emissions of harmful gases and lower CO{sub 2} emissions. This thesis treats various topics that are relevant when using blends of fuels in different internal combustion engine technologies, with a particular focus on using hydrogen as a fuel additive. The topics addressed are especially the ones that impact the environment, such as emissions of harmful gases and thermal efficiency (fuel consumption). The thesis is based on experimental work performed at four different test rigs: 1. A dynamic combustion rig with optical access to the combustion chamber where spark ignited premixed combustion could be studied by means of a Schlieren optical setup and a high speed video camera. 2. A spark ignition natural gas engine rig with an optional exhaust gas recycling system. 3. A 1-cylinder diesel engine prepared for homogeneous charge compression ignition combustion. 4. A 6-cylinder standard diesel engine The engine rigs were equipped with cylinder pressure sensors, engine dynamometers, exhaust gas analyzers etc. to enable analyses of the effects of different fuels. The effect of hydrogen blended with methane and natural gas in spark ignited premixed combustion was investigated in the dynamic combustion rig and in a natural gas engine. In the dynamic combustion rig, the effect of hydrogen added to methane on the flame speed and the flame structure was investigated at elevated pressure and temperature. A considerable increase in the flame speed was observed when adding 30 vol

Simulations of Multi Combustion Modes Hydrogen Engines for Heavy Duty Trucks

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alberto A. Boretti

2012-01-01

Full Text Available The paper presents the numerical study of a diesel direct injection heavy duty truck engine converted to hydrogen. The engine has a power turbine connected through a clutch and a continuously variable transmission to the crankshaft. The power turbine may be disconnected and by-passed when it is inefficient or inconvenient to use. The conversion is obtained by replacing the Diesel injector with a hydrogen injector and the glow plug with a jet ignition device. The hydrogen engine operates different modes of combustion depending on the relative phasing of the main injection and the jet ignition. The engine generally operates mostly in Diesel-like mode, with the most part of the main injection following the suitable creation in cylinder conditions by jet ignition. For medium-low loads, better efficienciy is obtained with the gasoline-like mode jet igniting the premixed homogeneous mixture at top dead centre. It’s permitted at higher loads or at very low loads for the excessive peak pressure or the mixture too lean to burn rapidly. The hydrogen engine has better efficiency than Diesel outputs and fuel conversion. Thanks to the larger rate of heat release, it has the opportunity to run closer to stoichiometry and the multi mode capabilities. The critical area for this engine development is found in the design of a hydrogen injector delivering the amount of fuel needed to the large volume cylinder within a Diesel-like injection time.

Hydrogen-ethanol blending as an alternative fuel of spark ignition engines

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Al-Baghdadi, M.A.S. [University of Babylon (Iraq). Dept. of Mechanical Engineering

2003-07-01

The performance and pollutant emission of a four-stroke spark ignition engine using hydrogen-ethanol blends as fuel have been studied. The tests were performed using 2, 4, 6, 8, 1 0 and 12 mass% hydrogen-ethanol blends. Gasoline fuel was used as a basis for comparison. The effect of using different blends of hydrogen-ethanol on engine power, specific fuel consumption, CO and NO{sub x} emission was studied. Operating test results for a range of compression ratio (CR) and equivalent ratio are presented. The results show that the supplemental hydrogen in the ethanol-air mixture improves the combustion process and hence improves the combustion efficiency, expands the range of combustibility of the ethanol fuel, increases the power, reduces the s.f.c. and reduces toxic emissions. The important improvement of hydrogen addition is to reduce the s.f.c. of ethanol engines. Results were compared to those with gasoline fuel at 7 CR and stoichiometric equivalence ratio. (author)

On the hydrodynamics of rocket propellant engine inducers and turbopumps

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

D'Agostino, L

2013-01-01

The lecture presents an overview of some recent results of the work carried out at Alta on the hydrodynamic design and rotordynamic fluid forces of cavitating turbopumps for liquid propellant feed systems of modern rocket engines. The reduced order models recently developed for preliminary geometric definition and noncavitating performance prediction of tapered-hub axial inducers and centrifugal turbopumps are illustrated. The experimental characterization of the rotordynamic forces acting on a whirling four-bladed, tapered-hub, variable-pitch high-head inducer, under different load and cavitation conditions is presented. Future perspectives of the work to be carried out at Alta in this area of research are briefly illustrated

Digital Image Correlation Techniques Applied to Large Scale Rocket Engine Testing

Science.gov (United States)

Gradl, Paul R.

2016-01-01

Rocket engine hot-fire ground testing is necessary to understand component performance, reliability and engine system interactions during development. The J-2X upper stage engine completed a series of developmental hot-fire tests that derived performance of the engine and components, validated analytical models and provided the necessary data to identify where design changes, process improvements and technology development were needed. The J-2X development engines were heavily instrumented to provide the data necessary to support these activities which enabled the team to investigate any anomalies experienced during the test program. This paper describes the development of an optical digital image correlation technique to augment the data provided by traditional strain gauges which are prone to debonding at elevated temperatures and limited to localized measurements. The feasibility of this optical measurement system was demonstrated during full scale hot-fire testing of J-2X, during which a digital image correlation system, incorporating a pair of high speed cameras to measure three-dimensional, real-time displacements and strains was installed and operated under the extreme environments present on the test stand. The camera and facility setup, pre-test calibrations, data collection, hot-fire test data collection and post-test analysis and results are presented in this paper.

Optimization of the stand for test of hybrid rocket engines of solid fuel

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zolotorev Nikolay

2017-01-01

Full Text Available In the paper the laboratory experimental stand of the hybrid rocket engine of solid fuel to study ballistic parameters of the engine at burning of high-energy materials in flow of hot gas is presented. Mixture of air with nitrogen with a specified content of active oxygen is used as a gaseous oxidizer. The experimental stand has modular design and consists of system of gas supply, system of heating of gas, system for monitoring gas parameters, to which a load cell with a model engine was connected. The modular design of the stand allows to change its configuration under specific objective. This experimental stand allows to conduct a wide range of the pilot studies at interaction of a hot stream of gas with samples high-energy materials.

Three Dimensional Numerical Simulation of Rocket-based Combined-cycle Engine Response During Mode Transition Events

Science.gov (United States)

Edwards, Jack R.; McRae, D. Scott; Bond, Ryan B.; Steffan, Christopher (Technical Monitor)

2003-01-01

The GTX program at NASA Glenn Research Center is designed to develop a launch vehicle concept based on rocket-based combined-cycle (RBCC) propulsion. Experimental testing, cycle analysis, and computational fluid dynamics modeling have all demonstrated the viability of the GTX concept, yet significant technical issues and challenges still remain. Our research effort develops a unique capability for dynamic CFD simulation of complete high-speed propulsion devices and focuses this technology toward analysis of the GTX response during critical mode transition events. Our principal attention is focused on Mode 1/Mode 2 operation, in which initial rocket propulsion is transitioned into thermal-throat ramjet propulsion. A critical element of the GTX concept is the use of an Independent Ramjet Stream (IRS) cycle to provide propulsion at Mach numbers less than 3. In the IRS cycle, rocket thrust is initially used for primary power, and the hot rocket plume is used as a flame-holding mechanism for hydrogen fuel injected into the secondary air stream. A critical aspect is the establishment of a thermal throat in the secondary stream through the combination of area reduction effects and combustion-induced heat release. This is a necessity to enable the power-down of the rocket and the eventual shift to ramjet mode. Our focus in this first year of the grant has been in three areas, each progressing directly toward the key initial goal of simulating thermal throat formation during the IRS cycle: CFD algorithm development; simulation of Mode 1 experiments conducted at Glenn's Rig 1 facility; and IRS cycle simulations. The remainder of this report discusses each of these efforts in detail and presents a plan of work for the next year.

Influence of atomization quality modulation on flame dynamics in a hypergolic rocket engine

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Moritz Schulze

2016-09-01

Full Text Available For the numerical evaluation of the thermoacoustic stability of rocket engines often hybrid methods are applied, which separate the computation of wave propagation in the combustor from the analysis of the flame response to acoustic perturbations. Closure requires a thermoacoustic feedback model which provides the heat release fluctuation in the source term of the employed wave transport equations. The influence of the acoustic fluctuations in the combustion chamber on the heat release fluctuations from the modulation of the atomization of the propellants in a hypergolic upper stage rocket engine is studied. Numerical modeling of a single injector provides the time mean reacting flow field. A network of transfer functions representing all aspects relevant for the feedback model is presented. Analytical models for the injector admittances and for the atomization transfer functions are provided. The dynamics of evaporation and combustion are studied numerically and the numerical results are analyzed. An analytical approximation of the computed flame transfer function is combined with the analytical models for the injector and the atomization quality to derive the feedback model for the wave propagation code. The evaluation of this model on the basis of the Rayleigh index reveals the thermoacoustic driving potential originating from the fluctuating spray quality.

Hydrogen Gas as a Fuel in Direct Injection Diesel Engine

Science.gov (United States)

Dhanasekaran, Chinnathambi; Mohankumar, Gabriael

2016-04-01

Hydrogen is expected to be one of the most important fuels in the near future for solving the problem caused by the greenhouse gases, for protecting environment and saving conventional fuels. In this study, a dual fuel engine of hydrogen and diesel was investigated. Hydrogen was conceded through the intake port, and simultaneously air and diesel was pervaded into the cylinder. Using electronic gas injector and electronic control unit, the injection timing and duration varied. In this investigation, a single cylinder, KIRLOSKAR AV1, DI Diesel engine was used. Hydrogen injection timing was fixed at TDC and injection duration was timed for 30°, 60°, and 90° crank angles. The injection timing of diesel was fixed at 23° BTDC. When hydrogen is mixed with inlet air, emanation of HC, CO and CO2 decreased without any emission (exhaustion) of smoke while increasing the brake thermal efficiency.

PERFORMANCE EVALUATION OF EXTERNAL MIXTURE FORMATION STRATEGY IN HYDROGEN-FUELED ENGINE

OpenAIRE

Mohammed Kamil; M. M. Rahman; Rosli A. Bakar

2011-01-01

Mohammed Kamil1, M. M. Rahman2 and Rosli A. Bakar2Hydrogen induction strategy in an internal combustion engine plays a vital role in increasing the power density and prohibiting combustion anomalies. This paper inspects the performance characteristics of cylinder hydrogen-fueled engine with port injection feeding strategy. To that end, a one-dimensional gas dynamic model has been built to represent the flow and heat transfer in the components of the engine. The governing equations are introdu...

Solar-Thermal Engine Testing

Science.gov (United States)

Tucker, Stephen; Salvail, Pat; Haynes, Davy (Technical Monitor)

2001-01-01

A solar-thermal engine serves as a high-temperature solar-radiation absorber, heat exchanger, and rocket nozzle. collecting concentrated solar radiation into an absorber cavity and transferring this energy to a propellant as heat. Propellant gas can be heated to temperatures approaching 4,500 F and expanded in a rocket nozzle, creating low thrust with a high specific impulse (I(sub sp)). The Shooting Star Experiment (SSE) solar-thermal engine is made of 100 percent chemical vapor deposited (CVD) rhenium. The engine 'module' consists of an engine assembly, propellant feedline, engine support structure, thermal insulation, and instrumentation. Engine thermal performance tests consist of a series of high-temperature thermal cycles intended to characterize the propulsive performance of the engines and the thermal effectiveness of the engine support structure and insulation system. A silicone-carbide electrical resistance heater, placed inside the inner shell, substitutes for solar radiation and heats the engine. Although the preferred propellant is hydrogen, the propellant used in these tests is gaseous nitrogen. Because rhenium oxidizes at elevated temperatures, the tests are performed in a vacuum chamber. Test data will include transient and steady state temperatures on selected engine surfaces, propellant pressures and flow rates, and engine thrust levels. The engine propellant-feed system is designed to Supply GN2 to the engine at a constant inlet pressure of 60 psia, producing a near-constant thrust of 1.0 lb. Gaseous hydrogen will be used in subsequent tests. The propellant flow rate decreases with increasing propellant temperature, while maintaining constant thrust, increasing engine I(sub sp). In conjunction with analytical models of the heat exchanger, the temperature data will provide insight into the effectiveness of the insulation system, the structural support system, and the overall engine performance. These tests also provide experience on operational

MHD thrust vectoring of a rocket engine

Science.gov (United States)

Labaune, Julien; Packan, Denis; Tholin, Fabien; Chemartin, Laurent; Stillace, Thierry; Masson, Frederic

2016-09-01

In this work, the possibility to use MagnetoHydroDynamics (MHD) to vectorize the thrust of a solid propellant rocket engine exhaust is investigated. Using a magnetic field for vectoring offers a mass gain and a reusability advantage compared to standard gimbaled, elastomer-joint systems. Analytical and numerical models were used to evaluate the flow deviation with a 1 Tesla magnetic field inside the nozzle. The fluid flow in the resistive MHD approximation is calculated using the KRONOS code from ONERA, coupling the hypersonic CFD platform CEDRE and the electrical code SATURNE from EDF. A critical parameter of these simulations is the electrical conductivity, which was evaluated using a set of equilibrium calculations with 25 species. Two models were used: local thermodynamic equilibrium and frozen flow. In both cases, chlorine captures a large fraction of free electrons, limiting the electrical conductivity to a value inadequate for thrust vectoring applications. However, when using chlorine-free propergols with 1% in mass of alkali, an MHD thrust vectoring of several degrees was obtained.

Hydrogen transport and storage in engineered glass microspheres

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Rambach, G.D.

1995-04-18

New, high strength glass microspheres filled with pressurized hydrogen exhibit densities which make them attractive for bulk hydrogen storage and transport. The membrane tensile stress at failure for our engineered glass microspheres is about 150,000 psi, permitting a threefold increase in pressure limit and storage capacity above commercial microspheres, which have been studied a decade ago and have been shown to fail at membrane stresses of 50,000 psi. Our analysis relating glass microspheres for hydrogen transport with infrastructure and economics, indicate that pressurized microspheres can be economically competitive with other forms of bulk rail and truck transport such as pressurized tube transports and liquid hydrogen trailers.

Hydrogen Addition for Improved Lean Burn Capability on Natural Gas Engine

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Andersson, Tobias [Lund Inst. of Technology (Sweden). Dept. of Heat and Power Engineering

2002-12-01

Lean burn spark ignition (SI) engines powered by natural gas is an attractive alternative to the Diesel engine, especially in urban traffic, where reduction of tailpipe emissions are of great importance. A major benefit is the large reduction in soot (PM). Lean burn spark ignition (SI) engines yield high fuel conversion efficiency and also relatively low NO{sub x} emissions at full load. In order to improve the engine operating characteristics at lower loads, the {lambda}-value is normally reduced to some degree, with increased NO{sub x} emissions and reduced efficiency as a result. This is a drawback for the lean burn engines, especially in urban applications such as in city buses and distribution trucks for urban use. So, it is desirable to find ways to extend the lean limit at low loads. One way to improve these part load properties is to add hydrogen to the natural gas in order to improve the combustion characteristics of the fuel. It is possible to extend the lean limit of a natural gas engine by addition of hydrogen to the primary fuel. This report presents measurements made on a single cylinder 1.6 liter natural gas engine. Two combustion chambers, one slow and one fast burning, were tested with various amounts of hydrogen (0 to 20 %-vol) added to natural gas. Three operating conditions were investigated for each combustion chamber and each hydrogen content level; idle, wide open throttle (WOT) and a high load condition (simulated turbo charging). For all three operating conditions, the air/fuel ratio was varied between stoichiometric and the lean limit. For each operating point, the ignition timing was swept in order to find maximum brake torque (MBT) timing. In some cases were the ignition timing limited by knock. Heat release rate calculations were made in order to assess the influence of hydrogen addition on burn rate. Addition of hydrogen showed an increase in burn rate for both combustion chambers, resulting in more stable combustion close to the lean

Heat transfer comparison between methane and hydrogen in a spark ignited engine

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sierens, Roger; Demuynck, Joachim; Paepe, Michel de; Verhelst, Sebastian [Ghent Univ. (Belgium)

2010-07-01

Hydrogen is one of the alternative fuels which are being investigated at Ghent University. NO{sub x} emissions will occur at high engine loads and they are a constraint for power and efficiency optimization. The formation of NO{sub x} emissions is temperature dependent. Consequently, the heat transfer from the burning gases to the cylinder walls has to be accurately modelled if precise computer calculations of the emissions are wanted. Several engine heat transfer models exist but they have been cited to be inaccurate for hydrogen. We have measured the heat flux in a spark ignited engine with a commercially available heat flux sensor. This paper investigates the difference between the heat transfer of hydrogen and a fossil fuel, in this case methane. Measurements with the same indicated power output are compared and the effect of the heat loss on the indicated efficiency is investigated. The power output of hydrogen combustion is lowered by burning lean in contrast to using a throttle in the case of methane. Although the peak in the heat flux of hydrogen is 3 times higher compared to methane for a high engine power output, the indicated efficiency is only 3% lower. The heat loss for hydrogen at a low engine load is smaller than that of methane which results in a higher indicated efficiency. The richness of the hydrogen-air mixture has a great influence on the heat transfer process in contrast to the in-cylinder mass in the case of methane. (orig.)

Modelling of flame propagation in the gasoline fuelled Wankel rotary engine with hydrogen additives

Science.gov (United States)

Fedyanov, E. A.; Zakharov, E. A.; Prikhodkov, K. V.; Levin, Y. V.

2017-02-01

Recently, hydrogen has been considered as an alternative fuel for a vehicles power unit. The Wankel engine is the most suitable to be adapted to hydrogen feeding. A hydrogen additive helps to decrease incompleteness of combustion in the volumes near the apex of the rotor. Results of theoretical researches of the hydrogen additives influence on the flame propagation in the combustion chamber of the Wankel rotary engine are presented. The theoretical research shows that the blend of 70% gasoline with 30% hydrogen could accomplish combustion near the T-apex in the stoichiometric mixture and in lean one. Maps of the flame front location versus the angle of rotor rotation and hydrogen fraction are obtained. Relations of a minimum required amount of hydrogen addition versus the engine speed are shown on the engine modes close to the average city driving cycle. The amount of hydrogen addition that could be injected by the nozzle with different flow sections is calculated in order to analyze the capacity of the feed system.

Innovative nuclear thermal rocket concept utilizing LEU fuel for space application

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nam, Seung Hyun; Venneri, Paolo; Choi, Jae Young; Jeong, Yong Hoon; Chang, Soon Heung

2015-01-01

Space is one of the best places for humanity to turn to keep learning and exploiting. A Nuclear Thermal Rocket (NTR) is a viable and more efficient option for human space exploration than the existing Chemical Rockets (CRs) which are highly inefficient for long-term manned missions such as to Mars and its satellites. NERVA derived NTR engines have been studied for the human missions as a mainstream in the United States of America (USA). Actually, the NERVA technology has already been developed and successfully tested since 1950s. The state-of-the-art technology is based on a Hydrogen gas (H_2) cooled high temperature reactor with solid core utilizing High-Enriched Uranium (HEU) fuel to reduce heavy metal mass and to use fast or epithermal neutron spectrums enabling simple core designs. However, even though the NTR designs utilizing HEU is the best option in terms of rocket performance, they inevitably provoke nuclear proliferation obstacles on all Research and Development (R and D) activities by civilians and non-nuclear weapon states, and its eventual commercialization. To surmount the security issue to use HEU fuel for a NTR, a concept of the innovative NTR engine, Korea Advanced NUclear Thermal Engine Rocket utilizing Low-Enriched Uranium fuel (KANUTER-LEU) is presented in this paper. The design goal of KANUTER-LEU is to make use of a LEU fuel for its compact reactor, but does not sacrifice the rocket performance relative to the traditional NTRs utilizing HEU. KANUTER-LEU mainly consists of a fission reactor utilizing H_2 propellant, a propulsion system and an optional Electricity Generation System as a bimodal engine. To implement LEU fuel for the reactor, the innovative engine adopts W-UO_2 CERMET fuel to drastically increase uranium density and thermal neutron spectrum to improve neutron economy in the core. The moderator and structural material selections also consider neutronic and thermo-physical characteristics to reduce non-fission neutron loss and

Ricardo Dyrgalla (1910-1970), pioneer of rocket development in Argentina

Science.gov (United States)

de León, Pablo

2009-12-01

One of the most important developers of liquid propellant rocket engines in Argentina was Polish-born Ricardo Dyrgalla. Dyrgalla immigrated to Argentina from the United Kingdom in 1946, where he had been studying German weapons development at the end of the Second World War. A trained pilot and aeronautical engineer, he understood the intricacies of rocket propulsion and was eager to find practical applications to his recently gained knowledge. Dyrgalla arrived in Argentina during Juan Perón's first presidency, a time when technicians from all over Europe were being recruited to work in various projects for the recently created Argentine Air Force. Shortly after immigrating, Dyrgalla proposed to develop an advanced air-launched weapon, the Tábano, based on a rocket engine of his design, the AN-1. After a successful development program, the Tábano was tested between 1949 and 1951; however, the project was canceled by the government shortly after. Today, the AN-1 rocket engine is recognized as the first liquid propellant rocket to be developed in South America. Besides the AN-1, Dyrgalla also developed several other rockets systems in Argentina, including the PROSON, a solid-propellant rocket launcher developed by the Argentine Institute of Science and Technology for the Armed Forces (CITEFA). In the late 1960s, Dyrgalla and his family relocated to Brazil due mostly to the lack of continuation of rocket development in Argentina. There, he worked for the Institute of Aerospace Technology (ITA) until his untimely death in 1970. Ricardo Dyrgalla deserves to be recognized among the world's rocket pioneers and his contribution to the science and engineering of rocketry deserves a special place in the history of South America's rocketry and space flight advocacy programs.

Failure characteristics analysis and fault diagnosis for liquid rocket engines

CERN Document Server

Zhang, Wei

2016-01-01

This book concentrates on the subject of health monitoring technology of Liquid Rocket Engine (LRE), including its failure analysis, fault diagnosis and fault prediction. Since no similar issue has been published, the failure pattern and mechanism analysis of the LRE from the system stage are of particular interest to the readers. Furthermore, application cases used to validate the efficacy of the fault diagnosis and prediction methods of the LRE are different from the others. The readers can learn the system stage modeling, analyzing and testing methods of the LRE system as well as corresponding fault diagnosis and prediction methods. This book will benefit researchers and students who are pursuing aerospace technology, fault detection, diagnostics and corresponding applications.

Hydrogen enriched compressed natural gas (HCNG: A futuristic fuel for internal combustion engines

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nanthagopal Kasianantham

2011-01-01

Full Text Available Air pollution is fast becoming a serious global problem with increasing population and its subsequent demands. This has resulted in increased usage of hydrogen as fuel for internal combustion engines. Hydrogen resources are vast and it is considered as one of the most promising fuel for automotive sector. As the required hydrogen infrastructure and refueling stations are not meeting the demand, widespread introduction of hydrogen vehicles is not possible in the near future. One of the solutions for this hurdle is to blend hydrogen with methane. Such types of blends take benefit of the unique combustion properties of hydrogen and at the same time reduce the demand for pure hydrogen. Enriching natural gas with hydrogen could be a potential alternative to common hydrocarbon fuels for internal combustion engine applications. Many researchers are working on this for the last few years and work is now focused on how to use this kind of fuel to its maximum extent. This technical note is an assessment of HCNG usage in case of internal combustion engines. Several examples and their salient features have been discussed. Finally, overall effects of hydrogen addition on an engine fueled with HCNG under various conditions are illustrated. In addition, the scope and challenges being faced in this area of research are clearly described.

Energizing Engineering Students with Hydrogen Fuel Cell Project

Science.gov (United States)

Cannell, Nori; Zavaleta, Dan

2010-01-01

At Desert Vista High School, near Phoenix, Arizona, Perkins Innovation Grant funding is being used to fund a program that is helping to prepare students for careers in engineering by giving them hands-on experience in areas like hydrogen generation and fuel cell utilization. As one enters Dan Zavaleta's automotive and engineering classroom and lab…

Hydrogen transport and storage in engineered glass microspheres

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Rambach, G.D.

1995-02-28

New, high strength glass microspheres filled with pressurized hydrogen exhibit densities which make them attractive for bulk hydrogen storage and transport. The membrane tensile stress at failure for engineered glass microspheres is about 150,000 psi, permitting a three-fold increase in pressure limit and storage capacity above commercial microspheres, which have been studied a decade ago and have been shown to fail at membrane stresses of 50,000 psi. This analysis relating glass microspheres for hydrogen transport with infrastructure and economics, indicate that pressurized microspheres can be economically competitive with other forms of bulk rail and truck transport such as pressurized tube transports and liquid hydrogen trailers. This paper will describe the matching of current glass microspheres with the useful application in commercial hydrogen bulk transport and storage.

Hydrogen storage in engineered carbon nanospaces.

Science.gov (United States)

Burress, Jacob; Kraus, Michael; Beckner, Matt; Cepel, Raina; Suppes, Galen; Wexler, Carlos; Pfeifer, Peter

2009-05-20

It is shown how appropriately engineered nanoporous carbons provide materials for reversible hydrogen storage, based on physisorption, with exceptional storage capacities (approximately 80 g H2/kg carbon, approximately 50 g H2/liter carbon, at 50 bar and 77 K). Nanopores generate high storage capacities (a) by having high surface area to volume ratios, and (b) by hosting deep potential wells through overlapping substrate potentials from opposite pore walls, giving rise to a binding energy nearly twice the binding energy in wide pores. Experimental case studies are presented with surface areas as high as 3100 m(2) g(-1), in which 40% of all surface sites reside in pores of width approximately 0.7 nm and binding energy approximately 9 kJ mol(-1), and 60% of sites in pores of width>1.0 nm and binding energy approximately 5 kJ mol(-1). The findings, including the prevalence of just two distinct binding energies, are in excellent agreement with results from molecular dynamics simulations. It is also shown, from statistical mechanical models, that one can experimentally distinguish between the situation in which molecules do (mobile adsorption) and do not (localized adsorption) move parallel to the surface, how such lateral dynamics affects the hydrogen storage capacity, and how the two situations are controlled by the vibrational frequencies of adsorbed hydrogen molecules parallel and perpendicular to the surface: in the samples presented, adsorption is mobile at 293 K, and localized at 77 K. These findings make a strong case for it being possible to significantly increase hydrogen storage capacities in nanoporous carbons by suitable engineering of the nanopore space.

Cooling Duct Analysis for Transpiration/Film Cooled Liquid Propellant Rocket Engines

Science.gov (United States)

Micklow, Gerald J.

1996-01-01

The development of a low cost space transportation system requires that the propulsion system be reusable, have long life, with good performance and use low cost propellants. Improved performance can be achieved by operating the engine at higher pressure and temperature levels than previous designs. Increasing the chamber pressure and temperature, however, will increase wall heating rates. This necessitates the need for active cooling methods such as film cooling or transpiration cooling. But active cooling can reduce the net thrust of the engine and add considerably to the design complexity. Recently, a metal drawing process has been patented where it is possible to fabricate plates with very small holes with high uniformity with a closely specified porosity. Such a metal plate could be used for an inexpensive transpiration/film cooled liner to meet the demands of advanced reusable rocket engines, if coolant mass flow rates could be controlled to satisfy wall cooling requirements and performance. The present study investigates the possibility of controlling the coolant mass flow rate through the porous material by simple non-active fluid dynamic means. The coolant will be supplied to the porous material by series of constant geometry slots machined on the exterior of the engine.

SAFE testing nuclear rockets economically

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Howe, Steven D.; Travis, Bryan; Zerkle, David K.

2003-01-01

Several studies over the past few decades have recognized the need for advanced propulsion to explore the solar system. As early as the 1960s, Werner Von Braun and others recognized the need for a nuclear rocket for sending humans to Mars. The great distances, the intense radiation levels, and the physiological response to zero-gravity all supported the concept of using a nuclear rocket to decrease mission time. These same needs have been recognized in later studies, especially in the Space Exploration Initiative in 1989. One of the key questions that has arisen in later studies, however, is the ability to test a nuclear rocket engine in the current societal environment. Unlike the Rover/NERVA programs in the 1960s, the rocket exhaust can no longer be vented to the open atmosphere. As a consequence, previous studies have examined the feasibility of building a large-scale version of the Nuclear Furnace Scrubber that was demonstrated in 1971. We have investigated an alternative that would deposit the rocket exhaust along with any entrained fission products directly into the ground. The Subsurface Active Filtering of Exhaust, or SAFE, concept would allow variable sized engines to be tested for long times at a modest expense. A system overview, results of preliminary calculations, and cost estimates of proof of concept demonstrations are presented. The results indicate that a nuclear rocket could be tested at the Nevada Test Site for under $20 M

Study of hydrogen engine for a hybrid electric vehicle. 1; Hybrid denki jidoshayo suiso engine ni kansuru kenkyu. 1

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Iguchi, T.; Numata, T. Hiruma, M.; Yamane, K.; Nakajima, Y.; Furuhama, S. [Musashi Institute of Technology, Tokyo (Japan); Takagi, Y. [Nissan Motor Co. Ltd., Tokyo (Japan)

1998-10-15

Study was made on application of a hydrogen engine to series hybrid electric vehicle (SHEV). Power of 20kW (for steady driving of a vehicle of 1t in total weight on flat road surface at 100km/h), and NOx emission concentration equivalent to that of EZEV (equivalent zero emission vehicle) were used as target performance. One of the merits of using a hydrogen engine for HEV is that conventional high-reliability gasoline engines can be used as hydrogen engines only by a bit of modification. A modified conventional 4-cylinder 4-cycle gasoline engine was used for this study. Hydrogen gas was continuously supplied through an intake manifold for premixed combustion by spark ignition. Brake thermal efficiency was improved from 30.5% to 35.5% by use of a high compression ratio and reduction of friction loss. NOx emission concentration could be controlled within 10ppm by ultra-lean combustion even at excess air ratios over 2.5. Both high efficiency and low emission were achieved at the same time around 3000rpm in engine revolution. 4 refs., 12 figs., 1 tab.

Final Technical Report: Hydrogen Energy in Engineering Education (H2E3)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lehman, Peter A.; Cashman, Eileen; Lipman, Timothy; Engel, Richard A.

2011-09-15

Schatz Energy Research Center's Hydrogen Energy in Engineering Education curriculum development project delivered hydrogen energy and fuel cell learning experiences to over 1,000 undergraduate engineering students at five California universities, provided follow-on internships for students at a fuel cell company; and developed commercializable hydrogen teaching tools including a fuel cell test station and a fuel cell/electrolyzer experiment kit. Monitoring and evaluation tracked student learning and faculty and student opinions of the curriculum, showing that use of the curriculum did advance student comprehension of hydrogen fundamentals. The project web site (hydrogencurriculum.org) provides more information.

An Object-Oriented Graphical User Interface for a Reusable Rocket Engine Intelligent Control System

Science.gov (United States)

Litt, Jonathan S.; Musgrave, Jeffrey L.; Guo, Ten-Huei; Paxson, Daniel E.; Wong, Edmond; Saus, Joseph R.; Merrill, Walter C.

1994-01-01

An intelligent control system for reusable rocket engines under development at NASA Lewis Research Center requires a graphical user interface to allow observation of the closed-loop system in operation. The simulation testbed consists of a real-time engine simulation computer, a controls computer, and several auxiliary computers for diagnostics and coordination. The system is set up so that the simulation computer could be replaced by the real engine and the change would be transparent to the control system. Because of the hard real-time requirement of the control computer, putting a graphical user interface on it was not an option. Thus, a separate computer used strictly for the graphical user interface was warranted. An object-oriented LISP-based graphical user interface has been developed on a Texas Instruments Explorer 2+ to indicate the condition of the engine to the observer through plots, animation, interactive graphics, and text.

Large Liquid Rocket Testing: Strategies and Challenges

Science.gov (United States)

Rahman, Shamim A.; Hebert, Bartt J.

2005-01-01

Rocket propulsion development is enabled by rigorous ground testing in order to mitigate the propulsion systems risks that are inherent in space flight. This is true for virtually all propulsive devices of a space vehicle including liquid and solid rocket propulsion, chemical and non-chemical propulsion, boost stage and in-space propulsion and so forth. In particular, large liquid rocket propulsion development and testing over the past five decades of human and robotic space flight has involved a combination of component-level testing and engine-level testing to first demonstrate that the propulsion devices were designed to meet the specified requirements for the Earth to Orbit launchers that they powered. This was followed by a vigorous test campaign to demonstrate the designed propulsion articles over the required operational envelope, and over robust margins, such that a sufficiently reliable propulsion system is delivered prior to first flight. It is possible that hundreds of tests, and on the order of a hundred thousand test seconds, are needed to achieve a high-reliability, flight-ready, liquid rocket engine system. This paper overviews aspects of earlier and recent experience of liquid rocket propulsion testing at NASA Stennis Space Center, where full scale flight engines and flight stages, as well as a significant amount of development testing has taken place in the past decade. The liquid rocket testing experience discussed includes testing of engine components (gas generators, preburners, thrust chambers, pumps, powerheads), as well as engine systems and complete stages. The number of tests, accumulated test seconds, and years of test stand occupancy needed to meet varying test objectives, will be selectively discussed and compared for the wide variety of ground test work that has been conducted at Stennis for subscale and full scale liquid rocket devices. Since rocket propulsion is a crucial long-lead element of any space system acquisition or

Improvement of diesel engine ecological and economic parameters by using hydrogen

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dalius KALISINSKAS

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Exhaustion and rising cost of fossil energy resources stimulates the search of ways to minimize their consumption. In the transport sector the main energy source is liquid fuel. Due to combustion of that fuel noxious gas is being emitted to atmosphere and creates the “greenhouse” effect, as well, as smog. Reduction of oil reserves increases the price of fuel as well, therefore the search for various alternatives is being made. One of them is usage of hydrogen as a supplement to the traditional fuel. During combustion of hydrogen toxic gases are not emitted. For obtaining hydrogen in a car a hydrogen generator which extracts it from water by electrolysis usually is used. The benefit of using hydrogen is better efficiency of an internal combustion engine. Hydrogen helps to reduce fuel consumption and emission of noxious gas as well. Research of efficiency and emissions of an internal combustion engine using hydrogen as an additive to the traditional fuel has been carried out, computational model to determine fuel costs and exhaust gas emissions under different working conditions has been developed.

Aero-Thermo-Structural Analysis of Inlet for Rocket Based Combined Cycle Engines

Science.gov (United States)

Shivakumar, K. N.; Challa, Preeti; Sree, Dave; Reddy, Dhanireddy R. (Technical Monitor)

2000-01-01

NASA has been developing advanced space transportation concepts and technologies to make access to space less costly. One such concept is the reusable vehicles with short turn-around times. The NASA Glenn Research Center's concept vehicle is the Trailblazer powered by a rocket-based combined cycle (RBCC) engine. Inlet is one of the most important components of the RBCC engine. This paper presents fluid flow, thermal, and structural analysis of the inlet for Mach 6 free stream velocity for fully supersonic and supercritical with backpressure conditions. The results concluded that the fully supersonic condition was the most severe case and the largest stresses occur in the ceramic matrix composite layer of the inlet cowl. The maximum tensile and the compressive stresses were at least 3.8 and 3.4, respectively, times less than the associated material strength.

Telemetry Boards Interpret Rocket, Airplane Engine Data

Science.gov (United States)

2009-01-01

For all the data gathered by the space shuttle while in orbit, NASA engineers are just as concerned about the information it generates on the ground. From the moment the shuttle s wheels touch the runway to the break of its electrical umbilical cord at 0.4 seconds before its next launch, sensors feed streams of data about the status of the vehicle and its various systems to Kennedy Space Center s shuttle crews. Even while the shuttle orbiter is refitted in Kennedy s orbiter processing facility, engineers constantly monitor everything from power levels to the testing of the mechanical arm in the orbiter s payload bay. On the launch pad and up until liftoff, the Launch Control Center, attached to the large Vehicle Assembly Building, screens all of the shuttle s vital data. (Once the shuttle clears its launch tower, this responsibility shifts to Mission Control at Johnson Space Center, with Kennedy in a backup role.) Ground systems for satellite launches also generate significant amounts of data. At Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, across the Banana River from Kennedy s location on Merritt Island, Florida, NASA rockets carrying precious satellite payloads into space flood the Launch Vehicle Data Center with sensor information on temperature, speed, trajectory, and vibration. The remote measurement and transmission of systems data called telemetry is essential to ensuring the safe and successful launch of the Agency s space missions. When a launch is unsuccessful, as it was for this year s Orbiting Carbon Observatory satellite, telemetry data also provides valuable clues as to what went wrong and how to remedy any problems for future attempts. All of this information is streamed from sensors in the form of binary code: strings of ones and zeros. One small company has partnered with NASA to provide technology that renders raw telemetry data intelligible not only for Agency engineers, but also for those in the private sector.

Hydrocarbon Rocket Technology Impact Forecasting

Science.gov (United States)

Stuber, Eric; Prasadh, Nishant; Edwards, Stephen; Mavris, Dimitri N.

2012-01-01

Ever since the Apollo program ended, the development of launch propulsion systems in the US has fallen drastically, with only two new booster engine developments, the SSME and the RS-68, occurring in the past few decades.1 In recent years, however, there has been an increased interest in pursuing more effective launch propulsion technologies in the U.S., exemplified by the NASA Office of the Chief Technologist s inclusion of Launch Propulsion Systems as the first technological area in the Space Technology Roadmaps2. One area of particular interest to both government agencies and commercial entities has been the development of hydrocarbon engines; NASA and the Air Force Research Lab3 have expressed interest in the use of hydrocarbon fuels for their respective SLS Booster and Reusable Booster System concepts, and two major commercially-developed launch vehicles SpaceX s Falcon 9 and Orbital Sciences Antares feature engines that use RP-1 kerosene fuel. Compared to engines powered by liquid hydrogen, hydrocarbon-fueled engines have a greater propellant density (usually resulting in a lighter overall engine), produce greater propulsive force, possess easier fuel handling and loading, and for reusable vehicle concepts can provide a shorter turnaround time between launches. These benefits suggest that a hydrocarbon-fueled launch vehicle would allow for a cheap and frequent means of access to space.1 However, the time and money required for the development of a new engine still presents a major challenge. Long and costly design, development, testing and evaluation (DDT&E) programs underscore the importance of identifying critical technologies and prioritizing investment efforts. Trade studies must be performed on engine concepts examining the affordability, operability, and reliability of each concept, and quantifying the impacts of proposed technologies. These studies can be performed through use of the Technology Impact Forecasting (TIF) method. The Technology Impact

Subsonic Glideback Rocket Demonstrator Flight Testing

Science.gov (United States)

DeTurris, Dianne J.; Foster, Trevor J.; Barthel, Paul E.; Macy, Daniel J.; Droney, Christopher K.; Talay, Theodore A. (Technical Monitor)

2001-01-01

For the past two years, Cal Poly's rocket program has been aggressively exploring the concept of remotely controlled, fixed wing, flyable rocket boosters. This program, embodied by a group of student engineers known as Cal Poly Space Systems, has successfully demonstrated the idea of a rocket design that incorporates a vertical launch pattern followed by a horizontal return flight and landing. Though the design is meant for supersonic flight, CPSS demonstrators are deployed at a subsonic speed. Many steps have been taken by the club that allowed the evolution of the StarBooster prototype to reach its current size: a ten-foot tall, one-foot diameter, composite material rocket. Progress is currently being made that involves multiple boosters along with a second stage, third rocket.

Ford/BASF/UM Activities in Support of the Hydrogen Storage Engineering Center of Excellence

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Veenstra, Mike [Ford Motor Company, Dearborn, MI (United States); Purewal, Justin [Ford Motor Company, Dearborn, MI (United States); Xu, Chunchuan [Ford Motor Company, Dearborn, MI (United States); Yang, Jun [Ford Motor Company, Dearborn, MI (United States); Blaser, Rachel [Ford Motor Company, Dearborn, MI (United States); Sudik, Andrea [Ford Motor Company, Dearborn, MI (United States); Siegel, Don [Univ. of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI (United States); Ming, Yang [Univ. of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI (United States); Liu, Dong' an [Univ. of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI (United States); Chi, Hang [Univ. of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI (United States); Gaab, Manuela [BASF SE, Ludwigshafen (Germany); Arnold, Lena [BASF SE, Ludwigshafen (Germany); Muller, Ulrich [BASF SE, Ludwigshafen (Germany)

2015-06-30

Widespread adoption of hydrogen as a vehicular fuel depends critically on the development of low-cost, on-board hydrogen storage technologies capable of achieving high energy densities and fast kinetics for hydrogen uptake and release. As present-day technologies -- which rely on physical storage methods such as compressed hydrogen -- are incapable of attaining established Department of Energy (DOE) targets, development of materials-based approaches for storing hydrogen have garnered increasing attention. Material-based storage technologies have potential to store hydrogen beyond twice the density of liquid hydrogen. To hasten development of these ‘hydride’ materials, the DOE previously established three centers of excellence for materials storage R&D associated with the key classes of materials: metal hydrides, chemical hydrogen, and adsorbents. While these centers made progress in identifying new storage materials, the challenges associated with the engineering of the system around a candidate storage material are in need of further advancement. In 2009 the DOE established the Hydrogen Storage Engineering Center of Excellence with the objective of developing innovative engineering concepts for materials-based hydrogen storage systems. As a partner in the Hydrogen Storage Engineering Center of Excellence, the Ford-UM-BASF team conducted a multi-faceted research program that addresses key engineering challenges associated with the development of materials-based hydrogen storage systems. First, we developed a novel framework that allowed for a material-based hydrogen storage system to be modeled and operated within a virtual fuel cell vehicle. This effort resulted in the ability to assess dynamic operating parameters and interactions between the storage system and fuel cell power plant, including the evaluation of performance throughout various drive cycles. Second, we engaged in cost modeling of various incarnations of the storage systems. This analysis

Gas core nuclear thermal rocket engine research and development in the former USSR

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Koehlinger, M.W.; Bennett, R.G.; Motloch, C.G.; Gurfink, M.M.

1992-09-01

Beginning in 1957 and continuing into the mid 1970s, the USSR conducted an extensive investigation into the use of both solid and gas core nuclear thermal rocket engines for space missions. During this time the scientific and engineering. problems associated with the development of a solid core engine were resolved. At the same time research was undertaken on a gas core engine, and some of the basic engineering problems associated with the concept were investigated. At the conclusion of the program, the basic principles of the solid core concept were established. However, a prototype solid core engine was not built because no established mission required such an engine. For the gas core concept, some of the basic physical processes involved were studied both theoretically and experimentally. However, no simple method of conducting proof-of-principle tests in a neutron flux was devised. This report focuses primarily on the development of the. gas core concept in the former USSR. A variety of gas core engine system parameters and designs are presented, along with a summary discussion of the basic physical principles and limitations involved in their design. The parallel development of the solid core concept is briefly described to provide an overall perspective of the magnitude of the nuclear thermal propulsion program and a technical comparison with the gas core concept

Major accomplishments of America's nuclear rocket program (ROVER)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Finseth, J.L.

1991-01-01

The United States embarked on a program to develop nuclear rocket engines in 1955. This program was known as project Rover. Initially nuclear rockets were considered as a potential backup for intercontinental ballistic missile propulsion but later proposed applications included both a lunar second stage as well as use in manned-Mars flights. Under the Rover program, 19 different reactors were built and tested during the period of 1959-1969. Additionally, several cold flow (non-fuelled) reactors were tested as well as a nuclear fuels test cell. The Rover program was terminated in 1973, due to budget constraints and an evolving political climate. The Rover program would have led to the development of a flight engine had the program continued through a logical continuation. The Rover program was responsible for a number of technological achievements. The successful operation of nuclear rocket engines on a system level represents the pinnacle of accomplishment. This paper will discuss the engine test program as well as several subsystems

Techniques to assess acoustic-structure interaction in liquid rocket engines

Science.gov (United States)

Davis, R. Benjamin

Acoustoelasticity is the study of the dynamic interaction between elastic structures and acoustic enclosures. In this dissertation, acoustoelasticity is considered in the context of liquid rocket engine design. The techniques presented here can be used to determine which forcing frequencies are important in acoustoelastic systems. With a knowledge of these frequencies, an analyst can either find ways to attenuate the excitation at these frequencies or alter the system in such a way that the prescribed excitations do result in a resonant condition. The end result is a structural component that is less susceptible to failure. The research scope is divided into three parts. In the first part, the dynamics of cylindrical shells submerged in liquid hydrogen (LH2) and liquid oxygen (LOX) are considered. The shells are bounded by rigid outer cylinders. This configuration gives rise to two fluid-filled cavities---an inner cylindrical cavity and an outer annular cavity. Such geometries are common in rocket engine design. The natural frequencies and modes of the fluid-structure system are computed by combining the rigid wall acoustic cavity modes and the in vacuo structural modes into a system of coupled ordinary differential equations. Eigenvalue veering is observed near the intersections of the curves representing natural frequencies of the rigid wall acoustic and the in vacuo structural modes. In the case of a shell submerged in LH2, system frequencies near these intersections are as much as 30% lower than the corresponding in vacuo structural frequencies. Due to its high density, the frequency reductions in the presence of LOX are even more dramatic. The forced responses of a shell submerged in LH2 and LOX while subject to a harmonic point excitation are also presented. The responses in the presence of fluid are found to be quite distinct from those of the structure in vacuo. In the second part, coupled mode theory is used to explore the fundamental features of

Integrated System Health Management (ISHM) Implementation in Rocket Engine Testing

Science.gov (United States)

Figueroa, Fernando; Morris, Jon; Turowski, Mark; Franzl, Richard; Walker, Mark; Kapadia, Ravi; Venkatesh, Meera

2010-01-01

A pilot operational ISHM capability has been implemented for the E-2 Rocket Engine Test Stand (RETS) and a Chemical Steam Generator (CSG) test article at NASA Stennis Space Center. The implementation currently includes an ISHM computer and a large display in the control room. The paper will address the overall approach, tools, and requirements. It will also address the infrastructure and architecture. Specific anomaly detection algorithms will be discussed regarding leak detection and diagnostics, valve validation, and sensor validation. It will also describe development and use of a Health Assessment Database System (HADS) as a repository for measurements, health, configuration, and knowledge related to a system with ISHM capability. It will conclude with a discussion of user interfaces, and a description of the operation of the ISHM system prior, during, and after testing.

Approaches to Low Fuel Regression Rate in Hybrid Rocket Engines

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dario Pastrone

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Hybrid rocket engines are promising propulsion systems which present appealing features such as safety, low cost, and environmental friendliness. On the other hand, certain issues hamper the development hoped for. The present paper discusses approaches addressing improvements to one of the most important among these issues: low fuel regression rate. To highlight the consequence of such an issue and to better understand the concepts proposed, fundamentals are summarized. Two approaches are presented (multiport grain and high mixture ratio which aim at reducing negative effects without enhancing regression rate. Furthermore, fuel material changes and nonconventional geometries of grain and/or injector are presented as methods to increase fuel regression rate. Although most of these approaches are still at the laboratory or concept scale, many of them are promising.

Effect of CO_2 dilution on combustion and emissions characteristics of the hydrogen-enriched gasoline engine

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang, Shuofeng; Ji, Changwei; Zhang, Bo; Cong, Xiaoyu; Liu, Xiaolong

2016-01-01

CO_2 (Carbon dioxide) dilution is a feasible way for controlling NOx (Nitrogen oxides) emissions and loads of the internal combustion engines. This paper investigated the effect of CO_2 dilution on the combustion and emissions characteristics of a hydrogen-enriched gasoline engine. The experiment was conducted on a 1.6 L spark-ignition engine with electronically controlled hydrogen and gasoline injection systems. At two hydrogen volume fractions of 0 and 3%, the CO_2 volume fraction in the intake was gradually increased from 0 to 4%. The fuel-air mixtures were kept at the stoichiometric. The experimental results demonstrated that brake mean effective pressure of the gasoline engine was quickly reduced after adopting CO_2 dilution. Comparatively, Bmep (Brake mean effective pressure) of the 3% hydrogen-enriched engine was gently decreased with the increase of CO_2 dilution level. Thermal efficiency of the 3% hydrogen-enriched gasoline engine was raised under properly increased CO_2 dilution levels. However, thermal efficiency of the pure gasoline engine was generally dropped after the CO_2 dilution. The addition of hydrogen could shorten flame development and propagation durations under CO_2 diluent conditions for the gasoline engine. Increasing CO_2 fraction in the intake caused the dropped NOx and raised HC (Hydrocarbon) emissions. Increasing hydrogen fraction in the intake could effectively reduce HC emissions under CO_2 diluent conditions. - Highlights: • CO_2 dilution reduces cooling loss and NOx of H_2-enriched gasoline engines. • H_2-blended gasoline engine gains better efficiency after CO_2 dilution. • CoVimep of H_2-blended gasoline engine is kept at low level after CO_2 addition. • CO_2 dilution has small effect on reducing Bmep of H_2-blended gasoline engine.

US Rocket Propulsion Industrial Base Health Metrics

Science.gov (United States)

Doreswamy, Rajiv

2013-01-01

The number of active liquid rocket engine and solid rocket motor development programs has severely declined since the "space race" of the 1950s and 1960s center dot This downward trend has been exacerbated by the retirement of the Space Shuttle, transition from the Constellation Program to the Space launch System (SLS) and similar activity in DoD programs center dot In addition with consolidation in the industry, the rocket propulsion industrial base is under stress. To Improve the "health" of the RPIB, we need to understand - The current condition of the RPIB - How this compares to past history - The trend of RPIB health center dot This drives the need for a concise set of "metrics" - Analogous to the basic data a physician uses to determine the state of health of his patients - Easy to measure and collect - The trend is often more useful than the actual data point - Can be used to focus on problem areas and develop preventative measures The nation's capability to conceive, design, develop, manufacture, test, and support missions using liquid rocket engines and solid rocket motors that are critical to its national security, economic health and growth, and future scientific needs. center dot The RPIB encompasses US government, academic, and commercial (including industry primes and their supplier base) research, development, test, evaluation, and manufacturing capabilities and facilities. center dot The RPIB includes the skilled workforce, related intellectual property, engineering and support services, and supply chain operations and management. This definition touches the five main segments of the U.S. RPIB as categorized by the USG: defense, intelligence community, civil government, academia, and commercial sector. The nation's capability to conceive, design, develop, manufacture, test, and support missions using liquid rocket engines and solid rocket motors that are critical to its national security, economic health and growth, and future scientific needs

Control Scheme Formulation for the Production of Hydrogen on Demand to Feed an Internal Combustion Engine

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jarniel García Morales

2016-12-01

Full Text Available In this work, a control strategy is presented to produce hydrogen on demand to feed an internal combustion (IC engine. For this purpose, the modeling of the IC engine fueled by gasoline blended with 10 % v/v of anhydrous ethanol (E10 and hydrogen as an additive is developed. It is considered that the hydrogen gas is produced according to the IC engine demand, and that the hydrogen gas is obtained by an alkaline electrolyzer. The gasoline–ethanol blend added into the combustion chamber is determined according to the stoichiometric ratio and the production of hydrogen gas is regulated by a proportional and integral controller (P.I.. The controller reference is varying according to the mass flow air induced into the cylinder, in order to ensure an adequate production of hydrogen gas for any operating condition of the IC engine. The main contribution of this work is the control scheme developed, through simulation, in order to produce hydrogen on demand for any operating point of an internal combustion engine fueled by an E10 blend. The simulation results showed that the use of hydrogen gas as an additive in an E10 blend decreases the E10 fuel consumption 23 % on average, and the thermal efficiency is increased approximately 2.13 % , without brake power loss in the IC engine.

Studies of Fission Fragment Rocket Engine Propelled Spacecraft

Science.gov (United States)

Werka, Robert O.; Clark, Rodney; Sheldon, Rob; Percy, Thomas K.

2014-01-01

The NASA Office of Chief Technologist has funded from FY11 through FY14 successive studies of the physics, design, and spacecraft integration of a Fission Fragment Rocket Engine (FFRE) that directly converts the momentum of fission fragments continuously into spacecraft momentum at a theoretical specific impulse above one million seconds. While others have promised future propulsion advances if only you have the patience, the FFRE requires no waiting, no advances in physics and no advances in manufacturing processes. Such an engine unequivocally can create a new era of space exploration that can change spacecraft operation. The NIAC (NASA Institute for Advanced Concepts) Program Phase 1 study of FY11 first investigated how the revolutionary FFRE technology could be integrated into an advanced spacecraft. The FFRE combines existent technologies of low density fissioning dust trapped electrostatically and high field strength superconducting magnets for beam management. By organizing the nuclear core material to permit sufficient mean free path for escape of the fission fragments and by collimating the beam, this study showed the FFRE could convert nuclear power to thrust directly and efficiently at a delivered specific impulse of 527,000 seconds. The FY13 study showed that, without increasing the reactor power, adding a neutral gas to the fission fragment beam significantly increased the FFRE thrust through in a manner analogous to a jet engine afterburner. This frictional interaction of gas and beam resulted in an engine that continuously produced 1000 pound force of thrust at a delivered impulse of 32,000 seconds, thereby reducing the currently studied DRM 5 round trip mission to Mars from 3 years to 260 days. By decreasing the gas addition, this same engine can be tailored for much lower thrust at much higher impulse to match missions to more distant destinations. These studies created host spacecraft concepts configured for manned round trip journeys. While the

Liquid rocket propulsion dynamic flow modeling using the ROCETS engineering modules in the EASY5x environment

Science.gov (United States)

Follett, Randolph F.; Taylor, Robert P.; Nunez, Stephen C.

1993-01-01

A report on the progress of porting the ROCETS (ROCket Engine Transient Simulator) into the EASY5x simulation environment is presented. Brief descriptions of each of the software systems, information regarding the actual port process, and examples comparing the results of the two systems are given. It is shown that EASY5x is a suitable environment for utilization of the ROCETS engineering modules, and that, for the example systems shown, EASY5x actually seems to give more accurate solutions than the straight ROCETS code.

Research on shock wave characteristics in the isolator of central strut rocket-based combined cycle engine under Ma5.5

Science.gov (United States)

Wei, Xianggeng; Xue, Rui; Qin, Fei; Hu, Chunbo; He, Guoqiang

2017-11-01

A numerical calculation of shock wave characteristics in the isolator of central strut rocket-based combined cycle (RBCC) engine fueled by kerosene was carried out in this paper. A 3D numerical model was established by the DES method. The kerosene chemical kinetic model used the 9-component and 12-step simplified mechanism model. Effects of fuel equivalence ratio, inflow total temperature and central strut rocket on-off on shock wave characteristics were studied under Ma5.5. Results demonstrated that with the increase of equivalence ratio, the leading shock wave moves toward upstream, accompanied with higher possibility of the inlet unstart. However, the leading shock wave moves toward downstream as the inflow total temperature rises. After the central strut rocket is closed, the leading shock wave moves toward downstream, which can reduce risks of the inlet unstart. State of the shear layer formed by the strut rocket jet flow and inflow can influence the shock train structure significantly.

Biofuel and Hydrogen Influence for Operation Parameters of Spark Ignition Engine

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Martynas Damaševičius

2016-12-01

Full Text Available Paper presents research of efficient and ecological parameters of gasoline engine working with biobuthanol (10% and 20% by volume and addi-tionaly supplying oxygen and hydrogen (HHO gas mixture (3.6 l/min, which was obtained from from water by electrolysis. Biobuthanol addition decreases rate of heat release, the combustion temperature and pressure are lower, which has an influence on lower nitrous oxide (NOx emission in exhaust gases. However, biobuthanol increases carbon monoxide (CO concentration. Biobuthanol fuel has a simplier molecular structure, therefore the concentration of HC in the exhaust gas is decreasing. Due to lower heating value of biobuthanol fuel and slower combustion process, the engine efficiency decreases and specific fuel consumptions increase. The change of engine energetical indicators due to biobuthanol, can be compensated with advanced ignition angle. Using experimental investigation, it was determined, that negative biobuthanol influence for the combustion process and engine efficient inicators can be compensated also by additional supplied HHO gas, in which the hydrogen element iprove fuel mixture com-bustion. Fuel combustion process analysis was carried out using AVL BOOST software. Experimental research and combustion process numerical simulation showed that using balanced biobuthanol and hydrogen addition, optimal efficient and ecological parameters could be achieved, when engine is working for petrol fuel typical optimal spark timing.

Fabrication of High Thermal Conductivity NARloy-Z-Diamond Composite Combustion Chamber Liner for Advanced Rocket Engines

Science.gov (United States)

Bhat, Biliyar N.; Greene, Sandra E.; Singh, Jogender

2016-01-01

This paper describes the process development for fabricating a high thermal conductivity NARloy-Z-Diamond composite (NARloy-Z-D) combustion chamber liner for application in advanced rocket engines. The fabrication process is challenging and this paper presents some details of these challenges and approaches used to address them. Prior research conducted at NASA-MSFC and Penn State had shown that NARloy-Z-40%D composite material has significantly higher thermal conductivity than the state of the art NARloy-Z alloy. Furthermore, NARloy-Z-40 %D is much lighter than NARloy-Z. These attributes help to improve the performance of the advanced rocket engines. Increased thermal conductivity will directly translate into increased turbopump power, increased chamber pressure for improved thrust and specific impulse. Early work on NARloy-Z-D composites used the Field Assisted Sintering Technology (FAST, Ref. 1, 2) for fabricating discs. NARloy-Z-D composites containing 10, 20 and 40vol% of high thermal conductivity diamond powder were investigated. Thermal conductivity (TC) data. TC increased with increasing diamond content and showed 50% improvement over pure copper at 40vol% diamond. This composition was selected for fabricating the combustion chamber liner using the FAST technique.

Numerical Simulation of Ionospheric Electron Concentration Depletion by Rocket Exhaust

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Huang Yong; Shi Jiaming; Yuan Zhongcai

2011-01-01

In terms of the diffusive process of the gases injected from rocket exhaust into the ionosphere and the relevant chemical reactions between the gases and the composition of ionosphere, the modifications in ionosphere caused by the injected hydrogen and carbon dioxide gas from the rocket exhaust are investigated. The results show that the diffusive process of the injected gases at the ionospheric height is very fast, and the injected gases can lead to a local depletion of electron concentration in the F-region. Furthermore, the plasma 'hole' caused by carbon dioxide is larger, deeper and more durable than that by the hydrogen. (astrophysics and space plasma)

Analysis of energy efficiency of methane and hydrogen-methane blends in a PFI/DI SI research engine

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Catapano, F.; Di Iorio, S.; Sementa, P.; Vaglieco, B.M.

2016-01-01

In the last years, even more attention was paid to the alternative fuels that allow both reducing the fossil fuel consumption and the pollutant emissions. Gaseous fuels like methane and hydrogen are the most interesting in terms of engine application. This paper reports a comparison between methane and different methane/hydrogen mixtures in a single-cylinder Port Fuel/Direct Injection spark ignition (PFI/DI SI) engine operating under steady state conditions. It is representative of the gasoline engine for automotive application. Engine performance and exhaust emissions were evaluated. Moreover, 2D-digital cycle resolved imaging was performed with high spatial and temporal resolution in the combustion chamber. In particular, it allows characterizing the combustion by means of the flame propagation in terms of mean radius and velocity. Moreover, the interaction of turbulence with the local flame was evaluated. For both the engine configurations, it was observed that the addition of hydrogen results in a more efficient combustion, even though the engine configuration plays an important role. In PFI mode, the lower density of hydrogen causes a lower energy input. In DI mode, instead, the larger hydrogen diffusivity counteracts the charge stratification especially for larger hydrogen content. - Highlights: • The effect of hydrogen on methane combustion was investigated in an optical PFI/DI SI engine. • The effect of hydrogen addition for PFI and DI configurations was evaluated on the same engine. • The flame front propagation was characterized by means of 2-D digital imaging.

Arizona Public Service - Alternative Fuel (Hydrogen) Pilot Plant Design Report

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

James E. Francfort

2003-12-01

Hydrogen has promise to be the fuel of the future. Its use as a chemical reagent and as a rocket propellant has grown to over eight million metric tons per year in the United States. Although use of hydrogen is abundant, it has not been used extensively as a transportation fuel. To assess the viability of hydrogen as a transportation fuel and the viability of producing hydrogen using off-peak electric energy, Pinnacle West Capital Corporation (PNW) and its electric utility subsidiary, Arizona Public Service (APS) designed, constructed, and operates a hydrogen and compressed natural gas fueling station—the APS Alternative Fuel Pilot Plant. This report summarizes the design of the APS Alternative Fuel Pilot Plant and presents lessons learned from its design and construction. Electric Transportation Applications prepared this report under contract to the U.S. Department of Energy’s Advanced Vehicle Testing Activity. The Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory manages these activities for the Advanced Vehicle Testing Activity.

LOX/Methane Regeneratively-Cooled Rocket Engine Development

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — The purpose of this project is to advance the technologies required to build a subcritical regeneratively cooled liquid oxygen/methane rocket combustion chamber for...

Combustion and Magnetohydrodynamic Processes in Advanced Pulse Detonation Rocket Engines

Science.gov (United States)

Cole, Lord Kahil

A number of promising alternative rocket propulsion concepts have been developed over the past two decades that take advantage of unsteady combustion waves in order to produce thrust. These concepts include the Pulse Detonation Rocket Engine (PDRE), in which repetitive ignition, propagation, and reflection of detonations and shocks can create a high pressure chamber from which gases may be exhausted in a controlled manner. The Pulse Detonation Rocket Induced Magnetohydrodynamic Ejector (PDRIME) is a modification of the basic PDRE concept, developed by Cambier (1998), which has the potential for performance improvements based on magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) thrust augmentation. The PDRIME has the advantage of both low combustion chamber seeding pressure, per the PDRE concept, and efficient energy distribution in the system, per the rocket-induced MHD ejector (RIME) concept of Cole, et al. (1995). In the initial part of this thesis, we explore flow and performance characteristics of different configurations of the PDRIME, assuming quasi-one-dimensional transient flow and global representations of the effects of MHD phenomena on the gas dynamics. By utilizing high-order accurate solvers, we thus are able to investigate the fundamental physical processes associated with the PDRIME and PDRE concepts and identify potentially promising operating regimes. In the second part of this investigation, the detailed coupling of detonations and electric and magnetic fields are explored. First, a one-dimensional spark-ignited detonation with complex reaction kinetics is fully evaluated and the mechanisms for the different instabilities are analyzed. It is found that complex kinetics in addition to sufficient spatial resolution are required to be able to quantify high frequency as well as low frequency detonation instability modes. Armed with this quantitative understanding, we then examine the interaction of a propagating detonation and the applied MHD, both in one-dimensional and two

Improving the performance of LOX/kerosene upper stage rocket engines

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

IgorN. Nikischenko

2017-09-01

Full Text Available Improved liquid rocket engine cycles were proposed and analyzed via comparison with existing staged combustion and gas-generator cycles. The key features of the proposed cycles are regenerative cooling of thrust chamber by oxygen and subsequent use of this oxygen for driving one or two oxygen pumps. The fuel pump(s are driven in a conventional manner, for example, using a fuel-rich gas-generator cycle. Comparison with staged combustion cycle based on oxygen-rich pre-burner showed that one of the proposed semi-expander cycles has a specific impulse only on 0.4% lower while providing much lower oxygen temperature, more efficient tank pressurizing system and built-in roll control. This semi-expander cycle can be considered as a more reliable and cost-effective alternative of staged combustion cycle. Another semi-expander cycle can be considered as an improvement of gas-generator cycle. All proposed semi-expander cycles were developed as a derivative of thrust chamber regenerative cooling performed by oxygen. Analysis of existing oxygen/kerosene engines showed that replacing of kerosene regenerative cooling with oxygen allows a significant increase of achievable specific impulse, via optimization of mixture ratio. It is especially the case for upper stage engines. The increasing of propellants average density can be considered as an additional benefit of mixture ratio optimization. It was demonstrated that oxygen regenerative cooling of thrust chamber is a feasible and the most promising option for oxygen/kerosene engines. Combination of oxygen regenerative cooling and semi-expander cycles potentially allows creating the oxygen/kerosene propulsion systems with minimum specific impulse losses. It is important that such propulsion systems can be fully based on inherited and well-proven technical solutions. A hypothetic upper stage engine with thrust 19.6 kN was chosen as a prospective candidate for theoretical analysis of the proposed semi

An investigation of engine performance parameters and artificial intelligent emission prediction of hydrogen powered car

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ho, Tien; Karri, Vishy; Lim, Daniel; Barret, Danny

2008-01-01

With the depletion of fossil fuel resources and the potential consequences of climate change due to fossil fuel use, much effort has been put into the search for alternative fuels for transportation. Although there are several potential alternative fuels, which have low impact on the environment, none of these fuels have the ability to be used as the sole 'fuel of the future'. One fuel which is likely to become a part of the over all solution to the transportation fuel dilemma is hydrogen. In this paper, The Toyota Corolla four cylinder, 1.8 l engine running on petrol is systematically converted to run on hydrogen. Several ancillary instruments for measuring various engine operating parameters and emissions are fitted to appraise the performance of the hydrogen car. The effect of hydrogen as a fuel compares with gasoline on engine operating parameters and effect of engine operating parameters on emission characteristics is discussed. Based on the experimental setup, a suite of neural network models were tested to accurately predict the effect of major engine operating conditions on the hydrogen car emissions. Predictions were found to be ±4% to the experimental values. This work provided better understanding of the effect of engine process parameters on emissions. (author)

Assessment of maximum available work of a hydrogen fueled compression ignition engine using exergy analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chintala, Venkateswarlu; Subramanian, K.A.

2014-01-01

This work is aimed at study of maximum available work and irreversibility (mixing, combustion, unburned, and friction) of a dual-fuel diesel engine (H 2 (hydrogen)–diesel) using exergy analysis. The maximum available work increased with H 2 addition due to reduction in irreversibility of combustion because of less entropy generation. The irreversibility of unburned fuel with the H 2 fuel also decreased due to the engine combustion with high temperature whereas there is no effect of H 2 on mixing and friction irreversibility. The maximum available work of the diesel engine at rated load increased from 29% with conventional base mode (without H 2 ) to 31.7% with dual-fuel mode (18% H 2 energy share) whereas total irreversibility of the engine decreased drastically from 41.2% to 39.3%. The energy efficiency of the engine with H 2 increased about 10% with 36% reduction in CO 2 emission. The developed methodology could also be applicable to find the effect and scope of different technologies including exhaust gas recirculation and turbo charging on maximum available work and energy efficiency of diesel engines. - Highlights: • Energy efficiency of diesel engine increases with hydrogen under dual-fuel mode. • Maximum available work of the engine increases significantly with hydrogen. • Combustion and unburned fuel irreversibility decrease with hydrogen. • No significant effect of hydrogen on mixing and friction irreversibility. • Reduction in CO 2 emission along with HC, CO and smoke emissions

Dynamical Model of Rocket Propellant Loading with Liquid Hydrogen

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — A dynamical model describing the multi-stage process of rocket propellant loading has been developed. It accounts for both the nominal and faulty regimes of...

Self adaptive internal combustion engine control for hydrogen mixtures using piezoelectric transducers for dynamic cylinder pressure monitoring

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Courteau, R.; Bose, T.K. [Quebec Univ., Trois-Rivieres, PQ (Canada). Institut de recherche sur l' hydrogene

2004-07-01

Hydrogen internal combustion engine research at the Hydrogen Research Institute includes the following infrastructure: a 20 square metre test cell, an engine preparation room, a 150 hp dynamometer, exhaust gas analysers and a hydrogen supply. The goal of the research is to develop internal combustion engine technologies that can use hydrogen as a fuel without knocking, backfires, excessive engine wear, and with low emissions. As well as hydrogen, fuels such as biogas are also investigated. Technologies under investigation include adaptive control algorithms, as well as advanced sensors and actuators. The latter include piezolelectrics, optical fibres, nitrogen oxide detectors, and chemical composition detectors. Developments include microprocessor-controlled injection and ignition control systems for both single cylinder and multicylinder engines. Research on the influence of fuel composition on best ignition timing is presented. There is also dynamic cylinder pressure monitoring to prevent knocking make engine state assessments and perform engine calibration. Piezoelectric cylinder pressure sensors are employed, either integrated with the spark plugs, or stand-alone, inserted through separate holes through the cylinder head. tabs, figs.

On use of hybrid rocket propulsion for suborbital vehicles

Science.gov (United States)

Okninski, Adam

2018-04-01

While the majority of operating suborbital rockets use solid rocket propulsion, recent advancements in the field of hybrid rocket motors lead to renewed interest in their use in sounding rockets. This paper presents results of optimisation of sounding rockets using hybrid propulsion. An overview of vehicles under development during the last decade, as well as heritage systems is provided. Different propellant combinations are discussed and their performance assessment is given. While Liquid Oxygen, Nitrous Oxide and Nitric Acid have been widely tested with various solid fuels in flight, Hydrogen Peroxide remains an oxidiser with very limited sounding rocket applications. The benefits of hybrid propulsion for sounding rockets are given. In case of hybrid rocket motors the thrust curve can be optimised for each flight, using a flow regulator, depending on the payload and mission. Results of studies concerning the optimal burn duration and nozzle selection are given. Specific considerations are provided for the Polish ILR-33 "Amber" sounding rocket. Low regression rates, which up to date were viewed as a drawback of hybrid propulsion may be used to the benefit of maximising rocket performance if small solid rocket boosters are used during the initial flight period. While increased interest in hybrid propulsion is present, no up-to-date reference concerning use of hybrid rocket propulsion for sounding rockets is available. The ultimate goal of the paper is to provide insight into the sensitivity of different design parameters on performance of hybrid sounding rockets and delve into the potential and challenges of using hybrid rocket technology for expendable suborbital applications.

Improvement of ecological characteristics of the hydrogen diesel engine

Science.gov (United States)

Natriashvili, T.; Kavtaradze, R.; Glonti, M.

2018-02-01

In the article are considered the questions of influence of a swirl intensity of the shot and injector design on the ecological indices of the hydrogen diesel, little-investigated till now. The necessity of solution of these problems arises at conversion of the serial diesel engine into the hydrogen diesel. The mathematical model consists of the three-dimensional non-stationary equations of transfer and also models of turbulence and combustion. The numerical experiments have been carried out with the use of program code FIRE. The optimal values of parameters of the working process, ensuring improvement of the effective and ecological indices of the hydrogen diesel are determined.

Hydrogen combustion and exhaust emissions in a supercharged gas engine ignited with micro pilot diesel fuel

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tomita, E.; Kawahara, N. [Okayama Univ., Okayama (Japan); Roy, M.M. [Rajshahi Univ. of Engineering and Technology, Rajshahi (Bangladesh)

2009-07-01

A hydrogen combustion and exhaust emissions in a supercharged gas engine ignited with micro pilot diesel fuel was discussed in this presentation. A schematic diagram of the experimental study was first presented. The single cylinder, water-cooled, supercharged test engine was illustrated. Results were presented for the following: fuel energy and energy share (hydrogen and diesel fuel); pressure history and rate of heat release; engine performance and exhaust emissions; effect of nitrogen dilution on heat value per cycle; effect of N{sub 2} dilution on pressure history and rate of heat release; and engine performance and exhaust emissions. This presentation demonstrated that smooth and knock-free engine operation results from the use of hydrogen in a supercharged dual-fuel engine for leaner fuel-air equivalence ratios maintaining high thermal efficiency. It was possible to attain mor3 than 90 per cent hydrogen-energy substitution to the diesel fuel with zero smoke emissions. figs.

Hydrogen combustion and exhaust emissions in a supercharged gas engine ignited with micro pilot diesel fuel

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tomita, E.; Kawahara, N.; Roy, M.M.

2009-01-01

A hydrogen combustion and exhaust emissions in a supercharged gas engine ignited with micro pilot diesel fuel was discussed in this presentation. A schematic diagram of the experimental study was first presented. The single cylinder, water-cooled, supercharged test engine was illustrated. Results were presented for the following: fuel energy and energy share (hydrogen and diesel fuel); pressure history and rate of heat release; engine performance and exhaust emissions; effect of nitrogen dilution on heat value per cycle; effect of N 2 dilution on pressure history and rate of heat release; and engine performance and exhaust emissions. This presentation demonstrated that smooth and knock-free engine operation results from the use of hydrogen in a supercharged dual-fuel engine for leaner fuel-air equivalence ratios maintaining high thermal efficiency. It was possible to attain mor3 than 90 per cent hydrogen-energy substitution to the diesel fuel with zero smoke emissions. figs.

Nuclear Thermal Rocket Simulation in NPSS

Science.gov (United States)

Belair, Michael L.; Sarmiento, Charles J.; Lavelle, Thomas M.

2013-01-01

Four nuclear thermal rocket (NTR) models have been created in the Numerical Propulsion System Simulation (NPSS) framework. The models are divided into two categories. One set is based upon the ZrC-graphite composite fuel element and tie tube-style reactor developed during the Nuclear Engine for Rocket Vehicle Application (NERVA) project in the late 1960s and early 1970s. The other reactor set is based upon a W-UO2 ceramic-metallic (CERMET) fuel element. Within each category, a small and a large thrust engine are modeled. The small engine models utilize RL-10 turbomachinery performance maps and have a thrust of approximately 33.4 kN (7,500 lbf ). The large engine models utilize scaled RL-60 turbomachinery performance maps and have a thrust of approximately 111.2 kN (25,000 lbf ). Power deposition profiles for each reactor were obtained from a detailed Monte Carlo N-Particle (MCNP5) model of the reactor cores. Performance factors such as thermodynamic state points, thrust, specific impulse, reactor power level, and maximum fuel temperature are analyzed for each engine design.

Kinetic---a system code for analyzing nuclear thermal propulsion rocket engine transients

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schmidt, E.; Lazareth, O.; Ludewig, H.

1993-01-01

A system code suitable for analyzing Nuclear Thermal Propulsion (NTP) rocket engines is described in this paper. The code consists of a point reactor model and nodes to describe the fluid dynamics and heat transfer mechanism. Feedback from the fuel, coolant, moderator and reflector are allowed for, and the control of the reactor is by motion of controls element (drums or rods). The worth of the control element and feedback coefficients are predetermined. Separate models for the turbo-pump assembly (TPA) and nozzle are also included. The model to be described in this paper is specific for the Particle Bed Reactor (PBR). An illustrative problem is solved. This problem consists of a PBR operating in a blowdown mode

Kinetic—a system code for analyzing nuclear thermal propulsion rocket engine transients

Science.gov (United States)

Schmidt, Eldon; Lazareth, Otto; Ludewig, Hans

1993-01-01

A system code suitable for analyzing Nuclear Thermal Propulsion (NTP) rocket engines is described in this paper. The code consists of a point reactor model and nodes to describe the fluid dynamics and heat transfer mechanism. Feedback from the fuel, coolant, moderator and reflector are allowed for, and the control of the reactor is by motion of controls element (drums or rods). The worth of the control element and feedback coefficients are predetermined. Separate models for the turbo-pump assembly (TPA) and nozzle are also included. The model to be described in this paper is specific for the Particle Bed Reactor (PBR). An illustrative problem is solved. This problem consists of a PBR operating in a blowdown mode.

KINETIC: A system code for analyzing Nuclear thermal propulsion rocket engine transients

Science.gov (United States)

Schmidt, E.; Lazareth, O.; Ludewig, H.

1993-07-01

A system code suitable for analyzing Nuclear Thermal Propulsion (NTP) rocket engines is described in this paper. The code consists of a point reactor model and nodes to describe the fluid dynamics and heat transfer mechanism. Feedback from the fuel coolant, moderator and reflector are allowed for, and the control of the reactor is by motion of control elements (drums or rods). The worth of the control clement and feedback coefficients are predetermined. Separate models for the turbo-pump assembly (TPA) and nozzle are also included. The model to be described in this paper is specific for the Particle Bed Reactor (PBR). An illustrative problem is solved. This problem consists of a PBR operating in a blowdown mode.

Acoustic streaming in simplified liquid rocket engines with transverse mode oscillations

Science.gov (United States)

Fischbach, Sean R.; Flandro, Gary A.; Majdalani, Joseph

2010-06-01

This study considers a simplified model of a liquid rocket engine in which uniform injection is imposed at the faceplate. The corresponding cylindrical chamber has a small length-to-diameter ratio with respect to solid and hybrid rockets. Given their low chamber aspect ratios, liquid thrust engines are known to experience severe tangential and radial oscillation modes more often than longitudinal ones. In order to model this behavior, tangential and radial waves are superimposed onto a basic mean-flow model that consists of a steady, uniform axial velocity throughout the chamber. Using perturbation tools, both potential and viscous flow equations are then linearized in the pressure wave amplitude and solved to the second order. The effects of the headwall Mach number are leveraged as well. While the potential flow analysis does not predict any acoustic streaming effects, the viscous solution carried out to the second order gives rise to steady secondary flow patterns near the headwall. These axisymmetric, steady contributions to the tangential and radial traveling waves are induced by the convective flow motion through interactions with inertial and viscous forces. We find that suppressing either the convective terms or viscosity at the headwall leads to spurious solutions that are free from streaming. In our problem, streaming is initiated at the headwall, within the boundary layer, and then extends throughout the chamber. We find that nonlinear streaming effects of tangential and radial waves act to alter the outer solution inside a cylinder with headwall injection. As a result of streaming, the radial wave velocities are intensified in one-half of the domain and reduced in the opposite half at any instant of time. Similarly, the tangential waves are either enhanced or weakened in two opposing sectors that are at 90° angle to the radial velocity counterparts. The second-order viscous solution that we obtain clearly displays both an oscillating and a steady flow

A review of findings of a study of rocket based combined cycle engines applied to extensively axisymmetric single stage to orbit vehicles

Science.gov (United States)

Foster, Richard W.

1992-01-01

Extensively axisymmetric and non-axisymmetric Single Stage To Orbit (SSTO) vehicles are considered. The information is presented in viewgraph form and the following topics are presented: payload comparisons; payload as a percent of dry weight - a system hardware cost indicator; life cycle cost estimations; operations and support costs estimation; selected engine type; and rocket engine specific impulse calculation.

Nuclear rockets: High-performance propulsion for Mars

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Watson, C.W.

1994-05-01

A new impetus to manned Mars exploration was introduced by President Bush in his Space Exploration Initiative. This has led, in turn, to a renewed interest in high-thrust nuclear thermal rocket propulsion (NTP). The purpose of this report is to give a brief tutorial introduction to NTP and provide a basic understanding of some of the technical issues in the realization of an operational NTP engine. Fundamental physical principles are outlined from which a variety of qualitative advantages of NTP over chemical propulsion systems derive, and quantitative performance comparisons are presented for illustrative Mars missions. Key technologies are described for a representative solid-core heat-exchanger class of engine, based on the extensive development work in the Rover and NERVA nuclear rocket programs (1955 to 1973). The most driving technology, fuel development, is discussed in some detail for these systems. Essential highlights are presented for the 19 full-scale reactor and engine tests performed in these programs. On the basis of these tests, the practicality of graphite-based nuclear rocket engines was established. Finally, several higher-performance advanced concepts are discussed. These have received considerable attention, but have not, as yet, developed enough credibility to receive large-scale development

Reuse fo a Cold War Surveillance Drone to Flight Test a NASA Rocket Based Combined Cycle Engine

Science.gov (United States)

Brown, T. M.; Smith, Norm

1999-01-01

Plans for and early feasibility investigations into the modification of a Lockheed D21B drone to flight test the DRACO Rocket Based Combined Cycle (RBCC) engine are discussed. Modifications include the addition of oxidizer tanks, modern avionics systems, actuators, and a vehicle recovery system. Current study results indicate that the D21B is a suitable candidate for this application and will allow demonstrations of all DRACO engine operating modes at Mach numbers between 0.8 and 4.0. Higher Mach numbers may be achieved with more extensive modification. Possible project risks include low speed stability and control, and recovery techniques.

Optimizing the hydrogen storage in boron nitride nanotubes by defect engineering

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Oezdogan, Kemal; Berber, Savas [Physics Department, Gebze Institute of Technology, Cayirova Kampusu, Gebze, 41400 Kocaeli (Turkey)

2009-06-15

We use ab initio density functional theory calculations to study the interaction of hydrogen with vacancies in boron nitride nanotubes to optimize the hydrogen storage capacity through defect engineering. The vacancies reconstruct by forming B-B and N-N bonds across the defect site, which are not as favorable as heteronuclear B-N bonds. Our total energy and structure optimization results indicate that the hydrogen cleaves these reconstructing bonds to form more stable atomic structures. The hydrogenated defects offer smaller charge densities that allow hydrogen molecule to pass through the nanotube wall for storing hydrogen inside the nanotubes. Our optimum reaction pathway search revealed that hydrogen molecules could indeed go through a hydrogenated defect site with relatively small energy barriers compared to the pristine nanotube wall. The calculated activation energies for different diameters suggest a preferential diameter range for optimum hydrogen storage in defective boron nitride nanotubes. (author)

Wavelet analysis of cyclic variability in a spark ignition engine powered by gasoline-hydrogen fuel blends

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sen, Asok K. [Richard G. Lugar Centre for Renewable Energy, and Department of Mathematical Sciences, Indiana University, (United States)], email: asen@iupui.edu; Akif Ceviz, M.; Volkan Oner, I. [Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Ataturk (Turkey)], email: aceviz@atauni.edu.tr

2011-07-01

The cycle-to-cycle variations (CCV) of the indicated mean effective pressure (IMEP) in a spark ignition engine fuelled by gasoline and gasoline-hydrogen blends is investigated. CCVs are estimated by using the coefficient of variation (COV) and the overall spectral power given by the global wavelet spectrum (GWS). It was found that the addition of hydrogen reduces the CCV of the IMEP. Analysis of the wavelet can also identify the dominant modes of variability and delineate the engine cycles over which these modes can persist. Air-fuel ratio was varied from 1.0 to 1.3, and hydrogen was added up to 7.74% by volume. The engine was operated at 2000 rpm. Results demonstrate that subject to air-fuel ratio and % of hydrogen added, IMEP time series can exhibit multiscale dynamics consisting of persistent oscillations and intermittent fluctuations. These results can help develop effective control strategies to reduce cyclic variability in a spark ignition engine fuelled by gasoline-hydrogen mixtures.

The Influence of Hydrogen Gas on the Measures of Efficiency of Diesel Internal Combustion Engine

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jurgis Latakas

2014-12-01

Full Text Available In this research paper energy and ecological parameters of diesel engine which works under addition of hydrogen (10, 20, 30 l/ min are presented. A survey of research literature has shown that addition of hydrogen gases improve diesel combustion; increase indicated pressure; decrease concentration of carbon dioxide (CO2, hydrocarbons (HC, particles; decrease fuel consumptions. Results of the experiment revealed that hydrogen gas additive decreased pressure in cylinder in kinetic combustion phase. Concentration of CO2 and nitrous oxides (NOx decreased not significantly, HC – increased. Concentration of particles in engine exhaust gases significantly decreased. In case when hydrogen gas as additive was supplied, the fuel consumptions decreased a little. Using AVL BOOST software combustion process analysis was made. It was determined that in order to optimize engine work process under hydrogen additive usage, it is necessary to adjust diesel injection angle.

Performance and emission characteristics of a turbocharged CNG engine fueled by hydrogen-enriched compressed natural gas with high hydrogen ratio

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ma, Fanhua; Wang, Mingyue; Jiang, Long; Chen, Renzhe; Deng, Jiao; Naeve, Nashay; Zhao, Shuli [State Key Laboratory of Automotive Safety and Energy Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084 (China)

2010-06-15

This paper investigates the effect of high hydrogen volumetric ratio of 55% on performance and emission characteristics in a turbocharged lean burn natural gas engine. The experimental data was conducted under various operating conditions including different spark timing, excess air ratio (lambda), and manifold pressure. It is found that the addition of hydrogen at a high volumetric ratio could significantly extend the lean burn limit, improve the engine lean burn ability, decrease burn duration, and yield higher thermal efficiency. The CO, CH{sub 4} emissions were reduced and NO{sub x} emission could be kept an acceptable low level with high hydrogen content under lean burn conditions when ignition timing were optimized. (author)

Rocket + Science = Dialogue

Science.gov (United States)

Morris,Bruce; Sullivan, Greg; Burkey, Martin

2010-01-01

It's a cliche that rocket engineers and space scientists don t see eye-to-eye. That goes double for rocket engineers working on human spaceflight and scientists working on space telescopes and planetary probes. They work fundamentally different problems but often feel that they are competing for the same pot of money. Put the two groups together for a weekend, and the results could be unscientific or perhaps combustible. Fortunately, that wasn't the case when NASA put heavy lift launch vehicle designers together with astronomers and planetary scientists for two weekend workshops in 2008. The goal was to bring the top people from both groups together to see how the mass and volume capabilities of NASA's Ares V heavy lift launch vehicle could benefit the science community. Ares V is part of NASA's Constellation Program for resuming human exploration beyond low Earth orbit, starting with missions to the Moon. In the current mission scenario, Ares V launches a lunar lander into Earth orbit. A smaller Ares I rocket launches the Orion crew vehicle with up to four astronauts. Orion docks with the lander, attached to the Ares V Earth departure stage. The stage fires its engine to send the mated spacecraft to the Moon. Standing 360 feet high and weighing 7.4 million pounds, NASA's new heavy lifter will be bigger than the 1960s-era Saturn V. It can launch almost 60 percent more payload to translunar insertion together with the Ares I and 35 percent more mass to low Earth orbit than the Saturn V. This super-sized capability is, in short, designed to send more people to more places to do more things than the six Apollo missions.

An insight on hydrogen fuel injection techniques with SCR system for NO{sub X} reduction in a hydrogen-diesel dual fuel engine

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Saravanan, N. [ERC Engines, Hall 11A, Tata Motors, Pimpri, Pune 411019, Maharashtra (India); Nagarajan, G. [Department of Mechanical Engineering, ICE Division, College of Engineering, Guindy, Anna University-Chennai, Chennai 600 025 (India)

2009-11-15

Internal combustion engines continue to dominate in many fields like transportation, agriculture and power generation. Among the various alternative fuels, hydrogen is a long-term renewable and less polluting fuel (Produced from renewable energy sources). In the present experimental investigation, the performance and emission characteristics were studied on a direct injection diesel engine in dual fuel mode with hydrogen inducted along with air adopting carburetion, timed port and manifold injection techniques. Results showed that in timed port injection, the specific energy consumption reduces by 15% and smoke level by 18%. The brake thermal efficiency and NO{sub X} increases by 17% and 34% respectively compared to baseline diesel. The variation in performance between port and manifold injection is not significant. The unburnt hydrocarbons and carbon monoxide emissions are lesser in port injection. The oxides of nitrogen are higher in hydrogen operation (both port and manifold injection) compared to diesel engine. In order to reduce the NO{sub X} emissions, a selective catalytic converter was used in hydrogen port fuel injection. The NO{sub X} emission reduced upto a maximum of 74% for ANR (ratio of flow rate of ammonia to the flow rate of NO) of 1.1 with a marginal reduction in efficiency. Selective catalytic reduction technique has been found to be effective in reducing the NO{sub X} emission from hydrogen fueled diesel engines. (author)

To MARS and Beyond with Nuclear Power - Design Concept of Korea Advanced Nuclear Thermal Engine Rocket

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nam, Seung Hyun; Chang, Soon Heung [Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2013-05-15

The President Park of ROK has also expressed support for space program promotion, praising the success of NARO as evidence of a positive outlook. These events hint a strong signal that ROK's space program will be accelerated by the national eager desire. In this national eager desire for space program, the policymakers and the aerospace engineers need to pay attention to the advanced nuclear technology of ROK that is set to a major world nuclear energy country, even exporting the technology. The space nuclear application is a very much attractive option because its energy density is the most enormous among available energy sources in space. This paper presents the design concept of Korea Advanced Nuclear Thermal Engine Rocket (KANuTER) that is one of the advanced nuclear thermal rocket engine developing in Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) for space application. Solar system exploration relying on CRs suffers from long trip time and high cost. In this regard, nuclear propulsion is a very attractive option for that because of higher performance and already demonstrated technology. Although ROK was a late entrant into elite global space club, its prospect as a space racer is very bright because of the national eager desire and its advanced technology. Especially it is greatly meaningful that ROK has potential capability to launch its nuclear technology into space as a global nuclear energy leader and a soaring space adventurer. In this regard, KANuTER will be a kind of bridgehead for Korean space nuclear application.

To MARS and Beyond with Nuclear Power - Design Concept of Korea Advanced Nuclear Thermal Engine Rocket

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nam, Seung Hyun; Chang, Soon Heung

2013-01-01

The President Park of ROK has also expressed support for space program promotion, praising the success of NARO as evidence of a positive outlook. These events hint a strong signal that ROK's space program will be accelerated by the national eager desire. In this national eager desire for space program, the policymakers and the aerospace engineers need to pay attention to the advanced nuclear technology of ROK that is set to a major world nuclear energy country, even exporting the technology. The space nuclear application is a very much attractive option because its energy density is the most enormous among available energy sources in space. This paper presents the design concept of Korea Advanced Nuclear Thermal Engine Rocket (KANuTER) that is one of the advanced nuclear thermal rocket engine developing in Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) for space application. Solar system exploration relying on CRs suffers from long trip time and high cost. In this regard, nuclear propulsion is a very attractive option for that because of higher performance and already demonstrated technology. Although ROK was a late entrant into elite global space club, its prospect as a space racer is very bright because of the national eager desire and its advanced technology. Especially it is greatly meaningful that ROK has potential capability to launch its nuclear technology into space as a global nuclear energy leader and a soaring space adventurer. In this regard, KANuTER will be a kind of bridgehead for Korean space nuclear application

Combustion characteristics and optimal factors determination with Taguchi method for diesel engines port-injecting hydrogen

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wu, Horng-Wen; Wu, Zhan-Yi

2012-01-01

This study applies the L 9 orthogonal array of the Taguchi method to find out the best hydrogen injection timing, hydrogen-energy-share ratio, and the percentage of exhaust gas circulation (EGR) in a single DI diesel engine. The injection timing is controlled by an electronic control unit (ECU) and the quantity of hydrogen is controlled by hydrogen flow controller. For various engine loads, the authors determine the optimal operating factors for low BSFC (brake specific fuel consumption), NO X , and smoke. Moreover, net heat-release rate involving variable specific heat ratio is computed from the experimental in-cylinder pressure. In-cylinder pressure, net heat-release rate, A/F ratios, COV (coefficient of variations) of IMEP (indicated mean effective pressure), NO X , and smoke using the optimum condition factors are compared with those by original baseline diesel engine. The predictions made using Taguchi's parameter design technique agreed with the confirmation results on 95% confidence interval. At 45% and 60% loads the optimum factor combination compared with the original baseline diesel engine reduces 14.52% for BSFC, 60.5% for NO X and for 42.28% smoke and improves combustion performance such as peak in-cylinder pressure and net heat-release rate. Adding hydrogen and EGR would not generate unstable combustion due to lower COV of IMEP. -- Highlights: ► We use hydrogen injector controlled by ECU and cooled EGR system in a diesel engine. ► Optimal factors by Taguchi method are determined for low BSFC, NO X and smoke. ► The COV of IMEP is lower than 10% so it will not cause the unstable combustion. ► We improve A/F ratio, in-cylinder pressure, and heat-release at optimized engine. ► Decrease is 14.5% for BSFC, 60.5% for NO X , and 42.28% for smoke at optimized engine.

Effect of the Miller cycle on the performance of turbocharged hydrogen internal combustion engines

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Luo, Qing-he; Sun, Bai-gang

2016-01-01

Highlights: • The Miller cycle can increase power density for turbocharged hydrogen engines. • The boundaries is limited by the turbocharged system and valve lift. • Broke power and BSFC of using Miller cycle is the best in three technical methods. - Abstract: Hydrogen is a promising energy carrier, and the port fuel injection (PFI) is a fuel-flexible, durable, and relatively cheap method of energy conversion. However, the contradiction of increasing the power density and controlling NOx emissions limits the wide application of PFI hydrogen internal combustion engines. To address this issue, two typical thermodynamic cycles—the Miller and Otto cycles—are studied based on the calculation model proposed in this study. The thermodynamic cycle analyses of the two cycles are compared and results show that the thermal efficiency of the Miller cycle (η_M_i_l_l_e_r) is higher than η_O_t_t_o, when the multiplied result of the inlet pressure and Miller cycle coefficient (δ_Mγ_M) is larger than that of the Otto cycle (i.e., the value of the inlet pressure ratio multiplied by the Miller cycle coefficient is larger than the value of the inlet pressure ratio of the Otto cycle). The results also show that the intake valve closure (IVC) of the Miller cycle is limited by the inlet pressure and valve lift. The two factors show the boundaries of the Miller cycle in increasing the power density of the turbocharged PFI hydrogen engine. The ways of lean burn + Otto cycle (LO), stoichiometric equivalence ratio burn + EGR + Otto cycle (SEO) and Miller cycle in turbocharged hydrogen engine are compared, the results show that the Miller cycle has the highest power density and the lowest BSFC among the three methods at an engine speed of 2800 rpm and NOx emissions below 100 ppm. The brake power of the Miller cycle increases by 37.7% higher than that of the LO and 26.3% higher than that of SEO, when γ_M is 0.7. The BSFC of the Miller cycle decreases by 16% lower than that of

Potentials of NO{sub X} emission reduction methods in SI hydrogen engines: Simulation study

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Safari, H.; Jazayeri, S.A. [Department of Mechanical Engineering, K.N. Toosi University of Technology, No.15, Pardis Street, Vanak Square, Tehran (Iran); Ebrahimi, R. [Department of Aerospace Engineering, K.N. Toosi University of Technology, 4th Tehranpars Square, East Vafadar Street, Tehran (Iran)

2009-01-15

The ever increasing cost of hydrocarbon fuels and more stringent emission standards may resolve challenges in producing hydrogen and using it as an alternative fuel in industries. Internal combustion engines are well-established technology and hydrogen fuel in such engines is considered as an attractive choice in exploiting clean, efficient and renewable hydrogen energy. This work presents an improved thermo-kinetics model for simulation of hydrogen combustion in SI engines. The turbulent propagating flame is modeled using turbulent burning velocity model. During combustion the charge is divided into three zones containing unburned charge, flame and burned gas. The adiabatic flame is assumed to be in thermodynamic equilibrium while the detailed chemical kinetics scheme is considered for burned and unburned zones. The results were first validated against published experiments. Good agreements were obtained between simulation and experiment for varying equivalence ratio, ignition timing and compression ratio. Detailed analysis of engine NO{sub X} emission was performed afterward. The lean-burn and EGR strategies' potentials were examined by the current model. The effects of different amounts of cooled dry EGR and hot wet EGR on the NO{sub X} emission, engine power output and indicated thermal efficiency were investigated and compared theoretically. (author)

Fast reconstruction of an unmanned engineering vehicle and its application to carrying rocket

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jun Qian

2014-04-01

Full Text Available Engineering vehicle is widely used as a huge moving platform for transporting heavy goods. However, traditional human operations have a great influence on the steady movement of the vehicle. In this Letter, a fast reconstruction process of an unmanned engineering vehicle is carried out. By adding a higher-level controller and two two-dimensional laser scanners on the moving platform, the vehicle could perceive the surrounding environment and locate its pose according to extended Kalman filter. Then, a closed-loop control system is formed by communicating with the on-board lower-level controller. To verify the performance of automatic control system, the unmanned vehicle is automatically navigated when carrying a rocket towards a launcher in a launch site. The experimental results show that the vehicle could align with the launcher smoothly and safely within a small lateral deviation of 1 cm. This fast reconstruction presents an efficient way of rebuilding low-cost unmanned special vehicles and other automatic moving platforms.

Calculated concentrations of any radionuclide deposited on the ground by release from underground nuclear detonations, tests of nuclear rockets, and tests of nuclear ramjet engines

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hicks, H.G.

1981-11-01

This report presents calculated gamma radiation exposure rates and ground deposition of related radionuclides resulting from three types of event that deposited detectable radioactivity outside the Nevada Test Site complex, namely, underground nuclear detonations, tests of nuclear rocket engines and tests of nuclear ramjet engines

A study of diesel-hydrogen fuel exhaust emissions in a compression ignition engine/generator assembly

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Karri, V.; Hafez, H.A.; Kirkegaard, J.F.

2006-01-01

A compression engine and duel-fuel supply system was studied in order to determine the influence of hydrogen gas on a diesel engine's exhaust system. Commercially available solenoid valves and pulse actuators were used in a customized mechatronic control unit (MICU) to inject the hydrogen gas into the cylinders during the experiments. The MICU was designed as a generic external attachment. Diesel fuel was used to ignite the hydrogen gas-air mixture after compression. Various different electrical loads were then applied using an alternator in order to stimulate the engine governor and control diesel flow. Results of the study showed that measured carbon monoxide (CO), hydrocarbons (HC) and nitrogen oxide (NO x ) loads of exhaust emissions increased, while emissions of carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) decreased. Results also showed that higher temperatures and levels of NO x occurred when hydrogen was mixed with the induced air. It was concluded that higher levels of hydrogen may be needed to reduce emissions. 17 refs., 5 tabs., 2 figs

An experimental study on performance and emission characteristics of a hydrogen fuelled spark ignition engine

OpenAIRE

Kahraman, Erol; Özcanlı, Şevket Cihangir; Özerdem, Barış

2007-01-01

In the present paper, the performance and emission characteristics of a conventional four cylinder spark ignition (SI) engine operated on hydrogen and gasoline are investigated experimentally. The compressed hydrogen at 20 MPa has been introduced to the engine adopted to operate on gaseous hydrogen by external mixing. Two regulators have been used to drop the pressure first to 300 kPa, then to atmospheric pressure. The variations of torque, power, brake thermal efficiency, brake mean effectiv...

Effect of compression ratio, equivalence ratio and engine speed on the performance and emission characteristics of a spark ignition engine using hydrogen as a fuel

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sadiq Al-Baghdadi, M.A.R. [University of Babylon (Iraq). Dept. of Mechanical Engineering

2004-12-01

The present energy situation has stimulated active research interest in non-petroleum and non-polluting fuels, particularly for transportation, power generation, and agricultural sectors. Researchers have found that hydrogen presents the best and an unprecedented solution to the energy crises and pollution problems, due to its superior combustion qualities and availability. This paper discusses analytically and provides data on the effect of compression ratio, equivalence ratio and engine speed on the engine performance, emissions and pre-ignition limits of a spark ignition engine operating on hydrogen fuel. These data are important in order to understand the interaction between engine performance and emission parameters, which will help engine designers when designing for hydrogen. (author)

Thermal balance of a four stroke SI engine operating on hydrogen as a supplementary fuel

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yueksel, F.; Ceviz, M.A.

2003-01-01

This paper investigates the effects of adding constant quantity hydrogen to gasoline-air mixture on SI engine thermal balance and performance. A four stroke, four-cylinder SI engine was used for conducting this study. Thermal balance tests were conducted for engine thermal efficiency, heat loss through the exhaust gases, heat loss to the cooling water and unaccounted losses (i.e. heat lost by lubricating oil, radiation), while performance tests were in respect to the brake power, specific fuel consumption and air ratio. Hydrogen supplementations were used with three different and fixed mass flow rates; 0.129, 0.168 and 0.208 kg h -1 at near three-fourth throttle opening position and variable engine speed ranging from 1000 to 4500 rpm. The results showed that supplementation of hydrogen to gasoline decreases the heat loss to cooling water and unaccounted losses, and the heat loss through the exhaust gas is nearly the same with pure gasoline experiments. Additionally, specific fuel consumption decreases, while the engine thermal efficiency and the air ratio increase. Engine performance parameters such as thermal efficiency and specific fuel consumption improved the level of the ratio of hydrogen mass flow rate to that of gasoline up to 5%

Low Cost Nuclear Thermal Rocket Cermet Fuel Element Environment Testing

Science.gov (United States)

Bradley, David E.; Mireles, Omar R.; Hickman, Robert R.

2011-01-01

Deep space missions with large payloads require high specific impulse (Isp) and relatively high thrust in order to achieve mission goals in reasonable time frames. Conventional, storable propellants produce average Isp. Nuclear thermal rockets (NTR) capable of high Isp thrust have been proposed. NTR employs heat produced by fission reaction to heat and therefore accelerate hydrogen which is then forced through a rocket nozzle providing thrust. Fuel element temperatures are very high (up to 3000K) and hydrogen is highly reactive with most materials at high temperatures. Data covering the effects of high temperature hydrogen exposure on fuel elements is limited. The primary concern is the mechanical failure of fuel elements which employ high-melting-point metals, ceramics or a combination (cermet) as a structural matrix into which the nuclear fuel is distributed. It is not necessary to include fissile material in test samples intended to explore high temperature hydrogen exposure of the structural support matrices. A small-scale test bed designed to heat fuel element samples via non-contact RF heating and expose samples to hydrogen is being developed to assist in optimal material and manufacturing process selection without employing fissile material. This paper details the test bed design and results of testing conducted to date.

Teaching - methodical and research center of hydrogen power engineering and platinum group metals in the former Soviet Union countries

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Evdokimov, A.A; Sigov, A.S; Shinkarenko, V.V.

2005-01-01

Full text: Teaching - Methodical and Research Center (TMRC) 'Sokolinaja Gora' is founded in order to provide methodical-information and scientific support of institutes of higher education in the field of hydrogen power engineering and platinum group metals in Russia and in the countries of the Former Soviet union. It is independent association of creative communities of scientist of higher educational specialists. The main directions of the Center activity are: 1. Teaching-methodological support and development of teaching in the field of hydrogen power engineering and platinum group metals in Russia in the countries of the Former Soviet Union. Themes of teaching includes the basic of safe using of hydrogen technologies and devices, ecological, economic and law aspects of new hydrogen power engineering, transition to which in 21 century is one of the central problems of mankind survival; 2. Organizing of joint researches by independent creative communities of scientists in the field of hydrogen power engineering and platinum group metal; 3. Independent scientific examination, which is made by Advisory Committee of High Technologies consisting of representatives of the countries of Former Soviet Union, which are standing participants of an Annual International Symposia 'Hydrogen Power Engineering and Platinum Group Metals in the Former Soviet Union Countries'. Structure of the Center: 1. Center of strategic development in the field of high technologies; 2. Scientific Research Institute of Hydrogen Power Engineering and Platinum Group Metals; 3. Teaching-Methodical Association in specialization 'Hydrogen Power Engineering and economics' and hydrogen wide spread training; 4. Media Center 'Hydrogen Power Engineering and Platinum Group Metals', 5. Organizational Center; 6. Administrative Center. The Center will be established step-by-step in 2005-2010 on the basis of the following programs: Teaching-methodological program. On the basis of this program it is planned to

Generation of oxy-hydrogen gas and its effect on performance of spark ignition engine

Science.gov (United States)

Patil, N. N.; Chavan, C. B.; More, A. S.; Baskar, P.

2017-11-01

Considering the current scenario of petroleum fuels, it has been observed that, they will last for few years from now. On the other hand, the ever increasing cost of a gasoline fuels and their related adverse effects on environment caught the attention of researchers to find a supplementary source. For commercial fuels, supplementary source is not about replacing the entire fuel, instead enhancing efficiency by simply making use of it in lesser amount. From the recent research that has been carried out, focus on the use of Hydrogen rich gas as a supplementary source of fuel has increased. But the problem related to the storage of hydrogen gas confines the application of pure hydrogen in petrol engine. Using oxy-hydrogen gas (HHO) generator the difficulties of storing the hydrogen have overcome up to a certain limit. The present study highlights on performance evaluation of conventional petrol engine by using HHO gas as a supplementary fuel. HHO gas was generated from the electrolysis of water. KOH solution of 3 Molar concentration was used which act as a catalyst and accelerates the rate of generation of HHO gas. Quantity of gas to be supplied to the engine was controlled by varying amount of current. It was observed that, engine performance was improved on the introduction of HHO gas.

Liquid hydrogen: back to basics

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sherif, S.A. [Dept. of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Univ. of Florida, Florida (United States)

2009-07-01

'Full text': Liquid hydrogen is primarily used as a rocket fuel and is predestined for supersonic and hypersonic space vehicles to a large extent because it has the lowest boiling point density and the highest specific thrust of any known fuel. Its favorable characteristics include its high heating value per unit mass, its wide ignition range in hydrogen/oxygen or air mixtures, as well as its large flame speed and cooling capacity due to its high specific heat which permits very effective engine cooling and cooling the critical parts of the outer skin. Liquid hydrogen has some other important uses such as in high-energy nuclear physics and bubble chambers. The transport of hydrogen is vastly more economical when it is in liquid form even though cryogenic refrigeration and special Dewar vessels are required. Although liquid hydrogen can provide a lot of advantages, its uses are restricted in part because liquefying hydrogen by existing conventional methods consumes a large amount of energy (around 30% of its heating value). Liquefying 1 kg of hydrogen in a medium-size plant requires 10 to 13 kWh of electric energy. In addition, boil-off losses associated with the storage, transportation, and handling of liquid hydrogen can consume up to 40% of its available combustion energy. It is therefore important to search for ways that can improve the efficiency of the liquefiers and diminish the boil-off losses. This lecture gives an overview of the main issues associated with the production, storage, and handling of liquid hydrogen. Some discussion of promising ways of hydrogen liquefaction will also be presented. (author)

Concept study of a hydrogen containment process during nuclear thermal engine ground testing

OpenAIRE

Wang, Ten-See; Stewart, Eric T.; Canabal, Francisco

2016-01-01

A new hydrogen containment process was proposed for ground testing of a nuclear thermal engine. It utilizes two thermophysical steps to contain the hydrogen exhaust. First, the decomposition of hydrogen through oxygen-rich combustion at higher temperature; second, the recombination of remaining hydrogen with radicals at low temperature. This is achieved with two unit operations: an oxygen-rich burner and a tubular heat exchanger. A computational fluid dynamics methodology was used to analyze ...

A Hydrogen Containment Process for Nuclear Thermal Engine Ground testing

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Ten-See; Stewart, Eric; Canabal, Francisco

2016-01-01

The objective of this study is to propose a new total hydrogen containment process to enable the testing required for NTP engine development. This H2 removal process comprises of two unit operations: an oxygen-rich burner and a shell-and-tube type of heat exchanger. This new process is demonstrated by simulation of the steady state operation of the engine firing at nominal conditions.

The safe operation zone of the spark ignition engine working with dual renewable supplemented fuels (hydrogen+ethyl alcohol)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Al-Baghdadi, Maher Abdul-Resul Sadiq [Babylon Univ., Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, Babylon (Iraq)

2001-04-01

The effect of the amount of hydrogen/ethyl alcohol addition on the performance and pollutant emission of a four-stroke spark ignition engine has been studied. The results of the study show that all engine performance parameters have been improved when operating the gasoline spark ignition engine with dual addition of hydrogen and ethyl alcohol. The important improvements of alcohol addition are to reduce the NOx emission while increasing the higher useful compression ratio and output power of hydrogen-supplemented engine. An equation has been derived from experimental data to specify the least quantity of ethyl alcohol blended with gasoline and satisfying constant NOx emission when hydrogen is added. A chart limiting the safe operation zone of the engine fueled with dual renewable supplemented fuel, (hydrogen and ethyl alcohol) has been produced. The safe zone provides lower NOx and CO emission, lower s.f.c. and higher brake power compared to an equivalent gasoline engine. When ethyl alcohol is increased over 30%, it causes unstable engine operation which can be related to the fact that the fuel is not vaporized, and this causes a reduction in both brake power and efficiency. (Author)

Non-traditional Process of Hydrogen Containing Fuel Mixtures Production for Internal-combustion Engines

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gennady G. Kuvshinov

2012-12-01

Full Text Available The article justifies the perspectives of development of the environmentally sound technology of hydrogen containing fuel mixtures for internal-combustion engines based on the catalytic process of low-temperature decomposition of hydrocarbons into hydrogen and nanofibrous carbon.

Optical Measurement Techniques for Rocket Engine Testing and Component Applications: Digital Image Correlation and Dynamic Photogrammetry

Science.gov (United States)

Gradl, Paul

2016-01-01

NASA Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) has been advancing dynamic optical measurement systems, primarily Digital Image Correlation, for extreme environment rocket engine test applications. The Digital Image Correlation (DIC) technology is used to track local and full field deformations, displacement vectors and local and global strain measurements. This technology has been evaluated at MSFC through lab testing to full scale hotfire engine testing of the J-2X Upper Stage engine at Stennis Space Center. It has been shown to provide reliable measurement data and has replaced many traditional measurement techniques for NASA applications. NASA and AMRDEC have recently signed agreements for NASA to train and transition the technology to applications for missile and helicopter testing. This presentation will provide an overview and progression of the technology, various testing applications at NASA MSFC, overview of Army-NASA test collaborations and application lessons learned about Digital Image Correlation.

Hydrogen transport and storage in engineered glass microspheres

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Rambach, G.D.

1994-04-20

New, high-strength, hollow, glass microspheres filled with pressurized hydrogen exhibit storage densities which make them attractive for bulk hydrogen storage and transport. The hoop stress at failure of our engineered glass microspheres is about 150,000 psi, permitting a three-fold increase in pressure limit and storage capacity above commercial microspheres, which fail at wall stresses of 50,000 psi. For this project, microsphere material and structure will be optimized for storage capacity and charge/discharge kinetics to improve their commercial practicality. Microsphere production scale up will be performed, directed towards large-scale commercial use. Our analysis relating glass microspheres for hydrogen transport with infrastructure and economics` indicate that pressurized microspheres can be economically competitive with other forms of bulk rail and truck transport such as hydride beds, cryocarbons and pressurized tube transports. For microspheres made from advanced materials and processes, analysis will also be performed to identify the appropriate applications of the microspheres considering property variables, and different hydrogen infrastructure, end use, production and market scenarios. This report presents some of the recent modelling results for large beds of glass microspheres in hydrogen storage applications. It includes plans for experiments to identify the properties relevant to large-bed hydrogen transport and storage applications, of the best, currently producible, glass microspheres. This work began in March, 1994. Project successes will be manifest in the matching of cur-rent glass microspheres with a useful application in hydrogen bulk transport and storage, and in developing microsphere materials and processes that increase the storage density and reduce the storage energy requirement.

Ongoing Analysis of Rocket Based Combined Cycle Engines by the Applied Fluid Dynamics Analysis Group at Marshall Space Flight Center

Science.gov (United States)

Ruf, Joseph; Holt, James B.; Canabal, Francisco

1999-01-01

This paper presents the status of analyses on three Rocket Based Combined Cycle configurations underway in the Applied Fluid Dynamics Analysis Group (TD64). TD64 is performing computational fluid dynamics analysis on a Penn State RBCC test rig, the proposed Draco axisymmetric RBCC engine and the Trailblazer engine. The intent of the analysis on the Penn State test rig is to benchmark the Finite Difference Navier Stokes code for ejector mode fluid dynamics. The Draco engine analysis is a trade study to determine the ejector mode performance as a function of three engine design variables. The Trailblazer analysis is to evaluate the nozzle performance in scramjet mode. Results to date of each analysis are presented.

Evaluation of Technical Feasibility of Homogeneous Charge Compression Ignition (HCCI) Engine Fueled with Hydrogen, Natural Gas, and DME

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

John Pratapas; Daniel Mather; Anton Kozlovsky

2007-03-31

The objective of the proposed project was to confirm the feasibility of using blends of hydrogen and natural gas to improve the performance, efficiency, controllability and emissions of a homogeneous charge compression ignition (HCCI) engine. The project team utilized both engine simulation and laboratory testing to evaluate and optimize how blends of hydrogen and natural gas fuel might improve control of HCCI combustion. GTI utilized a state-of-the art single-cylinder engine test platform for the experimental work in the project. The testing was designed to evaluate the feasibility of extending the limits of HCCI engine performance (i.e., stable combustion, high efficiency and low emissions) on natural gas by using blends of natural gas and hydrogen. Early in the project Ricardo provided technical support to GTI as we applied their engine performance simulation program, WAVE, to our HCCI research engine. Modeling support was later provided by Digital Engines, LLC to use their proprietary model to predict peak pressures and temperatures for varying operating parameters included in the Design of Experiments test plan. Digital Engines also provided testing support for the hydrogen and natural gas blends. Prof. David Foster of University of Wisconsin-Madison participated early in the project by providing technical guidance on HCCI engine test plans and modeling requirements. The main purpose of the testing was to quantify the effects of hydrogen addition to natural gas HCCI. Directly comparing straight natural gas with the hydrogen enhanced test points is difficult due to the complexity of HCCI combustion. With the same air flow rate and lambda, the hydrogen enriched fuel mass flow rate is lower than the straight natural gas mass flow rate. However, the energy flow rate is higher for the hydrogen enriched fuel due to hydrogen's significantly greater lower heating value, 120 mJ/kg for hydrogen compared to 45 mJ/kg for natural gas. With these caveats in mind, an

Introduction to the Special Issue on Sounding Rockets and Instrumentation

OpenAIRE

Christe, Steven; Zeiger, Ben; Pfaff, Rob; Garcia, Michael

2016-01-01

Rocket technology, originally developed for military applications, has provided a low-cost observing platform to carry critical and rapid-response scientific investigations for over 70 years. Even with the development of launch vehicles that could put satellites into orbit, high altitude sounding rockets have remained relevant. In addition to science observations, sounding rockets provide a unique technology test platform and a valuable training ground for scientists and engineers. Most impor...

Robust Exploration and Commercial Missions to the Moon Using Nuclear Thermal Rocket Propulsion and Lunar Liquid Oxygen Derived from FeO-Rich Pyroclasitc Deposits

Science.gov (United States)

Borowski, Stanley K.; Ryan, Stephen W.; Burke, Laura M.; McCurdy, David R.; Fittje, James E.; Joyner, Claude R.

2018-01-01

The nuclear thermal rocket (NTR) has frequently been identified as a key space asset required for the human exploration of Mars. This proven technology can also provide the affordable access through cislunar space necessary for commercial development and sustained human presence on the Moon. It is a demonstrated technology capable of generating both high thrust and high specific impulse (I(sub sp) approx. 900 s) twice that of today's best chemical rockets. Nuclear lunar transfer vehicles-consisting of a propulsion stage using three approx. 16.5-klb(sub f) small nuclear rocket engines (SNREs), an in-line propellant tank, plus the payload-are reusable, enabling a variety of lunar missions. These include cargo delivery and crewed lunar landing missions. Even weeklong ''tourism'' missions carrying passengers into lunar orbit for a day of sightseeing and picture taking are possible. The NTR can play an important role in the next phase of lunar exploration and development by providing a robust in-space lunar transportation system (LTS) that can allow initial outposts to evolve into settlements supported by a variety of commercial activities such as in-situ propellant production used to supply strategically located propellant depots and transportation nodes. The use of lunar liquid oxygen (LLO2) derived from iron oxide (FeO)-rich volcanic glass beads, found in numerous pyroclastic deposits on the Moon, can significantly reduce the launch mass requirements from Earth by enabling reusable, surface-based lunar landing vehicles (LLVs)that use liquid oxygen and hydrogen (LO2/LH2) chemical rocket engines. Afterwards, a LO2/LH2 propellant depot can be established in lunar equatorial orbit to supply the LTS. At this point a modified version of the conventional NTR-called the LO2-augmented NTR, or LANTR-is introduced into the LTS allowing bipropellant operation and leveraging the mission benefits of refueling with lunar-derived propellants for Earth return. The bipropellant LANTR

THE HYDROGEN-FUELLED INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINES FOR MARINE APPLICATIONS WITH A CASE STUDY

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ibrahim S. Seddiek

2015-03-01

Full Text Available Modern marine power plants have been designed to improve the overall ship’s efficiency. This pushed the designers of marine machinery to search for unconventional fuels for these plants. During the previous years, diesel oil has been extensively used on-board ships. Due to the high price of light diesel oil and the environmental problems resulting from the use of heavy fuel oil, it has become necessary to search for an alternative to traditional fuels. As a result, natural gas fuel has been used on-board some types of ships, especially short-voyage cruise ships. Unfortunately, there are still some technical and logistic problems related to the use of natural gas as a fuel, especially as it is considered a non-renewable energy source. The use of hydrogen fuel on-board ships, particularly in modern power plants may contribute to overcoming the above problems. The present paper considers the possibility of the use of hydrogen fuel for marine applications and discusses different stages of hydrogen gas cycle beginning with hydrogen generation process from clean energy until using it as fuel for internal combustion engines on-board one RO/RO ship, named Taba, operating in the Mediterranean Sea. Compared to the diesel engine, the hydrogen fuelled engine is found to be lower in thermal efficiency and fuel consumption, however, some adjustments are needed.

High Thermal Conductivity NARloy-Z-Diamond Composite Combustion Chamber Liner For Advanced Rocket Engines

Science.gov (United States)

Bhat, Biliyar N.; Ellis, David; Singh, Jogender

2014-01-01

Advanced high thermal conductivity materials research conducted at NASA Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) with state of the art combustion chamber liner material NARloy-Z showed that its thermal conductivity can be increased significantly by adding diamond particles and sintering it at high temperatures. For instance, NARloy-Z containing 40 vol. percent diamond particles, sintered at 975C to full density by using the Field assisted Sintering Technology (FAST) showed 69 percent higher thermal conductivity than baseline NARloy-Z. Furthermore, NARloy-Z-40vol. percent D is 30 percent lighter than NARloy-Z and hence the density normalized thermal conductivity is 140 percent better. These attributes will improve the performance and life of the advanced rocket engines significantly. By one estimate, increased thermal conductivity will directly translate into increased turbopump power up to 2X and increased chamber pressure for improved thrust and ISP, resulting in an expected 20 percent improvement in engine performance. Follow on research is now being conducted to demonstrate the benefits of this high thermal conductivity NARloy-Z-D composite for combustion chamber liner applications in advanced rocket engines. The work consists of a) Optimizing the chemistry and heat treatment for NARloy-Z-D composite, b) Developing design properties (thermal and mechanical) for the optimized NARloy-Z-D, c) Fabrication of net shape subscale combustion chamber liner, and d) Hot fire testing of the liner for performance. FAST is used for consolidating and sintering NARlo-Z-D. The subscale cylindrical liner with built in channels for coolant flow is also fabricated near net shape using the FAST process. The liner will be assembled into a test rig and hot fire tested in the MSFC test facility to determine performance. This paper describes the development of this novel high thermal conductivity NARloy-Z-D composite material, and the advanced net shape technology to fabricate the combustion

Computational study of variable area ejector rocket flowfields

Science.gov (United States)

Etele, Jason

Access to space has always been a scientific priority for countries which can afford the prohibitive costs associated with launch. However, the large scale exploitation of space by the business community will require the cost of placing payloads into orbit be dramatically reduced for space to become a truly profitable commodity. To this end, this work focuses on a next generation propulsive technology called the Rocket Based Combined Cycle (RBCC) engine in which rocket, ejector, ramjet, and scramjet cycles operate within the same engine environment. Using an in house numerical code solving the axisymmetric version of the Favre averaged Navier Stokes equations (including the Wilcox ko turbulence model with dilatational dissipation) a systematic study of various ejector designs within an RBCC engine is undertaken. It is shown that by using a central rocket placed along the axisymmetric axis in combination with an annular rocket placed along the outer wall of the ejector, one can obtain compression ratios of approximately 2.5 for the case where both the entrained air and rocket exhaust mass flows are equal. Further, it is shown that constricting the exit area, and the manner in which this constriction is performed, has a significant positive impact on the compression ratio. For a decrease in area of 25% a purely conical ejector can increase the compression ratio by an additional 23% compared to an equal length unconstricted ejector. The use of a more sharply angled conical section followed by a cylindrical section to maintain equivalent ejector lengths can further increase the compression ratio by 5--7% for a total increase of approximately 30%.

Numerical analysis of hydrogen and methane propagation during testing of combustion engines

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dvořák V.

2007-10-01

Full Text Available The research of gas-fuelled combustion engines using hydrogen or methane require accordingly equipped test benches which take respect to the higher dangerous of self ignition accidents. This article deals with numerical calculations of flow in laboratory during simulated leakage of gas-fuel from fuel system of tested engine. The influences of local suction and influences of roof exhausters on the flow in the laboratory and on the gas propagation are discussed. Results obtained for hydrogen and for methane are compared. Conclusions for design and performance of suction devices and test benches are deduced from these results.

Study of cycle-by-cycle variations of a spark ignition engine fueled with natural gas-hydrogen blends

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wang, Jinhua; Chen, Hao; Liu, Bing; Huang, Zuohua [State Key Laboratory of Multiphase Flow in Power Engineering, School of Energy and Power Engineering, Xi' an Jiaotong University, Xi' an 710049 (China)

2008-09-15

Cycle-by-cycle variations of a spark ignition engine fueled with natural gas-hydrogen blends with hydrogen volumetric fraction of 0%, 12%, 23%, 30% and 40% were studied. The effect of hydrogen addition on cycle-by-cycle variations of the natural gas engine was analyzed. The results showed that the peak cylinder pressure, the maximum rate of pressure rise and the indicated mean effective pressure increased and their corresponding cycle-by-cycle variations decreased with the increase of hydrogen fraction at lean mixture operation. The interdependency between the combustion parameters and the corresponding crank angle tended to be strongly correlated with the increase of hydrogen fraction under lean mixture operation. Coefficient of variation of the indicated mean effective pressure gave a low level and is slightly influenced by hydrogen addition under the stoichiometric and relatively rich mixture operation while it decreased remarkably with the increase of hydrogen fraction under the lean mixture operation. The excessive air ratio at CoV{sub imep} = 10% extended to the leaner mixture side with the increase of hydrogen fraction and this indicated that the engine lean operating limit could be extended with hydrogen addition. (author)

The main indicators of the health of children and adolescents in residential zone of the facility for disposal of rocket engines

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tarakanova S.Y.

2014-12-01

39.5%. The main cause of morbidity in children is diseases of the nervous system and mental disorders, and congenital anomalies. Conclusion. Operation of installations for the disposal of rocket engines solid fuel according to the official reporting forms medical institutions has no effect on child health.

Evaluation of Technical Feasibility of Homogeneous Charge Compression Ignition (HCCI) Engine Fueled with Hydrogen, Natural Gas, and DME

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Pratapas, John; Mather, Daniel; Kozlovsky, Anton

2013-03-31

The objective of the proposed project was to confirm the feasibility of using blends of hydrogen and natural gas to improve the performance, efficiency, controllability and emissions of a homogeneous charge compression ignition (HCCI) engine. The project team utilized both engine simulation and laboratory testing to evaluate and optimize how blends of hydrogen and natural gas fuel might improve control of HCCI combustion. GTI utilized a state-of-the art single-cylinder engine test platform for the experimental work in the project. The testing was designed to evaluate the feasibility of extending the limits of HCCI engine performance (i.e., stable combustion, high efficiency and low emissions) on natural gas by using blends of natural gas and hydrogen. Early in the project Ricardo provided technical support to GTI as we applied their engine performance simulation program, WAVE, to our HCCI research engine. Modeling support was later provided by Digital Engines, LLC to use their proprietary model to predict peak pressures and temperatures for varying operating parameters included in the Design of Experiments test plan. Digital Engines also provided testing support for the hydrogen and natural gas blends. Prof. David Foster of University of Wisconsin-Madison participated early in the project by providing technical guidance on HCCI engine test plans and modeling requirements. The main purpose of the testing was to quantify the effects of hydrogen addition to natural gas HCCI. Directly comparing straight natural gas with the hydrogen enhanced test points is difficult due to the complexity of HCCI combustion. With the same air flow rate and lambda, the hydrogen enriched fuel mass flow rate is lower than the straight natural gas mass flow rate. However, the energy flow rate is higher for the hydrogen enriched fuel due to hydrogen’s significantly greater lower heating value, 120 mJ/kg for hydrogen compared to 45 mJ/kg for natural gas. With these caveats in mind, an

Improving of technical characteristics of launch vehicles with liquid rocket engines using active onboard de-orbiting systems

Science.gov (United States)

Trushlyakov, V.; Shatrov, Ya.

2017-09-01

In this paper, the analysis of technical requirements (TR) for the development of modern space launch vehicles (LV) with main liquid rocket engines (LRE) is fulfilled in relation to the anthropogenic impact decreasing. Factual technical characteristics on the example of a promising type of rocket ;Soyuz-2.1.v.; are analyzed. Meeting the TR in relation to anthropogenic impact decrease based on the conventional design approach and the content of the onboard system does not prove to be efficient and leads to depreciation of the initial technical characteristics obtained at the first design stage if these requirements are not included. In this concern, it is shown that the implementation of additional active onboard de-orbiting system (AODS) of worked-off stages (WS) into the onboard LV stages systems allows to meet the TR related to the LV environmental characteristics, including fire-explosion safety. In some cases, the orbital payload mass increases.

Vehicle driving cycle performance of the spark-less di-ji hydrogen engine

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Boretti, Alberto A. [School of Science and Engineering, University of Ballarat, PO Box663, Ballarat, VIC 3353 (Australia)

2010-05-15

The paper describes coupled CFD combustion simulations and CAE engine performance computations to describe the operation over the full range of load and speed of an always lean burn, Direct Injection Jet Ignition (DI-JI) hydrogen engine. Jet ignition pre-chambers and direct injection are enablers of high efficiencies and load control by quantity of fuel injected. Towards the end of the compression stroke, a small quantity of hydrogen is injected within the spark-less pre-chamber of the DI-JI engine, where it mixes with the air entering from the main chamber and auto-ignites because of the high temperature of the hot glow plug. Then, jets of partially combusted hot gases enter the main chamber igniting there in the bulk, over multiple ignition points, lean stratified mixtures of air and fuel. Engine maps of brake specific fuel consumption vs. speed and brake mean effective pressure are computed first. CAE vehicle simulations are finally performed evaluating the fuel consumption over emission cycles of a vehicle equipped with this engine. (author)

Concept study of a hydrogen containment process during nuclear thermal engine ground testing

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ten-See Wang

Full Text Available A new hydrogen containment process was proposed for ground testing of a nuclear thermal engine. It utilizes two thermophysical steps to contain the hydrogen exhaust. First, the decomposition of hydrogen through oxygen-rich combustion at higher temperature; second, the recombination of remaining hydrogen with radicals at low temperature. This is achieved with two unit operations: an oxygen-rich burner and a tubular heat exchanger. A computational fluid dynamics methodology was used to analyze the entire process on a three-dimensional domain. The computed flammability at the exit of the heat exchanger was less than the lower flammability limit, confirming the hydrogen containment capability of the proposed process. Keywords: Hydrogen decomposition reactions, Hydrogen recombination reactions, Hydrogen containment process, Nuclear thermal propulsion, Ground testing

A Programmatic and Engineering Approach to the Development of a Nuclear Thermal Rocket for Space Exploration

Science.gov (United States)

Bordelon, Wayne J., Jr.; Ballard, Rick O.; Gerrish, Harold P., Jr.

2006-01-01

With the announcement of the Vision for Space Exploration on January 14, 2004, there has been a renewed interest in nuclear thermal propulsion. Nuclear thermal propulsion is a leading candidate for in-space propulsion for human Mars missions; however, the cost to develop a nuclear thermal rocket engine system is uncertain. Key to determining the engine development cost will be the engine requirements, the technology used in the development and the development approach. The engine requirements and technology selection have not been defined and are awaiting definition of the Mars architecture and vehicle definitions. The paper discusses an engine development approach in light of top-level strategic questions and considerations for nuclear thermal propulsion and provides a suggested approach based on work conducted at the NASA Marshall Space Flight Center to support planning and requirements for the Prometheus Power and Propulsion Office. This work is intended to help support the development of a comprehensive strategy for nuclear thermal propulsion, to help reduce the uncertainty in the development cost estimate, and to help assess the potential value of and need for nuclear thermal propulsion for a human Mars mission.

Computational and Experimental Investigation of Liquid Propellant Rocket Combustion Instability

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — Combustion instability has been a problem faced by rocket engine developers since the 1940s. The complicated phenomena has been highly unpredictable, causing engine...

A Rocket Powered Single-Stage-to-Orbit Launch Vehicle With U.S. and Soviet Engineers

Science.gov (United States)

MacConochie, Ian O.; Stnaley, Douglas O.

1991-01-01

A single-stage-to-orbit launch vehicle is used to assess the applicability of Soviet Energia high-pressure-hydrocarbon engine to advanced U.S. manned space transportation systems. Two of the Soviet engines are used with three Space Shuttle Main Engines. When applied to a baseline vehicle that utilized advanced hydrocarbon engines, the higher weight of the Soviet engines resulted in a 20 percent loss of payload capability and necessitated a change in the crew compartment size and location from mid-body to forebody in order to balance the vehicle. Various combinations of Soviet and Shuttle engines were evaluated for comparison purposes, including an all hydrogen system using all Space Shuttle Main Engines. Operational aspects of the baseline vehicle are also discussed. A new mass properties program entitles Weights and Moments of Inertia (WAMI) is used in the study.

Effect of hydrogen addition on combustion and emissions performance of a gasoline rotary engine at part load and stoichiometric conditions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ji, Changwei; Su, Teng; Wang, Shuofeng; Zhang, Bo; Yu, Menghui; Cong, Xiaoyu

2016-01-01

Highlights: • The performance of a H_2-blended gasoline rotary engine was studied. • The p, Bmep, T_m_a_x and η_b increased after H_2 blending. • Both the CA0-10 and CA10-90 were shortened by the H_2 addition. • H_2 addition resulted in the reduced HC, CO and CO_2 emissions. - Abstract: The rotary engines may encounter high fuel consumption and emissions due to its narrow and long combustion chamber design. The low ignition energy and high flame speed of hydrogen may help improve the combustion of rotary engines. In this paper, a gasoline rotary engine equipped with gasoline and hydrogen injectors was developed to investigate the combustion and emissions of hydrogen-blended gasoline rotary engines. The engine was run at 3000 rpm and a manifolds absolute pressure of 37.5 kPa with the stoichiometric excess air ratio. The spark timing was set to be 25°CA before the top dead center. The engine was first fueled with the pure gasoline and then blended with the hydrogen. The hydrogen volume fractions in the intake were gradually increased from 0% to 5.2%. The results showed that the combustion pressure, brake mean effective pressure, cylinder temperature and thermal efficiency were simultaneously increased after the hydrogen blending. The crank angle of peak pressure was advanced with the hydrogen addition. The hydrogen enrichment was effective on reducing flame development and propagation periods. HC emissions were reduced by 44.8% when the hydrogen volume fraction in the intake was raised from 0% to 5.2%, CO and CO_2 emissions were also reduced after the hydrogen blending.

Numerical investigation on the effects of natural gas and hydrogen blends on engine combustion

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Morrone, Biagio; Unich, Andrea [Dipartimento di Ingegneria Aerospaziale e Meccanica (DIAM), Seconda Universita degli Studi di Napoli via Roma 29, 81031 Aversa (CE) (Italy)

2009-05-15

The use of hydrogen blended with natural gas is a viable alternative to pure fossil fuels because of the expected reduction of the total pollutant emissions and increase of efficiency. These blends offer a valid opportunity for tackling sustainable transportation, in view of the future stringent emission limits for road vehicles. The aim of the present paper is the investigation of the performance of internal combustion engines fuelled by such blends. A numerical investigation on the characteristics of natural gas-hydrogen blends as well as their effect on engine performance is carried out. The activity is focused on the influence of such blends on flame propagation speed. Combustion pattern modelling allows the comparison of engine brake efficiency and power output using different fuels. Results showed that there is an increase in engine efficiency only if Maximum Brake Torque (MBT) spark advance is used for each fuel. Moreover, an economic analysis has been carried out to determine the over cost of hydrogen in such blends, showing percent increments by using these fuels about between 10 and 34%. (author)

Turbulent Mixing of Primary and Secondary Flow Streams in a Rocket-Based Combined Cycle Engine

Science.gov (United States)

Cramer, J. M.; Greene, M. U.; Pal, S.; Santoro, R. J.; Turner, Jim (Technical Monitor)

2002-01-01

This viewgraph presentation gives an overview of the turbulent mixing of primary and secondary flow streams in a rocket-based combined cycle (RBCC) engine. A significant RBCC ejector mode database has been generated, detailing single and twin thruster configurations and global and local measurements. On-going analysis and correlation efforts include Marshall Space Flight Center computational fluid dynamics modeling and turbulent shear layer analysis. Potential follow-on activities include detailed measurements of air flow static pressure and velocity profiles, investigations into other thruster spacing configurations, performing a fundamental shear layer mixing study, and demonstrating single-shot Raman measurements.

Combustion response to acoustic perturbation in liquid rocket engines

Science.gov (United States)

Ghafourian, Akbar

An experimental study of the effect of acoustic perturbations on combustion behavior of a model liquid propellant rocket engine has been carried out. A pair of compression drivers were used to excite transverse and longitudinal acoustic fields at strengths of up to 156.6 dB and 159.5 dB respectively in the combustion chamber of the experimental rocket engine. Propellant simulants were injected into the combustion chamber through a single element shear coaxial injector. Water and air were used in cold flow studies and ethanol and oxygen-enriched air were used as fuel and oxidizer in reacting hot flow studies. In cold flow studies an imposed transverse acoustic field had a more pronounced effect on the spray pattern than a longitudinal acoustic fields. A transverse acoustic field widened the spray by as much as 33 percent and the plane of impingement of the spray with chamber walls moved up closer to the injection plane. The behavior was strongly influenced by the gas phase velocity but was less sensitive to changes in the liquid phase velocity. In reacting hot flow studies the effects of changes in equivalence ratio, excitation amplitude, excitation frequency, liquid and gas phase velocity and chamber pressure on the response of the injector to imposed high frequency transverse acoustic excitation were measured. Reducing the equivalence ratio from 7.4 to 3.8 increased the chamber pressure response to the imposed excitation at 3000 Hz. Increasing the excitation amplitude from 147 dB to 155.6 dB at 3000 Hz increased the chamber pressure response to the excitation. In the frequency range of 1240 Hz to 3220 Hz, an excitation frequency of 3000 Hz resulted in the largest response of the chamber pressure indicating the importance of fluid dynamic coupling. Increasing the liquid phase velocity from 9.2 m/sec to 22.7 m/sec, did not change the amplitude of the chamber pressure response to excitation. This implied the importance of local equivalence ratio and not the overall

Development and Hot-fire Testing of Additively Manufactured Copper Combustion Chambers for Liquid Rocket Engine Applications

Science.gov (United States)

Gradl, Paul R.; Greene, Sandy Elam; Protz, Christopher S.; Ellis, David L.; Lerch, Bradley A.; Locci, Ivan E.

2017-01-01

NASA and industry partners are working towards fabrication process development to reduce costs and schedules associated with manufacturing liquid rocket engine components with the goal of reducing overall mission costs. One such technique being evaluated is powder-bed fusion or selective laser melting (SLM), commonly referred to as additive manufacturing (AM). The NASA Low Cost Upper Stage Propulsion (LCUSP) program was designed to develop processes and material characterization for GRCop-84 (a NASA Glenn Research Center-developed copper, chrome, niobium alloy) commensurate with powder-bed AM, evaluate bimetallic deposition, and complete testing of a full scale combustion chamber. As part of this development, the process has been transferred to industry partners to enable a long-term supply chain of monolithic copper combustion chambers. To advance the processes further and allow for optimization with multiple materials, NASA is also investigating the feasibility of bimetallic AM chambers. In addition to the LCUSP program, NASA has completed a series of development programs and hot-fire tests to demonstrate SLM GRCop-84 and other AM techniques. NASA's efforts include a 4K lbf thrust liquid oxygen/methane (LOX/CH4) combustion chamber and subscale thrust chambers for 1.2K lbf LOX/hydrogen (H2) applications that have been designed and fabricated with SLM GRCop-84. The same technologies for these lower thrust applications are being applied to 25-35K lbf main combustion chamber (MCC) designs. This paper describes the design, development, manufacturing and testing of these numerous combustion chambers, and the associated lessons learned throughout their design and development processes.

Turbopump Design and Analysis Approach for Nuclear Thermal Rockets

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chen, Shucheng S.; Veres, Joseph P.; Fittje, James E.

2006-01-01

A rocket propulsion system, whether it is a chemical rocket or a nuclear thermal rocket, is fairly complex in detail but rather simple in principle. Among all the interacting parts, three components stand out: they are pumps and turbines (turbopumps), and the thrust chamber. To obtain an understanding of the overall rocket propulsion system characteristics, one starts from analyzing the interactions among these three components. It is therefore of utmost importance to be able to satisfactorily characterize the turbopump, level by level, at all phases of a vehicle design cycle. Here at the NASA Glenn Research Center, as the starting phase of a rocket engine design, specifically a Nuclear Thermal Rocket Engine design, we adopted the approach of using a high level system cycle analysis code (NESS) to obtain an initial analysis of the operational characteristics of a turbopump required in the propulsion system. A set of turbopump design codes (PumpDes and TurbDes) were then executed to obtain sizing and performance parameters of the turbopump that were consistent with the mission requirements. A set of turbopump analyses codes (PUMPA and TURBA) were applied to obtain the full performance map for each of the turbopump components; a two dimensional layout of the turbopump based on these mean line analyses was also generated. Adequacy of the turbopump conceptual design will later be determined by further analyses and evaluation. In this paper, descriptions and discussions of the aforementioned approach are provided and future outlooks are discussed

On the development of an International Curriculum on Hydrogen Safety Engineering and its Implementation into Educational Programmes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dahoe, A.E.; Molkov, V.V.

2006-01-01

The present paper provides an overview of the development of an International Curriculum on Hydrogen Safety Engineering and its implementation into new educational programmes. The curriculum has a modular structure, and consists of five basic, six fundamental and four applied modules. The reasons for this particular structure are explained. To accelerate the development of teaching materials and their implementation in training/educational programmes, an annual European Summer School on Hydrogen Safety will be held (the first Summer School is from 15-24 Aug 2006, Belfast, UK), where leading experts deliver keynote lectures to an audience of researchers on topics covering the state-of-the-art in Hydrogen Safety Science and Engineering. The establishment of a Postgraduate Certificate course in Hydrogen Safety Engineering at the University of Ulster (starting in September 2006) as a first step in the development of a worldwide system of Hydrogen Safety education and training is described. (authors)

Achievement report for 1st phase (fiscal 1974-80) Sunshine Program research and development - Hydrogen energy. Research on hydrogen-fueled engine; 1974-1980 nendo suiso energy seika hokokusho. Suiso nenryo gendoki no kenkyu

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1981-03-01

The research aims to acquire data necessary for designing an engine, which is fueled by hydrogen stored in metal hydrides, for an automobile power plant. It covers the characteristics of hydrogen and their theoretical examination, basic studies on the turbulent mixing and combustion of hydrogen, research using a single-cylinder engine, changes brought into engine performance upon addition of hydrogen, etc. When hydrogen is burned in a spark ignition engine, flashback to the induction system is prone to occur. But this is prevented by directly injecting nothing but hydrogen into the cylinder. In the case of hydrogen fuel, there is the problem of thermal NO generation. Since a hydrogen/air flame is higher in temperature than flames in the case of other fuels, it generates more NO. As techniques for lowering the flame temperature, there are lean fuel combustion, water vapor injection, delayed ignition timing, etc. For the improvement of power and performance, increasing the engine revolution and pressurizing the inlet air are the methods, but both have their own shortcomings. An engine equipped with a third valve is experimentally constructed in this research, which is theoretically free of flashback, suppresses a reduction in the inlet air volume, and necessitates no high-pressure injection system. (NEDO)

Effect of using hydrogen in the power and performance of an internal combustion engine

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Edwin Tamayo

2016-12-01

Full Text Available This study analyzed the real working parameters of an Otto cycle internal combustion engine, using as fuel hydrogen plus gasoline. Two stoichiometric equations were determined. In the first equation, the reagents are octane and air, in the second equation was added the quantity of 3.86 H2 moles obtained from a hydrogen cell. Two sets of equations, for consumption and power, were determined from the chemical equations, working at the conditions of Quito: altitude 2850 msnm, 72.794 kPa of atmospheric pressure and 300 K of temperature. A single cylinder engine powered with hydrogen plus gasoline was used for getting real data of engine power, using mixtures of air-gasoline and hydrogen; the theoretical power without H2 was 3.91 HP and with H2 5.41 HP, it increased 27.1%, the real power is 3.78 HP without H2 and 4.66 HP with H2, it increased 16.7%. Theoretical fuel consumption is 401.61 g/kWh and addition of H2 is less to 373.52 g/kWh, the actual consumption that indicates the manufacturer is 395 g/kWh.

The Alfred Nobel rocket camera. An early aerial photography attempt

Science.gov (United States)

Ingemar Skoog, A.

2010-02-01

Alfred Nobel (1833-1896), mainly known for his invention of dynamite and the creation of the Nobel Prices, was an engineer and inventor active in many fields of science and engineering, e.g. chemistry, medicine, mechanics, metallurgy, optics, armoury and rocketry. Amongst his inventions in rocketry was the smokeless solid propellant ballistite (i.e. cordite) patented for the first time in 1887. As a very wealthy person he actively supported many Swedish inventors in their work. One of them was W.T. Unge, who was devoted to the development of rockets and their applications. Nobel and Unge had several rocket patents together and also jointly worked on various rocket applications. In mid-1896 Nobel applied for patents in England and France for "An Improved Mode of Obtaining Photographic Maps and Earth or Ground Measurements" using a photographic camera carried by a "…balloon, rocket or missile…". During the remaining of 1896 the mechanical design of the camera mechanism was pursued and cameras manufactured. In April 1897 (after the death of Alfred Nobel) the first aerial photos were taken by these cameras. These photos might be the first documented aerial photos taken by a rocket borne camera. Cameras and photos from 1897 have been preserved. Nobel did not only develop the rocket borne camera but also proposed methods on how to use the photographs taken for ground measurements and preparing maps.

The use of application-specific performance targets and engineering considerations to guide hydrogen storage materials development

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Stetson, Ned T., E-mail: ned.stetson@ee.doe.gov [U.S. Department of Energy, 1000 Independence Ave., SW, EE-2H, Washington, DC 20585 (United States); Ordaz, Grace; Adams, Jesse; Randolph, Katie [U.S. Department of Energy, 1000 Independence Ave., SW, EE-2H, Washington, DC 20585 (United States); McWhorter, Scott [Savannah River National Laboratory, Aiken, SC 29808 (United States)

2013-12-15

Highlights: •Portable power and material handling equipment as early market technology pathways. •Engineering based system-level storage-materials requirements. •Application based targets. -- Abstract: The Hydrogen and Fuel Cells Technologies Office, carried out through the DOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, maintains a broad portfolio of activities to enable the commercialization of fuel cells across a range of near, mid and long-term applications. Improved, advanced hydrogen storage technologies are seen as a critical need for successful implementation of hydrogen fuel cells in many of these applications. To guide and focus materials development efforts, the DOE develops system performance targets for the specific applications of interest, and carries out system engineering analyses to determine the system-level performance delivered when the materials are incorporated into a complete system. To meet the needs of applications, it is important to consider the system-level performance, not just the material-level properties. An overview of the DOE’s hydrogen storage efforts in developing application-specific performance targets and systems engineering to guide hydrogen storage materials identification and development is herein provided.

The use of application-specific performance targets and engineering considerations to guide hydrogen storage materials development

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stetson, Ned T.; Ordaz, Grace; Adams, Jesse; Randolph, Katie; McWhorter, Scott

2013-01-01

Highlights: •Portable power and material handling equipment as early market technology pathways. •Engineering based system-level storage-materials requirements. •Application based targets. -- Abstract: The Hydrogen and Fuel Cells Technologies Office, carried out through the DOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, maintains a broad portfolio of activities to enable the commercialization of fuel cells across a range of near, mid and long-term applications. Improved, advanced hydrogen storage technologies are seen as a critical need for successful implementation of hydrogen fuel cells in many of these applications. To guide and focus materials development efforts, the DOE develops system performance targets for the specific applications of interest, and carries out system engineering analyses to determine the system-level performance delivered when the materials are incorporated into a complete system. To meet the needs of applications, it is important to consider the system-level performance, not just the material-level properties. An overview of the DOE’s hydrogen storage efforts in developing application-specific performance targets and systems engineering to guide hydrogen storage materials identification and development is herein provided

LOX/hydrocarbon rocket engine analytical design methodology development and validation. Volume 2: Appendices

Science.gov (United States)

Niiya, Karen E.; Walker, Richard E.; Pieper, Jerry L.; Nguyen, Thong V.

1993-05-01

This final report includes a discussion of the work accomplished during the period from Dec. 1988 through Nov. 1991. The objective of the program was to assemble existing performance and combustion stability models into a usable design methodology capable of designing and analyzing high-performance and stable LOX/hydrocarbon booster engines. The methodology was then used to design a validation engine. The capabilities and validity of the methodology were demonstrated using this engine in an extensive hot fire test program. The engine used LOX/RP-1 propellants and was tested over a range of mixture ratios, chamber pressures, and acoustic damping device configurations. This volume contains time domain and frequency domain stability plots which indicate the pressure perturbation amplitudes and frequencies from approximately 30 tests of a 50K thrust rocket engine using LOX/RP-1 propellants over a range of chamber pressures from 240 to 1750 psia with mixture ratios of from 1.2 to 7.5. The data is from test configurations which used both bitune and monotune acoustic cavities and from tests with no acoustic cavities. The engine had a length of 14 inches and a contraction ratio of 2.0 using a 7.68 inch diameter injector. The data was taken from both stable and unstable tests. All combustion instabilities were spontaneous in the first tangential mode. Although stability bombs were used and generated overpressures of approximately 20 percent, no tests were driven unstable by the bombs. The stability instrumentation included six high-frequency Kistler transducers in the combustion chamber, a high-frequency Kistler transducer in each propellant manifold, and tri-axial accelerometers. Performance data is presented, both characteristic velocity efficiencies and energy release efficiencies, for those tests of sufficient duration to record steady state values.

Relation of Hydrogen and Methane to Carbon Monoxide in Exhaust Gases from Internal-Combustion Engines

Science.gov (United States)

Gerrish, Harold C; Tessmann, Arthur M

1935-01-01

The relation of hydrogen and methane to carbon monoxide in the exhaust gases from internal-combustion engines operating on standard-grade aviation gasoline, fighting-grade aviation gasoline, hydrogenated safety fuel, laboratory diesel fuel, and auto diesel fuel was determined by analysis of the exhaust gases. Two liquid-cooled single-cylinder spark-ignition, one 9-cylinder radial air-cooled spark-ignition, and two liquid-cooled single-cylinder compression-ignition engines were used.

Concept study of a hydrogen containment process during nuclear thermal engine ground testing

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Ten-See; Stewart, Eric T.; Canabal, Francisco

A new hydrogen containment process was proposed for ground testing of a nuclear thermal engine. It utilizes two thermophysical steps to contain the hydrogen exhaust. First, the decomposition of hydrogen through oxygen-rich combustion at higher temperature; second, the recombination of remaining hydrogen with radicals at low temperature. This is achieved with two unit operations: an oxygen-rich burner and a tubular heat exchanger. A computational fluid dynamics methodology was used to analyze the entire process on a three-dimensional domain. The computed flammability at the exit of the heat exchanger was less than the lower flammability limit, confirming the hydrogen containment capability of the proposed process.

Particle bed reactor propulsion vehicle performance and characteristics as an orbital transfer rocket

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Horn, F.L.; Powell, J.R.; Lazareth, O.W.

1986-01-01

The particle bed reactor designed for 100 to 300 MW power output using hydrogen as a coolant is capable of specific impulses up to 1000 seconds as a nuclear rocket. A single space shuttle compatible vehicle can perform extensive missions from LEO to 3 times GEO and return with multi-ton payloads. The use of hydrogen to directly cool particulate reactor fuel results in a compact, lightweight rocket vehicle, whose duration of usefulness is dependent only upon hydrogen resupply availability. The LEO to GEO mission had a payload capability of 15.4 metric tons with 3.4 meters of shuttle bay. To increase the volume limitation of the shuttle bay, the use of ammonia in the initial boost phase from LEO is used to give greater payload volume with a small decrease in payload mass, 8.7 meters and 12.7 m-tons. 5 refs., 15 figs

Ongoing Analyses of Rocket Based Combined Cycle Engines by the Applied Fluid Dynamics Analysis Group at Marshall Space Flight Center

Science.gov (United States)

Ruf, Joseph H.; Holt, James B.; Canabal, Francisco

2001-01-01

This paper presents the status of analyses on three Rocket Based Combined Cycle (RBCC) configurations underway in the Applied Fluid Dynamics Analysis Group (TD64). TD64 is performing computational fluid dynamics (CFD) analysis on a Penn State RBCC test rig, the proposed Draco axisymmetric RBCC engine and the Trailblazer engine. The intent of the analysis on the Penn State test rig is to benchmark the Finite Difference Navier Stokes (FDNS) code for ejector mode fluid dynamics. The Draco analysis was a trade study to determine the ejector mode performance as a function of three engine design variables. The Trailblazer analysis is to evaluate the nozzle performance in scramjet mode. Results to date of each analysis are presented.

A comparison of hydrogen-fueled fuel cells and combustion engines for electric utility applications

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schoenung, S.M.

2000-01-01

Hydrogen-fueled systems have been proposed for a number of stationary electric generation applications including remote power generation, load management, distribution system peak shaving, and reliability or power quality enhancement. Hydrogen fueling permits clean, low pollution operation. This is particularly true for systems that use hydrogen produced from electrolysis, rather than the reforming of hydrocarbon fuels. Both fuel cells and combustion engines are suitable technologies for using hydrogen in many electric utility applications. This paper presents results from several studies performed for the U.S. Department of Energy Hydrogen Program. A comparison between the two technologies shows that, whereas fuel cells are somewhat more energy efficient, combustion engine technology is less expensive. In this paper, a comparison of the two technologies is presented, with an emphasis on distributed power and power quality applications. The special case of a combined distributed generation I hydrogen refueling station is also addressed. The comparison is made on the basis of system costs and benefits, but also includes a comparison of technology status: power ratings and response time. A discussion of pollutant emissions and pollutant control strategies is included. The results show those electric utility applications for which each technology is best suited. (author)

Concept for lowest emissions of a hydrogen internal combustion engine; Niedrigstemissionskonzept fuer einen wasserstoffbetriebenen Verbrennungsmotor

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Fouquet, Marcel Christian Thomas

2012-03-15

This paper describes a concept with lowest emissions for a hydrogen internal combustion engine for passenger cars. With optimisation of the combustion concept the level of nitrogen oxide is below 90%, hydrocarbon and carbon monoxide below 99% of the SULEV target (CARB). This concept enables a potential in power density that is comparable to current supercharged combustion engines at lowest emission level without catalytic aftertreatment. Additionally with a catalytic aftertreatment system, the emission level of a current hydrogen combustion engine (mono-fuel) is lowered to a level, that this car can be labeled as air cleaning vehicle for hydrocarbons and carbon monoxide.

FY 1974 report on the results of the Sunshine Project. Comprehensive study of hydrogen use subsystem and study on the periphery technology (Study on the hydrogen engine for airplane use); 1974 nendo suiso riyo subsystem no sogoteki kento to shuhen gijutsu ni kansuru kenkyu seika hokokusho. Kokukiyo suiso engine ni kansuru chosa

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1975-05-01

This study is aimed at using hydrogen as fuel for airplane engine in the study on the use of hydrogen energy to be made as one of the new energy developments. In the investigational study plan, technical/economical possibilities of the airplane engine using hydrogen as fuel and the airplane carrying the engine are grasped to make the details of the R and D clear by the end of FY 1976. By the end of FY 1974, the actual state in the world of the airplane engine using hydrogen as fuel and the airplane carrying the engine was grasped to make the problems clear. The detailed R and D are as follows. (1) Survey of the actual state of and the problems of the hydrogen engine in Japan and abroad (to be conducted in FY 1974). (2) Consideration of the conceptual design of the potential hydrogen engine, and possibility of the commercialization and prediction of the time of the commercialization (to be conducted in FY 1975). (3) Survey of type, performance, etc. of the airplane carrying hydrogen engine, and the actual economical value and demand (to be conducted in FY 1976). This paper described the results of the survey on hydrogen general and hydrogen use airplane. (NEDO)

High-Temperature Polymer Composites Tested for Hypersonic Rocket Combustor Backup Structure

Science.gov (United States)

Sutter, James K.; Shin, E. Eugene; Thesken, John C.; Fink, Jeffrey E.

2005-01-01

Significant component weight reductions are required to achieve the aggressive thrust-toweight goals for the Rocket Based Combined Cycle (RBCC) third-generation, reusable liquid propellant rocket engine, which is one possible engine for a future single-stage-toorbit vehicle. A collaboration between the NASA Glenn Research Center and Boeing Rocketdyne was formed under the Higher Operating Temperature Propulsion Components (HOTPC) program and, currently, the Ultra-Efficient Engine Technology (UEET) Project to develop carbon-fiber-reinforced high-temperature polymer matrix composites (HTPMCs). This program focused primarily on the combustor backup structure to replace all metallic support components with a much lighter polymer-matrixcomposite- (PMC-) titanium honeycomb sandwich structure.

Current and Future Critical Issues in Rocket Propulsion Systems

Science.gov (United States)

Navaz, Homayun K.; Dix, Jeff C.

1998-01-01

The objective of this research was to tackle several problems that are currently of great importance to NASA. In a liquid rocket engine several complex processes take place that are not thoroughly understood. Droplet evaporation, turbulence, finite rate chemistry, instability, and injection/atomization phenomena are some of the critical issues being encountered in a liquid rocket engine environment. Pulse Detonation Engines (PDE) performance, combustion chamber instability analysis, 60K motor flowfield pattern from hydrocarbon fuel combustion, and 3D flowfield analysis for the Combined Cycle engine were of special interest to NASA. During the summer of 1997, we made an attempt to generate computational results for all of the above problems and shed some light on understanding some of the complex physical phenomena. For this purpose, the Liquid Thrust Chamber Performance (LTCP) code, mainly designed for liquid rocket engine applications, was utilized. The following test cases were considered: (1) Characterization of a detonation wave in a Pulse Detonation Tube; (2) 60K Motor wall temperature studies; (3) Propagation of a pressure pulse in a combustion chamber (under single and two-phase flow conditions); (4) Transonic region flowfield analysis affected by viscous effects; (5) Exploring the viscous differences between a smooth and a corrugated wall; and (6) 3D thrust chamber flowfield analysis of the Combined Cycle engine. It was shown that the LTCP-2D and LTCP-3D codes are capable of solving complex and stiff conservation equations for gaseous and droplet phases in a very robust and efficient manner. These codes can be run on a workstation and personal computers (PC's).

Simulation and Empirical Studies of the Commercial SI Engine Performance and Its Emission Levels When Running on a CNG and Hydrogen Blend

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rafaa Saaidia

2017-12-01

Full Text Available This article is a report on a simulation based on Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD and an empirical investigation of in-cylinder flow characteristics, In addition, it assesses the performance and emission levels of a commercial-spark ignited engine running on a CNG and Hydrogen blend in different ratios. The main objective was to determine the optimum hydrogen ratio that would yield the best brake torque and release the least polluting gases. The in-cylinder flow velocity and turbulence aspects were investigated during the intake stroke in order to analyze the intake flow behavior. To reach this goal, a 3D CFD code was adopted. For various engine speeds were investigated for gasoline, CNG and hydrogen and CNG blend (HCNG fueled engines via external mixtures. The variation of brake torque (BT, NOX and CO emissions. A series of tests were conducted on the engine within the speed range of 1000 to 5000 rpm. For this purpose, a commercial Hyundai Sonata S.I engine was modified to operate with a blend of CNG and Hydrogen in different ratios. The experiments attempted to determine the optimum allowable hydrogen ratio with CNG for normal engine operation. The engine performance and the emission levels were also analyzed. At the engine speed of 4200 rpm, the results revealed that beyond a ratio of 50% of the volume of hydrogen added to CNG a backfire phenomenon appeared. Below this ratio (0~40% of the hydrogen volume, the CNG and Hydrogen blend seemed to be beneficial for the engine performance and for curtailing the emission level. However, at low engine speeds, the NOX concentration increased simultaneously with hydrogen content. In contrast, at high engine speeds, the NOX concentration decreased to its lowest level compared to that reached with gasoline as a running fuel. The concentration levels of HC, CO2, and CO decreased with the increase of hydrogen percentage.

Internal combustion engines fueled by natural gas-hydrogen mixtures

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Akansu, S.O.; Kahraman, N. [Erciyes University, Kayseri (Turkey). Engineering Faculty; Dulger, Z. [Kocaeli University (Turkey). Engineering Faculty; Veziroglu, T.N. [University of Miami, Coral Gables, FL (United States). College of Engineering

2004-11-01

In this study, a survey of research papers on utilization of natural gas-hydrogen mixtures in internal combustion engines is carried out. In general, HC, CO{sub 2}, and CO emissions decrease with increasing H{sub 2}, but NO{sub x} emissions generally increase. If a catalytic converter is used, NO{sub x} emission values can be decreased to extremely low levels. Consequently, equivalence zero emission vehicles (EZEV) standards may be reached. Efficiency values vary with H{sub 2} amount, spark timing, compression ratio, equivalence ratio, etc. Under certain conditions, efficiency values can be increased. In terms of BSFC, emissions and BTE, a mixture of low hydrogen percentage is suitable for using. (author)

THE POSSIBILITY OF USING LASER-ULTRASOUND TO MONITOR THE QUALITY SOLDERED CONNECTIONS CHAMBERS OF LIQUID ROCKET ENGINES

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

N. V. Astredinova

2014-01-01

Full Text Available During the manufacturing process to the design of modern liquid rocket engines are presented important requirements, such as minimum weight, maximum stiffness and strength of nodes, maximum service life in operation, high reliability and quality of soldered and welded seams. Due to the high quality requirements soldered connections and the specific design of the nozzle, it became necessary in the development and testing of a new non-conventional non-destructive testing method – laser-ultrasound diagnosis. In accordance with regulatory guidelines, quality control soldered connections is allowed to use an acoustic kind of control methods of the reflected light, transmitted light, resonant, free vibration and acoustic emission. Attempts to use traditional methods of non-destructive testing did not lead to positive results. This is due primarily to the size of typical solder joint defects, as well as the structural features of the rocket engine, the data structure is not controllable. In connection with this, a new method that provides quality control soldered connections cameras LRE based on the thermo generation of ultrasound. Methods of ultrasonic flaw detection of photoacoustic effect, in most cases, have a number of advantages over methods that use standard (traditional piezo transducers. In the course of studies have found that the sensitivity of the laser-ultrasonic method and flaw detector UDL-2M can detect lack of adhesion in the solder joints on the upper edges of the nozzle in the sub-header area of the site.

A computational model for thermal fluid design analysis of nuclear thermal rockets

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Given, J.A.; Anghaie, S.

1997-01-01

A computational model for simulation and design analysis of nuclear thermal propulsion systems has been developed. The model simulates a full-topping expander cycle engine system and the thermofluid dynamics of the core coolant flow, accounting for the real gas properties of the hydrogen propellant/coolant throughout the system. Core thermofluid studies reveal that near-wall heat transfer models currently available may not be applicable to conditions encountered within some nuclear rocket cores. Additionally, the possibility of a core thermal fluid instability at low mass fluxes and the effects of the core power distribution are investigated. Results indicate that for tubular core coolant channels, thermal fluid instability is not an issue within the possible range of operating conditions in these systems. Findings also show the advantages of having a nonflat centrally peaking axial core power profile from a fluid dynamic standpoint. The effects of rocket operating conditions on system performance are also investigated. Results show that high temperature and low pressure operation is limited by core structural considerations, while low temperature and high pressure operation is limited by system performance constraints. The utility of these programs for finding these operational limits, optimum operating conditions, and thermal fluid effects is demonstrated

Rocket borne solar eclipse experiment to measure the temperature structure of the solar corona via lyman-α line profile observations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Argo, H.V.

1981-01-01

A rocket borne experiment to measure the temperature structure of the inner solar corona via the doppler broadening of the resonance hydrogen Lyman-α (lambda1216A) radiation scattered by ambient neutral hydrogen atoms was attempted during the 16 Feb 1980 solar eclipse. Two Nike-Black Brant V sounding rockets carrying instrumented payloads were launched into the path of the advancing eclipse umbra from the San Marco satellite launch platform 3 miles off the east coast of Kenya

Experimental Investigation of the Effect of Hydrogen Manifold Injection on the Performance of Compression Ignition Engines

OpenAIRE

Haroun A.K. Shahad; Nabeel Abdul-Hadi

2011-01-01

Experiments were carried out to evaluate the influence of the addition of hydrogen to the inlet air on the performance of a single cylinder direct injection diesel engine. Hydrogen was injected in the inlet manifold. The addition of hydrogen was done on energy replacement basis. It was found that the addition of hydrogen improves the combustion process due to superior combustion characteristics of hydrogen in comparison to conventional diesel fuels. It was also found that...

Subscale Carbon-Carbon Nozzle Extension Development and Hot Fire Testing in Support of Upper Stage Liquid Rocket Engines

Science.gov (United States)

Gradl, Paul; Valentine, Peter; Crisanti, Matthew; Greene, Sandy Elam

2016-01-01

Upper stage and in-space liquid rocket engines are optimized for performance through the use of high area ratio nozzles to fully expand combustion gases to low exit pressures increasing exhaust velocities. Due to the large size of such nozzles and the related engine performance requirements, carbon-carbon (C/C) composite nozzle extensions are being considered for use in order to reduce weight impacts. NASA and industry partner Carbon-Carbon Advanced Technologies (C-CAT) are working towards advancing the technology readiness level of large-scale, domestically-fabricated, C/C nozzle extensions. These C/C extensions have the ability to reduce the overall costs of extensions relative to heritage metallic and composite extensions and to decrease weight by 50%. Material process and coating developments have advanced over the last several years, but hot fire testing to fully evaluate C/C nozzle extensions in relevant environments has been very limited. NASA and C-CAT have designed, fabricated and hot fire tested multiple subscale nozzle extension test articles of various C/C material systems, with the goal of assessing and advancing the manufacturability of these domestically producible materials as well as characterizing their performance when subjected to the typical environments found in a variety of liquid rocket and scramjet engines. Testing at the MSFC Test Stand 115 evaluated heritage and state-of-the-art C/C materials and coatings, demonstrating the capabilities of the high temperature materials and their fabrication methods. This paper discusses the design and fabrication of the 1.2k-lbf sized carbon-carbon nozzle extensions, provides an overview of the test campaign, presents results of the hot fire testing, and discusses potential follow-on development work.

Surface- and interface-engineered heterostructures for solar hydrogen generation

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Xiangyan; Li, Yanrui; Shen, Shaohua

2018-04-01

Photoelectrochemical (PEC) water splitting based on semiconductor photoelectrodes provides a promising platform for reducing environmental pollution and solving the energy crisis by developing clean, sustainable and environmentally friendly hydrogen energy. In this context, metal oxides with their advantages including low cost, good chemical stability and environmental friendliness, have attracted extensive attention among the investigated candidates. However, the large bandgap, poor charge transfer ability and high charge recombination rate limit the PEC performance of metal oxides as photoelectrodes. To solve this limitation, many approaches toward enhanced PEC water splitting performance, which focus on surface and interface engineering, have been presented. In this topical review, we concentrate on the heterostructure design of some typical metal oxides with narrow bandgaps (e.g. Fe2O3, WO3, BiVO4 and Cu2O) as photoelectrodes. An overview of the surface- and interface-engineered heterostructures, including semiconductor heterojunctions, surface protection, surface passivation and cocatalyst decoration, will be given to introduce the recent advances in metal oxide heterostructures for PEC water splitting. This article aims to provide fundamental references and principles for designing metal oxide heterostructures with high activity and stability as photoelectrodes for PEC solar hydrogen generation.

Development and Hotfire Testing of Additively Manufactured Copper Combustion Chambers for Liquid Rocket Engine Applications

Science.gov (United States)

Gradl, Paul R.; Greene, Sandy; Protz, Chris

2017-01-01

NASA and industry partners are working towards fabrication process development to reduce costs and schedules associated with manufacturing liquid rocket engine components with the goal of reducing overall mission costs. One such technique being evaluated is powder-bed fusion or selective laser melting (SLM), commonly referred to as additive manufacturing (AM). The NASA Low Cost Upper Stage Propulsion (LCUSP) program was designed to develop processes and material characterization for GRCop-84 (a NASA Glenn Research Center-developed copper, chrome, niobium alloy) commensurate with powder bed AM, evaluate bimetallic deposition, and complete testing of a full scale combustion chamber. As part of this development, the process has been transferred to industry partners to enable a long-term supply chain of monolithic copper combustion chambers. To advance the processes further and allow for optimization with multiple materials, NASA is also investigating the feasibility of bimetallic AM chambers. In addition to the LCUSP program, NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) has completed a series of development programs and hot-fire tests to demonstrate SLM GRCop-84 and other AM techniques. MSFC’s efforts include a 4,000 pounds-force thrust liquid oxygen/methane (LOX/CH4) combustion chamber. Small thrust chambers for 1,200 pounds-force LOX/hydrogen (H2) applications have also been designed and fabricated with SLM GRCop-84. Similar chambers have also completed development with an Inconel 625 jacket bonded to the GRCop-84 material, evaluating direct metal deposition (DMD) laser- and arc-based techniques. The same technologies for these lower thrust applications are being applied to 25,000-35,000 pounds-force main combustion chamber (MCC) designs. This paper describes the design, development, manufacturing and testing of these numerous combustion chambers, and the associated lessons learned throughout their design and development processes.

U.S./CIS eye joint nuclear rocket venture

Science.gov (United States)

Clark, John S.; Mcilwain, Melvin C.; Smetanikov, Vladimir; D'Yakov, Evgenij K.; Pavshuk, Vladimir A.

1993-01-01

An account is given of the significance for U.S. spacecraft development of a nuclear thermal rocket (NTR) reactor concept that has been developed in the (formerly Soviet) Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). The CIS NTR reactor employs a hydrogen-cooled zirconium hydride moderator and ternary carbide fuels; the comparatively cool operating temperatures associated with this design promise overall robustness.

Disturbing effect of free hydrogen on fuel combustion in internal combustion engines

Science.gov (United States)

Riedler, A

1923-01-01

Experiments with fuel mixtures of varying composition, have recently been conducted by the Motor Vehicle and Airplane Engine Testing Laboratories of the Royal Technical High School in Berlin and at Fort Hahneberg, as well as at numerous private engine works. The behavior of hydrogen during combustion in engines and its harmful effect under certain conditions, on the combustion in the engine cylinder are of general interest. Some of the results of these experiments are given here, in order to elucidate the main facts and explain much that is already a matter of experience with chauffeurs and pilots.

Parametric Data from a Wind Tunnel Test on a Rocket-Based Combined-Cycle Engine Inlet

Science.gov (United States)

Fernandez, Rene; Trefny, Charles J.; Thomas, Scott R.; Bulman, Mel J.

2001-01-01

A 40-percent scale model of the inlet to a rocket-based combined-cycle (RBCC) engine was tested in the NASA Glenn Research Center 1- by 1-Foot Supersonic Wind Tunnel (SWT). The full-scale RBCC engine is scheduled for test in the Hypersonic Tunnel Facility (HTF) at NASA Glenn's Plum Brook Station at Mach 5 and 6. This engine will incorporate the configuration of this inlet model which achieved the best performance during the present experiment. The inlet test was conducted at Mach numbers of 4.0, 5.0, 5.5, and 6.0. The fixed-geometry inlet consists of an 8 deg.. forebody compression plate, boundary layer diverter, and two compressive struts located within 2 parallel sidewalls. These struts extend through the inlet, dividing the flowpath into three channels. Test parameters investigated included strut geometry, boundary layer ingestion, and Reynolds number (Re). Inlet axial pressure distributions and cross-sectional Pitot-pressure surveys at the base of the struts were measured at varying back-pressures. Inlet performance and starting data are presented. The inlet chosen for the RBCC engine self-started at all Mach numbers from 4 to 6. Pitot-pressure contours showed large flow nonuniformity on the body-side of the inlet. The inlet provided adequate pressure recovery and flow quality for the RBCC cycle even with the flow separation.

The Influence of Injection Timing on Performance Characteristics of Diesel Engine Using Jatropha Biodiesel with and without Partial Hydrogenation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rizqon Fajar

2014-07-01

Full Text Available Experimental research has been conducted to investigate the effects of blend of hydrogenated and unhydrogenated Jatropha biodiesel with diesel fuel in volume ratio of 30:70 (B30 on combustion characteristics (BSFC, thermal efficiency and smoke emission of single cylinder diesel engine. In this experiment, engine speed was kept constant at 1,500, 2,500, and 3,500 rpm with maximum engine load at BMEP 5 bar and injection timings were varied. Experimental result showed that at engine speed 1,500 rpm, BSFC of B30 hydrogenated and unhydrogenated Jatropha biodiesel were higher than it of diesel fuel at all injection timings (10° to 18° BTDC. At the same condition, partial hydrogenated Jatropha biodiesel showed higher BSFC than unhydrogenated Jatropha biodiesel. However, the difference in BSFC became smaller for all fuels at engine speed 2,500 rpm and 3,500 rpm at all injection timing. Jatropha biodiesel with and without partial hydrogenation tend to have higher thermal efficiency compared with diesel fuel at all engine speed and injection timing. The best injection timings to operate B30 Jatropha biodiesel with and without hydrogenation were 14°, 18° and 24° BTDC at engine speed 1,500, 2,500, and 3,500 rpm respectively. This conclusion was deduced based on the minimum value of BSFC and the maximum value of thermal efficiency. Smoke emissions for all fuels were in the same level for all conditions.

An experimental study of a hydrogen-enriched ethanol fueled Wankel rotary engine at ultra lean and full load conditions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Amrouche, F.; Erickson, P.A.; Varnhagen, S.; Park, J.W.

2016-01-01

Highlights: • H_2 was added at the intake of a single-rotor ethanol fueled Wankel engine. • The engine was operating at ultra-lean condition, WOT and 3000 rpm. • H_2 enrichment helps shortening the burn duration, enhance the thermal efficiency and reduce the BSEC. • H_2 addition helps to reduce HC, CO and CO_2 emissions. - Abstract: In this paper, the effect of hydrogen addition to ethanol in a monorotor Wankel engine at wide open throttle position and in an ultra-lean operating regime was experimentally investigated. For this aim, variation of hydrogen enrichment levels on the ethanol engine performance and emissions were considered. Experiments were carried out under a constant engine speed of 3000 rpm and fixed spark timing of 15 °BTDC. The test results showed that hydrogen enrichment improved the combustion process through shortening of the flame development and flame propagation periods and reducing the cyclic variation. Furthermore, the reduction of burn duration with the increase of hydrogen fraction enhances the thermal efficiency, reducing the brake-specific energy consumption, as well as reducing the unburned hydrocarbons emissions of the Wankel engine.

Coil-On-Plug Ignition for LOX/Methane Liquid Rocket Engines in Thermal Vacuum Environments

Science.gov (United States)

Melcher, John C.; Atwell, Matthew J.; Morehead, Robert L.; Hurlbert, Eric A.; Bugarin, Luz; Chaidez, Mariana

2017-01-01

A coil-on-plug ignition system has been developed and tested for Liquid Oxygen (LOX) / liquid methane rocket engines operating in thermal vacuum conditions. The igniters were developed and tested as part of the Integrated Cryogenic Propulsion Test Article (ICPTA), previously tested as part of the Project Morpheus test vehicle. The ICPTA uses an integrated, pressure-fed, cryogenic LOX/methane propulsion system including a reaction control system (RCS) and a main engine. The ICPTA was tested at NASA Glenn Research Center's Plum Brook Station in the Spacecraft Propulsion Research Facility (B-2) under vacuum and thermal vacuum conditions. In order to successfully demonstrate ignition reliability in the vacuum conditions and eliminate corona discharge issues, a coil-on-plug ignition system has been developed. The ICPTA uses spark-plug ignition for both the main engine igniter and the RCS. The coil-on-plug configuration eliminates the conventional high-voltage spark plug cable by combining the coil and the spark-plug into a single component. Prior to ICPTA testing at Plum Brook, component-level reaction control engine (RCE) and main engine igniter testing was conducted at NASA Johnson Space Center (JSC), which demonstrated successful hot-fire ignition using the coil-on-plug from sea-level ambient conditions down to 10(exp.-2) torr. Integrated vehicle hot-fire testing at JSC demonstrated electrical and command/data system performance. Lastly, Plum Brook testing demonstrated successful ignitions at simulated altitude conditions at 30 torr and cold thermal-vacuum conditions at 6 torr. The test campaign successfully proved that coil-on-plug technology will enable integrated LOX/methane propulsion systems in future spacecraft.

Coil-On-Plug Ignition for Oxygen/Methane Liquid Rocket Engines in Thermal-Vacuum Environments

Science.gov (United States)

Melcher, John C.; Atwell, Matthew J.; Morehead, Robert L.; Hurlbert, Eric A.; Bugarin, Luz; Chaidez, Mariana

2017-01-01

A coil-on-plug ignition system has been developed and tested for Liquid Oxygen (LOX)/liquid methane (LCH4) rocket engines operating in thermal vacuum conditions. The igniters were developed and tested as part of the Integrated Cryogenic Propulsion Test Article (ICPTA), previously tested as part of the Project Morpheus test vehicle. The ICPTA uses an integrated, pressure-fed, cryogenic LOX/LCH4 propulsion system including a reaction control system (RCS) and a main engine. The ICPTA was tested at NASA Glenn Research Center's Plum Brook Station in the Spacecraft Propulsion Research Facility (B-2) under vacuum and thermal vacuum conditions. A coil-on-plug ignition system has been developed to successfully demonstrate ignition reliability at these conditions while preventing corona discharge issues. The ICPTA uses spark plug ignition for both the main engine igniter and the RCS. The coil-on-plug configuration eliminates the conventional high-voltage spark plug cable by combining the coil and the spark plug into a single component. Prior to ICPTA testing at Plum Brook, component-level reaction control engine (RCE) and main engine igniter testing was conducted at NASA Johnson Space Center (JSC), which demonstrated successful hot-fire ignition using the coil-on-plug from sea-level ambient conditions down to 10(exp -2) torr. Integrated vehicle hot-fire testing at JSC demonstrated electrical and command/data system performance. Lastly, hot-fire testing at Plum Brook demonstrated successful ignitions at simulated altitude conditions at 30 torr and cold thermal-vacuum conditions at 6 torr. The test campaign successfully proved that coil-on-plug technology will enable integrated LOX/LCH4 propulsion systems in future spacecraft.

Hot-gas-side heat transfer characteristics of subscale, plug-nozzle rocket calorimeter chamber

Science.gov (United States)

Quentmeyer, Richard J.; Roncace, Elizabeth A.

1993-01-01

An experimental investigation was conducted to determine the hot-gas-side heat transfer characteristics for a liquid-hydrogen-cooled, subscale, plug-nozzle rocket test apparatus. This apparatus has been used since 1975 to evaluate rocket engine advanced cooling concepts and fabrication techniques, to screen candidate combustion chamber liner materials, and to provide data for model development. In order to obtain the data, a water-cooled calorimeter chamber having the same geometric configuration as the plug-nozzle test apparatus was tested. It also used the same two showerhead injector types that were used on the test apparatus: one having a Rigimesh faceplate and the other having a platelet faceplate. The tests were conducted using liquid oxygen and gaseous hydrogen as the propellants over a mixture ratio range of 5.8 to 6.3 at a nominal chamber pressure of 4.14 MPa abs (600 psia). The two injectors showed similar performance characteristics with the Rigimesh faceplate having a slightly higher average characteristic-exhaust-velocity efficiency of 96 percent versus 94.4 percent for the platelet faceplate. The throat heat flux was 54 MW/m(sup 2) (33 Btu/in.(sup 2)-sec) at the nominal operating condition, which was a chamber pressure of 4.14 MPa abs (600 psia), a hot-gas-side wall temperature of 730 K (1314 R), and a mixture ratio of 6.0. The chamber throat region correlation coefficient C(sub g) for a Nusselt number correlation of the form Nu =C(sub g)Re(sup 0.8)Pr(sup 0.3) averaged 0.023 for the Rigimesh faceplate and 0.026 for the platelet faceplate.

Hydrogen Storage Engineering Center of Excellence Metal Hydride Final Report

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Motyka, T. [Savannah River Site (SRS), Aiken, SC (United States). Savannah River National Lab. (SRNL)

2014-05-31

The Hydrogen Storage Engineering Center of Excellence (HSECoE) was established in 2009 by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to advance the development of materials-based hydrogen storage systems for hydrogen-fueled light-duty vehicles. The overall objective of the HSECoE is to develop complete, integrated system concepts that utilize reversible metal hydrides, adsorbents, and chemical hydrogen storage materials through the use of advanced engineering concepts and designs that can simultaneously meet or exceed all the DOE targets. This report describes the activities and accomplishments during Phase 1 of the reversible metal hydride portion of the HSECoE, which lasted 30 months from February 2009 to August 2011. A complete list of all the HSECoE partners can be found later in this report but for the reversible metal hydride portion of the HSECoE work the major contributing organizations to this effort were the United Technology Research Center (UTRC), General Motors (GM), Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and the Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL). Specific individuals from these and other institutions that supported this effort and the writing of this report are included in the list of contributors and in the acknowledgement sections of this report. The efforts of the HSECoE are organized into three phases each approximately 2 years in duration. In Phase I, comprehensive system engineering analyses and assessments were made of the three classes of storage media that included development of system level transport and thermal models of alternative conceptual storage configurations to permit detailed comparisons against the DOE performance targets for light-duty vehicles. Phase 1 tasks also included identification and technical justifications for candidate storage media and configurations that should be capable of reaching or exceeding the DOE targets. Phase 2 involved bench-level testing and

ELIMINATION OF ROCKET IGNITION SIDE LOADS, Phase I

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — This proposal is responsive to Topic H10: Ground Processing and in particular to Subtopic H10.02. When a rocket motor/engine is ignited at low altitude its...

Performance study of a four-stroke spark ignition engine working with both of hydrogen and ethyl alcohol as supplementary fuel

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Al-Baghdadi, M.A.-R.S. [Babylon Univ. (Iraq). Dept. of Mechanical Engineering

2000-10-01

The effect of the amount of hydrogen/ethyl alcohol addition on the performance and pollutant emission of a four-stroke spark ignition engine has been studied. The results of the study show that all engine performance parameters have been improved when operating the gasoline spark ignition engine with dual addition of hydrogen and ethyl alcohol. The important improvements of alcohol addition are to reduce the NO{sub x} emission with increase in the higher useful compression ratio and output power of hydrogen-supplemented engine. The addition of 8 mass% of hydrogen, with 30 vol% of ethyl alcohol into a gasoline engine operating at 9 compression ratio and 1500 rpm causes a 48.5% reduction in CO emission, 31.1% reduction in NO{sub x} emission and 58.5% reduction in specific fuel consumption. Moreover, the engine thermal efficiency and output power increased by 10.1 and 4.72%, respectively. When ethyl alcohol is increased over 30%, it causes unstable engine operation which can be related to the fact that the fuel is not vaporized, and this causes a reduction in both the break power and efficiency. (Author)

Laser Ignition Technology for Bi-Propellant Rocket Engine Applications

Science.gov (United States)

Thomas, Matthew E.; Bossard, John A.; Early, Jim; Trinh, Huu; Dennis, Jay; Turner, James (Technical Monitor)

2001-01-01

The fiber optically coupled laser ignition approach summarized is under consideration for use in igniting bi-propellant rocket thrust chambers. This laser ignition approach is based on a novel dual pulse format capable of effectively increasing laser generated plasma life times up to 1000 % over conventional laser ignition methods. In the dual-pulse format tinder consideration here an initial laser pulse is used to generate a small plasma kernel. A second laser pulse that effectively irradiates the plasma kernel follows this pulse. Energy transfer into the kernel is much more efficient because of its absorption characteristics thereby allowing the kernel to develop into a much more effective ignition source for subsequent combustion processes. In this research effort both single and dual-pulse formats were evaluated in a small testbed rocket thrust chamber. The rocket chamber was designed to evaluate several bipropellant combinations. Optical access to the chamber was provided through small sapphire windows. Test results from gaseous oxygen (GOx) and RP-1 propellants are presented here. Several variables were evaluated during the test program, including spark location, pulse timing, and relative pulse energy. These variables were evaluated in an effort to identify the conditions in which laser ignition of bi-propellants is feasible. Preliminary results and analysis indicate that this laser ignition approach may provide superior ignition performance relative to squib and torch igniters, while simultaneously eliminating some of the logistical issues associated with these systems. Further research focused on enhancing the system robustness, multiplexing, and window durability/cleaning and fiber optic enhancements is in progress.

Application of Hydrogen Assisted Lean Operation to Natural Gas-Fueled Reciprocating Engines (HALO)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Chad Smutzer

2006-01-01

Two key challenges facing Natural Gas Engines used for cogeneration purposes are spark plug life and high NOx emissions. Using Hydrogen Assisted Lean Operation (HALO), these two keys issues are simultaneously addressed. HALO operation, as demonstrated in this project, allows stable engine operation to be achieved at ultra-lean (relative air/fuel ratios of 2) conditions, which virtually eliminates NOx production. NOx values of 10 ppm (0.07 g/bhp-hr NO) for 8% (LHV H2/LHV CH4) supplementation at an exhaust O2 level of 10% were demonstrated, which is a 98% NOx emissions reduction compared to the leanest unsupplemented operating condition. Spark ignition energy reduction (which will increase ignition system life) was carried out at an oxygen level of 9%, leading to a NOx emission level of 28 ppm (0.13 g/bhp-hr NO). The spark ignition energy reduction testing found that spark energy could be reduced 22% (from 151 mJ supplied to the coil) with 13% (LHV H2/LHV CH4) hydrogen supplementation, and even further reduced 27% with 17% hydrogen supplementation, with no reportable effect on NOx emissions for these conditions and with stable engine torque output. Another important result is that the combustion duration was shown to be only a function of hydrogen supplementation, not a function of ignition energy (until the ignitability limit was reached). The next logical step leading from these promising results is to see how much the spark energy reduction translates into increase in spark plug life, which may be accomplished by durability testing.

Development of a pre-ignition submodel for hydrogen engines

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Al-Baghdadi, Sadiq [University of Babylon (Iraq). Dept. of Mechanical Engineering

2005-10-15

In hydrogen-fuelled spark ignition engine applications, the onset of pre-ignition remains one of the prime limitations that needs to be addressed to avoid its incidence and achieve superior performance. This paper describes a new pre-ignition submodel for engine modelling codes. The effects of changes in key operating variables, such as compression ratio, spark timing, intake pressure, and temperature on pre-ignition limiting equivalence ratios are established both analytically and experimentally. With the established pre-ignition model, it is possible not only to investigate whether pre-ignition is observed with changing operating and design parameters, but also to evaluate those parameters' effects on the maximum possible pre-ignition intensity. (author)

Improvement of performance and reduction of pollutant emission of a four stroke spark ignition engine fueled with hydrogen-gasoline fuel mixture

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Al-Baghdadi, Maher Abdul-Resul Sadiq; Al-Janabi, Haroun Abdul-Kadim Shahad [Babylon Univ., Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, Babylon (Iraq)

2000-07-01

The effect of the amount of hydrogen/ethyl alcohol addition on the performance and pollutant emissions of a four stroke spark ignition engine has been studied. A detailed model to simulate a four stroke cycle of a spark ignition engine fueled with hydrogen-ethyl alcohol-gasoline has been used to study the effect of hydrogen and ethyl alcohol blending on the thermodynamic cycle of the engine. The results of the study show that all engine performance parameters have been improved when operating the gasoline S.I.E. with dual addition of hydrogen and ethyl alcohol. It has been found that 4% of hydrogen and 30% of ethyl alcohol blending causes a 49% reduction in CO emission, a 39% reduction in NO{sub x} emission, a 49% reduction in specific fuel consumption and increases in the thermal efficiency and output power by 5 and 4%, respectively. When ethyl alcohol is increased over 30%, it causes unstable engine operation which can be related to the fact that the fuel is not vaporised, and this causes a reduction in both the brake power and efficiency. (Author)

The Primary Experiments of an Analysis of Pareto Solutions for Conceptual Design Optimization Problem of Hybrid Rocket Engine

Science.gov (United States)

Kudo, Fumiya; Yoshikawa, Tomohiro; Furuhashi, Takeshi

Recentry, Multi-objective Genetic Algorithm, which is the application of Genetic Algorithm to Multi-objective Optimization Problems is focused on in the engineering design field. In this field, the analysis of design variables in the acquired Pareto solutions, which gives the designers useful knowledge in the applied problem, is important as well as the acquisition of advanced solutions. This paper proposes a new visualization method using Isomap which visualizes the geometric distances of solutions in the design variable space considering their distances in the objective space. The proposed method enables a user to analyze the design variables of the acquired solutions considering their relationship in the objective space. This paper applies the proposed method to the conceptual design optimization problem of hybrid rocket engine and studies the effectiveness of the proposed method.

Predicted performance of an integrated modular engine system

Science.gov (United States)

Binder, Michael; Felder, James L.

1993-01-01

Space vehicle propulsion systems are traditionally comprised of a cluster of discrete engines, each with its own set of turbopumps, valves, and a thrust chamber. The Integrated Modular Engine (IME) concept proposes a vehicle propulsion system comprised of multiple turbopumps, valves, and thrust chambers which are all interconnected. The IME concept has potential advantages in fault-tolerance, weight, and operational efficiency compared with the traditional clustered engine configuration. The purpose of this study is to examine the steady-state performance of an IME system with various components removed to simulate fault conditions. An IME configuration for a hydrogen/oxygen expander cycle propulsion system with four sets of turbopumps and eight thrust chambers has been modeled using the Rocket Engine Transient Simulator (ROCETS) program. The nominal steady-state performance is simulated, as well as turbopump thrust chamber and duct failures. The impact of component failures on system performance is discussed in the context of the system's fault tolerant capabilities.

Numerical Study on the Performance Characteristics of Hydrogen Fueled Port Injection Internal Combustion Engine

OpenAIRE

Rosli A. Bakar; Mohammed K. Mohammed; M. M. Rahman

2009-01-01

This study was focused on the engine performance of single cylinder hydrogen fueled port injection internal combustion engine. GT-Power was utilized to develop the model for port injection engine. One dimensional gas dynamics was represented the flow and heat transfer in the components of the engine model. The governing equations were introduced first, followed by the performance parameters and model description. Air-fuel ratio was varied from stoichiometric limit to a lean limit and the rota...

An Experimental Investigation on Performance and Emissions of a Single Cylinder D.I Diesel Engine with Manifold Hydrogen Induction

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Haroun A.K. Shahad

2017-05-01

Full Text Available Hydrogen is a clean fuel for internal combustion engines as it produces only water vapor and nitrogen oxides when it burns. In this research, hydrogen is used as a blending fuel with diesel to reduce pollutants emission and to improve performance. It is inducted in the inlet manifold, (continuous manifold induction, which is of a single cylinder, four stroke, direct injection, variable compression ratio water cold diesel engine, type (Kirloskar. This technique of hydrogen blending is selected because of its simplicity and low cost. Hydrogen blending is built on the basis of energy replacement. A special electronic unit is designed and fabricated to control hydrogen blending ratio. The maximum achieved ratio is 30% of input energy and beyond that the engine operation becomes unsatisfactory. Tests are done with 17.5 compression ratio and 1500 rpm. The brake specific fuel consumption is reduced by 29% and the engine thermal efficiency increased by 16% at these operating conditions. The pollutant emissions of carbon oxides, UHC, and smoke opacity are dramatically decreased by 19.5%, 13%,and 45% respectively while NOx emission increased by 10%.

Engineering Encounters: Blasting off with Engineering

Science.gov (United States)

Dare, Emily A.; Childs, Gregory T.; Cannaday, E. Ashley; Roehrig, Gillian H

2014-01-01

What better way to engage young students in physical science concepts than to have them engineer flying toy rockets? The integration of engineering into science classrooms is advocated by the "Next Generation Science Standards" (NGSS) and researchers alike (Brophy et al. 2008), as engineering provides: (1) A "real-world…

Experimental Evaluation of SI Engine Operation Supplemented by Hydrogen Rich Gas from a Compact Plasma Boosted Reformer

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

J. B. Green, Jr.; N. Domingo; J. M. E. Storey; R.M. Wagner; J.S. Armfield; L. Bromberg; D. R. Cohn; A. Rabinovich; N. Alexeev

2000-01-01

It is well known that hydrogen addition to spark-ignited (SI) engines can reduce exhaust emissions and increase efficiency. Micro plasmatron fuel converters can be used for onboard generation of hydrogen-rich gas by partial oxidation of a wide range of fuels. These plasma-boosted microreformers are compact, rugged, and provide rapid response. With hydrogen supplement to the main fuel, SI engines can run very lean resulting in a large reduction in nitrogen oxides (NO x ) emissions relative to stoichiometric combustion without a catalytic converter. This paper presents experimental results from a microplasmatron fuel converter operating under variable oxygen to carbon ratios. Tests have also been carried out to evaluate the effect of the addition of a microplasmatron fuel converter generated gas in a 1995 2.3-L four-cylinder SI production engine. The tests were performed with and without hydrogen-rich gas produced by the plasma boosted fuel converter with gasoline. A one hundred fold reduction in NO x due to very lean operation was obtained under certain conditions. An advantage of onboard plasma-boosted generation of hydrogen-rich gas is that it is used only when required and can be readily turned on and off. Substantial NO x reduction should also be obtainable by heavy exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) facilitated by use of hydrogen-rich gas with stoichiometric operation

Structural strengthening of rocket nozzle extension by means of laser metal deposition

Science.gov (United States)

Honoré, M.; Brox, L.; Hallberg, M.

2012-03-01

Commercial space operations strive to maximize the payload per launch in order to minimize the costs of each kg launched into orbit; this yields demand for ever larger launchers with larger, more powerful rocket engines. Volvo Aero Corporation in collaboration with Snecma and Astrium has designed and tested a new, upgraded Nozzle extension for the Vulcain 2 engine configuration, denoted Vulcain 2+ NE Demonstrator The manufacturing process for the welding of the sandwich wall and the stiffening structure is developed in close cooperation with FORCE Technology. The upgrade is intended to be available for future development programs for the European Space Agency's (ESA) highly successful commercial launch vehicle, the ARIANE 5. The Vulcain 2+ Nozzle Extension Demonstrator [1] features a novel, thin-sheet laser-welded configuration, with laser metal deposition built-up 3D-features for the mounting of stiffening structure, flanges and for structural strengthening, in order to cope with the extreme load- and thermal conditions, to which the rocket nozzle extension is exposed during launch of the 750 ton ARIANE 5 launcher. Several millimeters of material thickness has been deposited by laser metal deposition without disturbing the intricate flow geometry of the nozzle cooling channels. The laser metal deposition process has been applied on a full-scale rocket nozzle demonstrator, and in excess of 15 kilometers of filler wire has been successfully applied to the rocket nozzle. The laser metal deposition has proven successful in two full-throttle, full-scale tests, firing the rocket engine and nozzle in the ESA test facility P5 by DLR in Lampoldshausen, Germany.

Effect of Hydrogen and Hydrogen Enriched Compressed Natural Gas Induction on the Performance of Rubber Seed Oil Methy Ester Fuelled Common Rail Direct Injection (CRDi Dual Fuel Engines

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mallikarjun Bhovi

2017-06-01

Full Text Available Renewable fuels are in biodegradable nature and they tender good energy security and foreign exchange savings. In addition they address environmental concerns and socio-economic issues. The present work presents the experimental investigations carried out on the utilization of such renewable fuel combinations for diesel engine applications. For this a single-cylinder four-stroke water cooled direct injection (DI compression ignition (CI engine provided with CMFIS (Conventional Mechanical Fuel Injection System was rightfully converted to operate with CRDi injection systems enabling high pressure injection of Rubber seed oil methyl ester (RuOME in the dual fuel mode with induction of varied gas flow rates of hydrogen and hydrogen enriched CNG (HCNG gas combinations. Experimental investigations showed a considerable improvement in dual fuel engine performance with acceptable brake thermal efficiency and reduced emissions of smoke, hydrocarbon (HC, carbon monoxide (CO and slightly increased nitric oxide (NOx emission levels for increased hydrogen and HCNG flow rates. Further CRDi facilitated dual fuel engine showed improved engine performance compared to CMFIS as the former enabled high pressure (900 bar injection of the RuOME and closer to TDC (Top Dead Centre as well. Combustion parameters such as ignition delay, combustion duration, pressure-crank angle and heat release rates were analyzed and compared with baseline data generated. Combustion analysis showed that the rapid rate of burning of hydrogen and HCNG along with air mixtures increased due to presence of hydrogen in total and in partial combination with CNG which further resulted into higher cylinder pressures and energy release rates. However, sustained research that can provide feasible engine technology operating on such fuels in dual fuel operation can pave the way for continued fossil fuel usage.

Engineering bacterial motility towards hydrogen-peroxide.

Science.gov (United States)

Virgile, Chelsea; Hauk, Pricila; Wu, Hsuan-Chen; Shang, Wu; Tsao, Chen-Yu; Payne, Gregory F; Bentley, William E

2018-01-01

Synthetic biologists construct innovative genetic/biological systems to treat environmental, energy, and health problems. Many systems employ rewired cells for non-native product synthesis, while a few have employed the rewired cells as 'smart' devices with programmable function. Building on the latter, we developed a genetic construct to control and direct bacterial motility towards hydrogen peroxide, one of the body's immune response signaling molecules. A motivation for this work is the creation of cells that can target and autonomously treat disease, the latter signaled by hydrogen peroxide release. Bacteria naturally move towards a variety of molecular cues (e.g., nutrients) in the process of chemotaxis. In this work, we engineered bacteria to recognize and move towards hydrogen peroxide, a non-native chemoattractant and potential toxin. Our system exploits oxyRS, the native oxidative stress regulon of E. coli. We first demonstrated H2O2-mediated upregulation motility regulator, CheZ. Using transwell assays, we showed a two-fold increase in net motility towards H2O2. Then, using a 2D cell tracking system, we quantified bacterial motility descriptors including velocity, % running (of tumble/run motions), and a dynamic net directionality towards the molecular cue. In CheZ mutants, we found that increased H2O2 concentration (0-200 μM) and induction time resulted in increased running speeds, ultimately reaching the native E. coli wild-type speed of ~22 μm/s with a ~45-65% ratio of running to tumbling. Finally, using a microfluidic device with stable H2O2 gradients, we characterized responses and the potential for "programmed" directionality towards H2O2 in quiescent fluids. Overall, the synthetic biology framework and tracking analysis in this work will provide a framework for investigating controlled motility of E. coli and other 'smart' probiotics for signal-directed treatment.

Innovative concept for an ultra-small nuclear thermal rocket utilizing a new moderated reactor

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nam, Seung Hyun; Venneri, Paolo; Kim, Yong Hee; Lee, Jeong Ik; Chang, Soon Heung; Jeong, Yong Hoon [Dept. of Nuclear and Quantum Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2015-10-15

Although the harsh space environment imposes many severe challenges to space pioneers, space exploration is a realistic and profitable goal for long-term humanity survival. One of the viable and promising options to overcome the harsh environment of space is nuclear propulsion. Particularly, the Nuclear Thermal Rocket (NTR) is a leading candidate for near-term human missions to Mars and beyond due to its relatively high thrust and efficiency. Traditional NTR designs use typically high power reactors with fast or epithermal neutron spectrums to simplify core design and to maximize thrust. In parallel there are a series of new NTR designs with lower thrust and higher efficiency, designed to enhance mission versatility and safety through the use of redundant engines (when used in a clustered engine arrangement) for future commercialization. This paper proposes a new NTR design of the second design philosophy, Korea Advanced NUclear Thermal Engine Rocket (KANUTER), for future space applications. The KANUTER consists of an Extremely High Temperature Gas cooled Reactor (EHTGR) utilizing hydrogen propellant, a propulsion system, and an optional electricity generation system to provide propulsion as well as electricity generation. The innovatively small engine has the characteristics of high efficiency, being compact and lightweight, and bimodal capability. The notable characteristics result from the moderated EHTGR design, uniquely utilizing the integrated fuel element with an ultra heat-resistant carbide fuel, an efficient metal hydride moderator, protectively cooling channels and an individual pressure tube in an all-in-one package. The EHTGR can be bimodally operated in a propulsion mode of 100 MW{sub th} and an electricity generation mode of 100 kW{sub th}, equipped with a dynamic energy conversion system. To investigate the design features of the new reactor and to estimate referential engine performance, a preliminary design study in terms of neutronics and

Innovative concept for an ultra-small nuclear thermal rocket utilizing a new moderated reactor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nam, Seung Hyun; Venneri, Paolo; Kim, Yong Hee; Lee, Jeong Ik; Chang, Soon Heung; Jeong, Yong Hoon

2015-01-01

Although the harsh space environment imposes many severe challenges to space pioneers, space exploration is a realistic and profitable goal for long-term humanity survival. One of the viable and promising options to overcome the harsh environment of space is nuclear propulsion. Particularly, the Nuclear Thermal Rocket (NTR) is a leading candidate for near-term human missions to Mars and beyond due to its relatively high thrust and efficiency. Traditional NTR designs use typically high power reactors with fast or epithermal neutron spectrums to simplify core design and to maximize thrust. In parallel there are a series of new NTR designs with lower thrust and higher efficiency, designed to enhance mission versatility and safety through the use of redundant engines (when used in a clustered engine arrangement) for future commercialization. This paper proposes a new NTR design of the second design philosophy, Korea Advanced NUclear Thermal Engine Rocket (KANUTER), for future space applications. The KANUTER consists of an Extremely High Temperature Gas cooled Reactor (EHTGR) utilizing hydrogen propellant, a propulsion system, and an optional electricity generation system to provide propulsion as well as electricity generation. The innovatively small engine has the characteristics of high efficiency, being compact and lightweight, and bimodal capability. The notable characteristics result from the moderated EHTGR design, uniquely utilizing the integrated fuel element with an ultra heat-resistant carbide fuel, an efficient metal hydride moderator, protectively cooling channels and an individual pressure tube in an all-in-one package. The EHTGR can be bimodally operated in a propulsion mode of 100 MW th and an electricity generation mode of 100 kW th , equipped with a dynamic energy conversion system. To investigate the design features of the new reactor and to estimate referential engine performance, a preliminary design study in terms of neutronics and thermohydraulics

Innovative concept for an ultra-small nuclear thermal rocket utilizing a new moderated reactor

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Seung Hyun Nam

2015-10-01

Full Text Available Although the harsh space environment imposes many severe challenges to space pioneers, space exploration is a realistic and profitable goal for long-term humanity survival. One of the viable and promising options to overcome the harsh environment of space is nuclear propulsion. Particularly, the Nuclear Thermal Rocket (NTR is a leading candidate for near-term human missions to Mars and beyond due to its relatively high thrust and efficiency. Traditional NTR designs use typically high power reactors with fast or epithermal neutron spectrums to simplify core design and to maximize thrust. In parallel there are a series of new NTR designs with lower thrust and higher efficiency, designed to enhance mission versatility and safety through the use of redundant engines (when used in a clustered engine arrangement for future commercialization. This paper proposes a new NTR design of the second design philosophy, Korea Advanced NUclear Thermal Engine Rocket (KANUTER, for future space applications. The KANUTER consists of an Extremely High Temperature Gas cooled Reactor (EHTGR utilizing hydrogen propellant, a propulsion system, and an optional electricity generation system to provide propulsion as well as electricity generation. The innovatively small engine has the characteristics of high efficiency, being compact and lightweight, and bimodal capability. The notable characteristics result from the moderated EHTGR design, uniquely utilizing the integrated fuel element with an ultra heat-resistant carbide fuel, an efficient metal hydride moderator, protectively cooling channels and an individual pressure tube in an all-in-one package. The EHTGR can be bimodally operated in a propulsion mode of 100 MWth and an electricity generation mode of 100 kWth, equipped with a dynamic energy conversion system. To investigate the design features of the new reactor and to estimate referential engine performance, a preliminary design study in terms of neutronics and

Development and Testing of a Rotating Detonation Engine Run on Hydrogen and Air

Science.gov (United States)

2012-03-22

Jay Rutledge (Member) Date v AFIT/GAE/ENY/12-M36 Abstract Rotating detonation engines ( RDEs ) have the potential for greater...efficiencies over conventional engines by utilizing pressure gain combustion. A new modular RDE (6 in diameter) was developed and successfully run on...hydrogen and standard air. The RDE allows for variation of injection scheme and detonation channel widths. Tests provided the operational space of the

Subscale Winged Rocket Development and Application to Future Reusable Space Transportation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Koichi YONEMOTO

2018-03-01

Full Text Available Kyushu Institute of Technology has been studying unmanned suborbital winged rocket called WIRES (WInged REusable Sounding rocket and its research subjects concerning aerodynamics, NGC (Navigation, Guidance and Control, cryogenic composite tanks etc., and conducting flight demonstration of small winged rocket since 2005. WIRES employs the original aerodynamic shape of HIMES (HIghly Maneuverable Experimental Sounding rocket studied by ISAS (Institute of Space and Astronautical Science of JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency in 1980s. This paper presents the preliminary design of subscale non-winged and winged rockets called WIRES#013 and WIRES#015, respectively, that are developed in collaboration with JAXA, USC (University of Southern California, UTEP (University of Texas at El Paso and Japanese industries. WIRES#013 is a conventional pre-test rocket propelled by two IPA-LOX (Isopropyl Alcohol and Liquid Oxygen engines under development by USC. It has the total length of 4.6m, and the weight of 1000kg to reach the altitude of about 6km. The flight objective is validation of the telemetry and ground communication system, recovery parachute system, and launch operation of liquid engine. WIRES#015, which has the same length of WIRES#013 and the weight of 1000kg, is a NGC technology demonstrator propelled by a fully expander-cycle LOX-Methane engine designed and developed by JAXA to reach the altitude more than 6km. The flight tests of both WIRES#013 and WIRES#015 will be conducted at the launch facility of FAR (Friends of Amateur Rocketry, Inc., which is located at Mojave Desert of California in United States of America, in May 2018 and March 2019 respectively. After completion of WIRES#015 flight tests, the suborbital demonstrator called WIRES-X will be developed and its first flight test well be performed in 2020. Its application to future fully reusable space transportation systems, such as suborbital space tour vehicles and two

Hydrogen in metals

CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

Carter, TJ

2001-04-01

Full Text Available .J. Cartera,*, L.A. Cornishb aAdvanced Engineering & Testing Services, MATTEK, CSIR, Private Bag X28, Auckland Park 2006, South Africa bSchool of Process and Materials Engineering, University of the Witwatersrand, Private Bag 3, P.O. WITS 2050, South Africa... are contrasted, and an unusual case study of hydrogen embrittlement of an alloy steel is presented. 7 2001 Published by Elsevier Science Ltd. Keywords: Hydrogen; Hydrogen-assisted cracking; Hydrogen damage; Hydrogen embrittlement 1. Introduction Hydrogen suC128...

Feasibility study of palm-based fuels for hybrid rocket motor applications

Science.gov (United States)

Tarmizi Ahmad, M.; Abidin, Razali; Taha, A. Latif; Anudip, Amzaryi

2018-02-01

This paper describes the combined analysis done in pure palm-based wax that can be used as solid fuel in a hybrid rocket engine. The measurement of pure palm wax calorific value was performed using a bomb calorimeter. An experimental rocket engine and static test stand facility were established. After initial measurement and calibration, repeated procedures were performed. Instrumentation supplies carried out allow fuel regression rate measurements, oxidizer mass flow rates and stearic acid rocket motors measurements. Similar tests are also carried out with stearate acid (from palm oil by-products) dissolved with nitrocellulose and bee solution. Calculated data and experiments show that rates and regression thrust can be achieved even in pure-tested palm-based wax. Additionally, palm-based wax is mixed with beeswax characterized by higher nominal melting temperatures to increase moisturizing points to higher temperatures without affecting regression rate values. Calorie measurements and ballistic experiments were performed on this new fuel formulation. This new formulation promises driving applications in a wide range of temperatures.

Extension of a simplified computer program for analysis of solid-propellant rocket motors

Science.gov (United States)

Sforzini, R. H.

1973-01-01

A research project to develop a computer program for the preliminary design and performance analysis of solid propellant rocket engines is discussed. The following capabilities are included as computer program options: (1) treatment of wagon wheel cross sectional propellant configurations alone or in combination with circular perforated grains, (2) calculation of ignition transients with the igniter treated as a small rocket engine, (3) representation of spherical circular perforated grain ends as an alternative to the conical end surface approximation used in the original program, and (4) graphical presentation of program results using a digital plotter.

Direct-injection strategies for a hydrogen-fueled engine : an optical and numerical investigation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kaiser, S.; Salazar, V. [Sandia National Labs, Albuquerque, NM (United States); Scarcelli, R.; Wallner, T. [Argonne National Lab, Argonne, IL (United States)

2009-07-01

Vehicles with hydrogen-fueled engines are competitive with systems based on fuel cells. There is a lack of fundamental knowledge about in-cylinder processes in hydrogen direct injection engines. This presentation discussed a study that used a variety of injector configurations to establish a broad database. A light-load conditions that can profit from stratification was investigated. Several results were presented, including the 5-hole nozzle produced an asymmetric jet pattern which may be good for late injection. Very lean regions in the wake of the transient jets were found to be similar to those found in diesel injection. The 13-hole nozzle demonstrated complete jet collapse, consistent with Schlieren imaging by Petersen. Stratification made efficiency sensitive to the targeting of the single-hole injector. Computational fluid dynamics with a commercially available code aimed to improve the process of design optimization. The simulation predicted less fuel dispersion than was experimentally measured. Details of the fuel penetration were captured. It was concluded that for the single-hole nozzle, the pre-spark fuel distribution is consistent with results from the fired engine. tabs., figs.

NASA rocket launches student project into space

OpenAIRE

Crumbley, Liz

2005-01-01

A project that began in 2002 will culminate at sunrise on Tuesday, March 15, when a team of Virginia Tech engineering students watch a payload section they designed lift off aboard a sounding rocket from a launch pad at NASA's Wallops Island Flight Facility and travel 59 miles into space.

Determination of the Flow Field in the Propellant Tank of a Rocket Engine on Completion of the Mission

Science.gov (United States)

Fedorov, A. V.; Bedarev, I. A.; Lavruk, S. A.; Trushlyakov, V. I.; Kudentsov, V. Yu.

2018-03-01

In the present work, a method of mathematical simulation is employed to describe processes occurring in the specimens of new equipment and using the remaining propellant in rocket-engine tanks. Within the framework of certain turbulence models, the authors perform a calculation of the flow field in the volume of the tank of the launch-vehicle stage when a hot gas jet is injected into it. A vortex flow structure is revealed; the characteristics of heat transfer for different angles of injection of the jet are determined. The obtained correlation Nu = Nu(Re) satisfactorily describes experimental data.

Engineering aspect of the microwave ionosphere nonlinear interaction experiment (MINIX) with a sounding rocket

Science.gov (United States)

Nagatomo, Makoto; Kaya, Nobuyuki; Matsumoto, Hiroshi

The Microwave Ionosphere Nonlinear Interaction Experiment (MINIX) is a sounding rocket experiment to study possible effects of strong microwave fields in case it is used for energy transmission from the Solar Power Satellite (SPS) upon the Earth's atmosphere. Its secondary objective is to develop high power microwave technology for space use. Two rocket-borne magnetrons were used to emit 2.45 GHz microwave in order to make a simulated condition of power transmission from an SPS to a ground station. Sounding of the environment radiated by microwave was conducted by the diagnostic package onboard the daughter unit which was separated slowly from the mother unit. The main design drivers of this experiment were to build such high power equipments in a standard type of sounding rocket, to keep the cost within the budget and to perform a series of experiments without complete loss of the mission. The key technology for this experiment is a rocket-borne magnetron and high voltage converter. Location of position of the daughter unit relative to the mother unit was a difficult requirement for a spin-stabilized rocket. These problems were solved by application of such a low cost commercial products as a magnetron for microwave oven and a video tape recorder and camera.

Rocket Engine Turbine Blade Surface Pressure Distributions Experiment and Computations

Science.gov (United States)

Hudson, Susan T.; Zoladz, Thomas F.; Dorney, Daniel J.; Turner, James (Technical Monitor)

2002-01-01

Understanding the unsteady aspects of turbine rotor flow fields is critical to successful future turbine designs. A technology program was conducted at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center to increase the understanding of unsteady environments for rocket engine turbines. The experimental program involved instrumenting turbine rotor blades with miniature surface mounted high frequency response pressure transducers. The turbine model was then tested to measure the unsteady pressures on the rotor blades. The data obtained from the experimental program is unique in two respects. First, much more unsteady data was obtained (several minutes per set point) than has been possible in the past. Also, an extensive steady performance database existed for the turbine model. This allowed an evaluation of the effect of the on-blade instrumentation on the turbine's performance. A three-dimensional unsteady Navier-Stokes analysis was also used to blindly predict the unsteady flow field in the turbine at the design operating conditions and at +15 degrees relative incidence to the first-stage rotor. The predicted time-averaged and unsteady pressure distributions show good agreement with the experimental data. This unique data set, the lessons learned for acquiring this type of data, and the improvements made to the data analysis and prediction tools are contributing significantly to current Space Launch Initiative turbine airflow test and blade surface pressure prediction efforts.

'RCHX-1-STORM' first Slovenian meteorological rocket program

Science.gov (United States)

Kerstein, Aleksander; Matko, Drago; Trauner, Amalija; Britovšek, Zvone

2004-08-01

Astronautic and Rocket Society Celje (ARSC) formed a special working team for research and development of a small meteorological hail suppression rocket in the 70th. The hail suppression system was established in former Yugoslavia in the late 60th as an attempt to protect important agricultural regions from one of the summer's most vicious storm. In this time Slovenia was a part of Yugoslavia as one of the federal republic with relative high developed agricultural region production. The Rocket program 'RCHX-STORM' was a second attempt, for Slovenia indigenously developed in the production of meteorological hail suppression rocket. ARSC has designed a family of small sounding rocket that were based on highly promising hybrid propellant propulsion. Hybrid propulsion was selected for this family because it was offering low cost, save production and operation and simple logistics. Conventional sounding rockets use solid propellant motor for their propulsion. The introduction of hybrid motors has enabled a considerable decrease in overall cost. The transportation handling and storage procedures were greatly simplified due to the fact that a hybrid motor was not considered as explosive matter. A hybrid motor may also be designed to stand a severe environment without resorting to conditioning arrangements. The program started in the late 70th when the team ARSC was integrated in the Research and Development Institute in Celje (RDIC). The development program aimed to produce three types of meteorological rockets with diameters 76, 120 and 160 mm. Development of the RCHX-76 engine and rocket vehicle including flight certification has been undertaken by a joint team comprising of the ARCS, RDIC and the company Cestno podjetje Celje (CPC), Road building company Celje. Many new techniques and methods were used in this program such as computer simulation of external and internal ballistics, composite materials for rocket construction, intensive static testing of models and

Radiation effect on rocket engine performance

Science.gov (United States)

Chiu, Huei-Huang; Kross, K. W.; Krebsbach, A. N.

1990-01-01

Critical problem areas involving the effect of radiation on the combustion of bipropellants are addressed by formulating a universal scaling law in combination with a radiation-enhanced vaporization combustion model. Numerical algorithms are developed and data pertaining to the Variable Thrust Engine (VTE) and the Space Shuttle Main Engine (SSME) are used to conduct parametric sensitivity studies to predict the principal intercoupling effects of radiation. The analysis reveals that low-enthalpy engines, such as the VTE, are vulnerable to a substantial performance setback due to radiative loss, whereas the performance of high-enthalpy engines such as the SSME are hardly affected over a broad range of engine operation. Combustion enhancement by radiative heating of the propellant has a significant impact on propellants with high absorptivity.

Ramjet Application Possibilities for Increasing Fire Range of the Multiple Launch Rocket Systems Ammunition

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

V. N. Zubov

2015-01-01

Full Text Available The article considers a possibility to increase a flying range of the perspective rockets equipped with the control unit with aerodynamic controllers for the multiple launch rocket systems “Smerch”.To increase a flying range and reduce a starting mass of the rocket, the paper studies a possibility to replace the single-mode rocket engine used in the solid-fuel rocket motor for the direct-flow propulsion jet engine (DFPJE with not head sector air intakes. The DFPJE is implemented according to the classical scheme with a fuel charged in the combustion chamber. A separated solid propellant starting accelerator provides the rocket acceleration to reach a speed necessary for the DFPJE to run.When designing the DFPJE a proper choice of not head air intake parameters is one of the most difficult points. For this purpose a COSMOS Flow Simulation software package and analytical dependences were used to define the following: a boundary layer thickness where an air intake is set, maximum permissible and appropriate angles of attack and deviation angles of controllers at the section where the DFPJE works, and some other parameters as well.Calculation of DFPJE characteristics consisted in determining parameters of an air-gas path of the propulsion system, geometrical sizes of the pipeline flow area, sizes of a fuel charge, and dependence of the propulsion system impulse on the flight height and speed. Calculations were performed both in thermodynamic statement of problem and in using software package of COSMOS Flow Simulation.As a result of calculations and design engineering activities the air intake profile is created and mass-dimensional characteristics of DFPJE are defined. Besides, calculations of the starting solid fuel accelerator were carried out. Further design allowed us to create the rocket shape, estimate its mass-dimensional characteristics, and perform ballistic calculations, which proved that achieving a range of 120 km for the rocket is

Genetic algorithm to optimize the design of main combustor and gas generator in liquid rocket engines

Science.gov (United States)

Son, Min; Ko, Sangho; Koo, Jaye

2014-06-01

A genetic algorithm was used to develop optimal design methods for the regenerative cooled combustor and fuel-rich gas generator of a liquid rocket engine. For the combustor design, a chemical equilibrium analysis was applied, and the profile was calculated using Rao's method. One-dimensional heat transfer was assumed along the profile, and cooling channels were designed. For the gas-generator design, non-equilibrium properties were derived from a counterflow analysis, and a vaporization model for the fuel droplet was adopted to calculate residence time. Finally, a genetic algorithm was adopted to optimize the designs. The combustor and gas generator were optimally designed for 30-tonf, 75-tonf, and 150-tonf engines. The optimized combustors demonstrated superior design characteristics when compared with previous non-optimized results. Wall temperatures at the nozzle throat were optimized to satisfy the requirement of 800 K, and specific impulses were maximized. In addition, the target turbine power and a burned-gas temperature of 1000 K were obtained from the optimized gas-generator design.

Significant Climate Changes Caused by Soot Emitted From Rockets in the Stratosphere

Science.gov (United States)

Mills, M. J.; Ross, M.; Toohey, D. W.

2010-12-01

A new type of hydrocarbon rocket engine with a larger soot emission index than current kerosene rockets is expected to power a fleet of suborbital rockets for commercial and scientific purposes in coming decades. At projected launch rates, emissions from these rockets will create a persistent soot layer in the northern middle stratosphere that would disproportionally affect the Earth’s atmosphere and cryosphere. A global climate model predicts that thermal forcing in the rocket soot layer will cause significant changes in the global atmospheric circulation and distributions of ozone and temperature. Tropical ozone columns decline as much as 1%, while polar ozone columns increase by up to 6%. Polar surface temperatures rise one Kelvin regionally and polar summer sea ice fractions shrink between 5 - 15%. After 20 years of suborbital rocket fleet operation, globally averaged radiative forcing (RF) from rocket soot exceeds the RF from rocket CO_{2} by six orders of magnitude, but remains small, comparable to the global RF from aviation. The response of the climate system is surprising given the small forcing, and should be investigated further with different climate models.

Nuclear Thermal Rocket/Vehicle Design Options for Future NASA Missions to the Moon and Mars

Science.gov (United States)

Borowski, Stanley K.; Corban, Robert R.; Mcguire, Melissa L.; Beke, Erik G.

1995-01-01

The nuclear thermal rocket (NTR) provides a unique propulsion capability to planners/designers of future human exploration missions to the Moon and Mars. In addition to its high specific impulse (approximately 850-1000 s) and engine thrust-to-weight ratio (approximately 3-10), the NTR can also be configured as a 'dual mode' system capable of generating electrical power for spacecraft environmental systems, communications, and enhanced stage operations (e.g., refrigeration for long-term liquid hydrogen storage). At present the Nuclear Propulsion Office (NPO) is examining a variety of mission applications for the NTR ranging from an expendable, single-burn, trans-lunar injection (TLI) stage for NASA's First Lunar Outpost (FLO) mission to all propulsive, multiburn, NTR-powered spacecraft supporting a 'split cargo-piloted sprint' Mars mission architecture. Each application results in a particular set of requirements in areas such as the number of engines and their respective thrust levels, restart capability, fuel operating temperature and lifetime, cryofluid storage, and stage size. Two solid core NTR concepts are examined -- one based on NERVA (Nuclear Engine for Rocket Vehicle Application) derivative reactor (NDR) technology, and a second concept which utilizes a ternary carbide 'twisted ribbon' fuel form developed by the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). The NDR and CIS concepts have an established technology database involving significant nuclear testing at or near representative operating conditions. Integrated systems and mission studies indicate that clusters of two to four 15 to 25 klbf NDR or CIS engines are sufficient for most of the lunar and Mars mission scenarios currently under consideration. This paper provides descriptions and performance characteristics for the NDR and CIS concepts, summarizes NASA's First Lunar Outpost and Mars mission scenarios, and describes characteristics for representative cargo and piloted vehicles compatible with a

Development and validation of a quasi-dimensional combustion model for SI engines fuelled by HCNG with variable hydrogen fractions

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ma, Fanhua; Wang, Yu; Wang, Mingyue; Liu, Haiquan; Wang, Junjun; Ding, Shangfen; Zhao, Shuli [State Key Laboratory of Automobile Safety and Energy, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084 (China)

2008-09-15

Spark ignition engines fuelled by hydrogen enriched compressed natural gas (HCNG) have many advantages compared to traditional gasoline, diesel and natural gas engines, especially in emission control. Experimental researches have been continuously conducted to improve HCNG engine's configuration and control strategy aimed at making full use of this new fuel. With the same target, this work presents a predictive model used to simulate the working cycle of HCNG engines which is applicable for variable hydrogen blending ratios. The fundamentals of the thermodynamic model, the turbulent flame propagation model and related equation were introduced. Considering that the most important factor influencing the applicability of the model for variable hydrogen blending ratio is the laminar flame speed, the methods of how to deal with the laminar burning velocity in the model were then described in some more detail. After the determination of model constants by calibration, simulation results were compared with experimental cylinder pressure data for various hydrogen blending ratios, spark timings and equivalence ratios. The results show that simulation and experimental results match quite well except for extremely fuel lean conditions where problems of incomplete combustion become severe. (author)

Effectiveness of oxygen enriched hydrogen-HHO gas addition on DI diesel engine performance, emission and combustion characteristics

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Premkartikkumar S.R.

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Nowadays, more researches focus on protecting the environment. Present investigation concern with the effectiveness of Oxygen Enriched hydrogen- HHO gas addition on performance, emission and combustion characteristics of a DI diesel engine. Here the Oxygen Enriched hydrogen-HHO gas was produced by the process of water electrolysis. When potential difference is applied across the anode and cathode electrodes of the electrolyzer, water is transmuted into Oxygen Enriched hydrogen-HHO gas. The produced gas was aspirated into the cylinder along with intake air at the flow rates of 1 lpm and 3.3 lpm. The results show that when Oxygen Enriched hydrogen-HHO gas was inducted, the brake thermal efficiency of the engine increased by 11.06%, Carbon monoxide decreased by 15.38%, Unburned hydrocarbon decreased by 18.18%, Carbon dioxide increased by 6.06%, however, the NOX emission increased by 11.19%.

Effect of hydrogen on ethanol-biodiesel blend on performance and emission characteristics of a direct injection diesel engine.

Science.gov (United States)

Parthasarathy, M; Isaac JoshuaRamesh Lalvani, J; Dhinesh, B; Annamalai, K

2016-12-01

Environment issue is a principle driving force which has led to a considerable effort to develop and introduce alternative fuels for transportation. India has large potential for production of biofuels like biodiesel from vegetable seeds. Use of biodiesel namely, tamanu methyl ester (TME) in unmodified diesel engines leads to low thermal Efficiency and high smoke emission. To encounter this problem hydrogen was inducted by a port fueled injection system. Hydrogen is considered to be low polluting fuel and is the most promising among alternative fuel. Its clean burning characteristic and better performance attract more interest compared to other fuels. It was more active in reducing smoke emission in biodiesel. A main drawback with hydrogen fuel is the increased NO x emission. To reduce NO x emission, TME-ethanol blends were used in various proportions. After a keen study, it was observed that ethanol can be blended with biodiesel up to 30% in unmodified diesel engine. The present work deals with the experimental study of performance and emission characteristic of the DI diesel engine using hydrogen and TME-ethanol blends. Hydrogen and TME-ethanol blend was used to improve the brake thermal efficiency and reduction in CO, NO x and smoke emissions. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Rocket science

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Upson Sandra

2011-01-01

Expanding across the Solar System will require more than a simple blast off, a range of promising new propulsion technologies are being investigated by ex- NASA shuttle astronaut Chang Diaz. He is developing an alternative to chemical rockets, called VASIMR -Variable Specific Impulse Magnetoplasm Rocket. In 2012 Ad Astra plans to test a prototype, using solar power rather than nuclear, on the International Space Station. Development of this rocket for human space travel is discussed. The nuclear reactor's heat would be converted into electricity in an electric rocket such as VASIMR, and at the peak of nuclear rocket research thrust levels of almost one million newtons were reached.

Air-Powered Rockets.

Science.gov (United States)

Rodriguez, Charley; Raynovic, Jim

This document describes methods for designing and building two types of rockets--rockets from paper and rockets from bottles. Devices used for measuring the heights that the rockets obtain are also discussed. (KHR)

Thrust Vector Control of an Upper-Stage Rocket with Multiple Propellant Slosh Modes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jaime Rubio Hervas

2012-01-01

Full Text Available The thrust vector control problem for an upper-stage rocket with propellant slosh dynamics is considered. The control inputs are defined by the gimbal deflection angle of a main engine and a pitching moment about the center of mass of the spacecraft. The rocket acceleration due to the main engine thrust is assumed to be large enough so that surface tension forces do not significantly affect the propellant motion during main engine burns. A multi-mass-spring model of the sloshing fuel is introduced to represent the prominent sloshing modes. A nonlinear feedback controller is designed to control the translational velocity vector and the attitude of the spacecraft, while suppressing the sloshing modes. The effectiveness of the controller is illustrated through a simulation example.

The impact of hydrogen-bearing gas to change indexes of car engine in operating conditions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Korpach A.

2016-08-01

Full Text Available Due to lower oil and petroleum products there is a constant problem of the growing use of alternative fuels. One of the most promising is hydrogen, but its use as a self-fuel is rather difficult, but using as the form of supplements has prospects for widespread use in road transport. In order to establish the effectiveness of its use as a hydrogen-containing gas as a product of the electrolysis of the alkaline solution, a series of tests conducted. Tests were carried out on the car ZAZ–1102 "Tavria", which is equipped with an engine MeMZ–245 with carburetor feed system and electrolyser SuperKit 10, which is powered by the vehicle electrical system. At the same time also used electrolytic League–02. The effect on fuel economy additives hydrogen-containing gas to the air charge is determined when the engine is idling. When using additives 1,34 % interest, from the weight of the fuel, fuel efficiency has increased by 1,9 %.

The Space Launch System -The Biggest, Most Capable Rocket Ever Built, for Entirely New Human Exploration Missions Beyond Earth's Orbit

Science.gov (United States)

Shivers, C. Herb

2012-01-01

NASA is developing the Space Launch System -- an advanced heavy-lift launch vehicle that will provide an entirely new capability for human exploration beyond Earth's orbit. The Space Launch System will provide a safe, affordable and sustainable means of reaching beyond our current limits and opening up new discoveries from the unique vantage point of space. The first developmental flight, or mission, is targeted for the end of 2017. The Space Launch System, or SLS, will be designed to carry the Orion Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle, as well as important cargo, equipment and science experiments to Earth's orbit and destinations beyond. Additionally, the SLS will serve as a backup for commercial and international partner transportation services to the International Space Station. The SLS rocket will incorporate technological investments from the Space Shuttle Program and the Constellation Program in order to take advantage of proven hardware and cutting-edge tooling and manufacturing technology that will significantly reduce development and operations costs. The rocket will use a liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen propulsion system, which will include the RS-25D/E from the Space Shuttle Program for the core stage and the J-2X engine for the upper stage. SLS will also use solid rocket boosters for the initial development flights, while follow-on boosters will be competed based on performance requirements and affordability considerations.

Modeling and simulation of graphene/palladium catalyst reformer for hydrogen generation from waste of IC engine

Science.gov (United States)

Rahman, A.; Aung, K. M.

2018-01-01

A small amount of hydrogen made by on-board reformer is added to the normal intake air and gasoline mixture in the vehicle’s engine could improves overall combustion quality by allowing nearly twice as much air for a given amount of fuel introduced into the combustion chamber. This can be justified based on the calorific value of Hydrogen (H2) 141.9 MJ/kg while the gasoline (C6.4H11.8) is 47MJ/kg. Different weight % of Pd and GO uses for the reformer model and has conducted simulation by COMSOL software. The best result found for the composition of catalyst (palladium 30% and graphene 70%). The study shows that reformer yield hydrogen 23% for the exhaust temperature of 600-900°C and 20% for 80-90°C. Pumping hydrogen may boost the fuel atomization and vaporization at engine idle condition, which could enhances the fuel combustion efficiency. Thus, this innovative technology would be able to save fuel about 12% and reduce the emission about 35%.

The production of hydrogen through the uncatalyzed partial oxidation of methane in an internal combustion engine

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Karim, Ghazi A.; Wierzba, I. [Department of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, Schulich School of Engineering, University of Calgary, Calgary (Canada)

2008-04-15

The thermodynamic and kinetic limitations of the uncatalyzed partial oxidation of methane for the production of synthesis gas, which is made up of mostly hydrogen and carbon monoxide in a variety of proportions, are reviewed. It is suggested that such processes can be made to proceed successfully in a conventional internal combustion engine when operated on excessively rich mixtures of methane and oxygenated air. This is achieved while simultaneously producing power and regenerative exhaust gas heating. Experimental results are described that show a dual fuel engine of the compression ignition type with pilot liquid fuel injection can be operated on excessively rich mixtures of methane and air supplemented with oxygen gas to produce hydrogen rich gas with high methane conversion rates. Similarly, a spark ignition engine was reported to be equally capable of such production and performance. It is shown that there are viable prospects for the simultaneous production of synthesis gas in engines with efficient useful mechanical power and exhaust gas regenerative heating. (author)

X-ray Radiography Measurements of Shear Coaxial Rocket Injectors

Science.gov (United States)

2013-05-07

Shear coaxial jets can be found in a number of combustion devices – Turbofan engine exhaust , air blast furnaces, and liquid rocket engines ...water and gaseous nitro-gen as propellant simulants at atmospheric backpressure , the effect of momentum flux ratio and mass flux ratio, are...the effect of momentum flux ratio, mass flux ratio and post thickness on the liquid mass distribution – Use quantitative centerline profiles to

Status on Technology Development of Optic Fiber-Coupled Laser Ignition System for Rocket Engine Applications

Science.gov (United States)

Trinh, Huu P.; Early, Jim; Osborne, Robin; Thomas, Matthew; Bossard, John

2003-01-01

To pursue technology developments for future launch vehicles, NASA/Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) is examining vortex chamber concepts for liquid rocket engine applications. Past studies indicated that the vortex chamber schemes potentially have a number of advantages over conventional chamber methods. Due to the nature of the vortex flow, relatively cooler propellant streams tend to flow along the chamber wall. Hence, the thruster chamber can be operated without the need of any cooling techniques. This vortex flow also creates strong turbulence, which promotes the propellant mixing process. Consequently, the subject chamber concept: not only offer system simplicity, but also enhance the combustion performance. Test results have shown that chamber performance is markedly high even at a low chamber length-to-diameter ratio. This incentive can be translated to a convenience in the thrust chamber packaging.

Integrated System Health Management: Pilot Operational Implementation in a Rocket Engine Test Stand

Science.gov (United States)

Figueroa, Fernando; Schmalzel, John L.; Morris, Jonathan A.; Turowski, Mark P.; Franzl, Richard

2010-01-01

This paper describes a credible implementation of integrated system health management (ISHM) capability, as a pilot operational system. Important core elements that make possible fielding and evolution of ISHM capability have been validated in a rocket engine test stand, encompassing all phases of operation: stand-by, pre-test, test, and post-test. The core elements include an architecture (hardware/software) for ISHM, gateways for streaming real-time data from the data acquisition system into the ISHM system, automated configuration management employing transducer electronic data sheets (TEDS?s) adhering to the IEEE 1451.4 Standard for Smart Sensors and Actuators, broadcasting and capture of sensor measurements and health information adhering to the IEEE 1451.1 Standard for Smart Sensors and Actuators, user interfaces for management of redlines/bluelines, and establishment of a health assessment database system (HADS) and browser for extensive post-test analysis. The ISHM system was installed in the Test Control Room, where test operators were exposed to the capability. All functionalities of the pilot implementation were validated during testing and in post-test data streaming through the ISHM system. The implementation enabled significant improvements in awareness about the status of the test stand, and events and their causes/consequences. The architecture and software elements embody a systems engineering, knowledge-based approach; in conjunction with object-oriented environments. These qualities are permitting systematic augmentation of the capability and scaling to encompass other subsystems.

Verification on spray simulation of a pintle injector for liquid rocket engine

Science.gov (United States)

Son, Min; Yu, Kijeong; Radhakrishnan, Kanmaniraja; Shin, Bongchul; Koo, Jaye

2016-02-01

The pintle injector used for a liquid rocket engine is a newly re-attracted injection system famous for its wide throttle ability with high efficiency. The pintle injector has many variations with complex inner structures due to its moving parts. In order to study the rotating flow near the injector tip, which was observed from the cold flow experiment using water and air, a numerical simulation was adopted and a verification of the numerical model was later conducted. For the verification process, three types of experimental data including velocity distributions of gas flows, spray angles and liquid distribution were all compared using simulated results. The numerical simulation was performed using a commercial simulation program with the Eulerian multiphase model and axisymmetric two dimensional grids. The maximum and minimum velocities of gas were within the acceptable range of agreement, however, the spray angles experienced up to 25% error when the momentum ratios were increased. The spray density distributions were quantitatively measured and had good agreement. As a result of this study, it was concluded that the simulation method was properly constructed to study specific flow characteristics of the pintle injector despite having the limitations of two dimensional and coarse grids.

Performance and emission comparison of a supercharged dual-fuel engine fueled by producer gases with varying hydrogen content

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mohon Roy, Murari [Rajshahi University of Engineering and Technology (JSPS Research Fellow, Okayama University), Tsushima-Naka 3, Okayama 700-8530 (Japan); Department of Mechanical Engineering, Okayama University, Tsushima-Naka 3, Okayama 700-8530 (Japan); Tomita, Eiji; Kawahara, Nobuyuki; Harada, Yuji [Department of Mechanical Engineering, Okayama University, Tsushima-Naka 3, Okayama 700-8530 (Japan); Sakane, Atsushi (Mitsui Engineering and Shipbuilding Co. Ltd., 6-4 Tsukiji 5-chome, Chuo-ku, Tokyo)

2009-09-15

This study investigated the effect of hydrogen content in producer gas on the performance and exhaust emissions of a supercharged producer gas-diesel dual-fuel engine. Two types of producer gases were used in this study, one with low hydrogen content (H{sub 2} = 13.7%) and the other with high hydrogen content (H{sub 2} = 20%). The engine was tested for use as a co-generation engine, so power output while maintaining a reasonable thermal efficiency was important. Experiments were carried out at a constant injection pressure and injection quantity for different fuel-air equivalence ratios and at various injection timings. The experimental strategy was to optimize the injection timing to maximize engine power at different fuel-air equivalence ratios without knocking and within the limit of the maximum cylinder pressure. Two-stage combustion was obtained; this is an indicator of maximum power output conditions and a precursor of knocking combustion. Better combustion, engine performance, and exhaust emissions (except NO{sub x}) were obtained with the high H{sub 2}-content producer gas than with the low H{sub 2}-content producer gas, especially under leaner conditions. Moreover, a broader window of fuel-air equivalence ratio was found with highest thermal efficiencies for the high H{sub 2}-content producer gas. (author)

Multi-Stage Hybrid Rocket Conceptual Design for Micro-Satellites Launch using Genetic Algorithm

Science.gov (United States)

Kitagawa, Yosuke; Kitagawa, Koki; Nakamiya, Masaki; Kanazaki, Masahiro; Shimada, Toru

The multi-objective genetic algorithm (MOGA) is applied to the multi-disciplinary conceptual design problem for a three-stage launch vehicle (LV) with a hybrid rocket engine (HRE). MOGA is an optimization tool used for multi-objective problems. The parallel coordinate plot (PCP), which is a data mining method, is employed in the post-process in MOGA for design knowledge discovery. A rocket that can deliver observing micro-satellites to the sun-synchronous orbit (SSO) is designed. It consists of an oxidizer tank containing liquid oxidizer, a combustion chamber containing solid fuel, a pressurizing tank and a nozzle. The objective functions considered in this study are to minimize the total mass of the rocket and to maximize the ratio of the payload mass to the total mass. To calculate the thrust and the engine size, the regression rate is estimated based on an empirical model for a paraffin (FT-0070) propellant. Several non-dominated solutions are obtained using MOGA, and design knowledge is discovered for the present hybrid rocket design problem using a PCP analysis. As a result, substantial knowledge on the design of an LV with an HRE is obtained for use in space transportation.