Publication de 6 numéros par an
ISSN Imprimer: 2150-766X
ISSN En ligne: 2150-7678
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COMBUSTION OF GELLED RP-1 PROPELLANT WITH ALEX® PARTICLES IN GASEOUS OXYGEN ATOMIZED SPRAYS
RÉSUMÉ
Combustion tests of gaseous oxygen atomized sprays of gelled RP-1 propellant with ultra-fine aluminum powder (Alex® powder) were performed in a rocket engine. The addition of aluminum particles to gelled RP-1 propellant has the potential to significantly increase the heat of reaction over RP-1 alone due to the high volumetric energy release of the aluminum. Previous studies of gelled RP-1 propellant with aluminum have yielded low combustion efficiencies. This may have been the result of incomplete combustion due to the aluminum particles being too large. Alex® particles with an average size of 100 nm are formed by exploding aluminum wires. The use of these nano-sized particles can, theoretically, lead to more complete combustion, and thus, lead to performance increases such as higher flame temperature, increased specific impulse, and greater c* combustion efficiency. The gel propellants were introduced through a coaxial injector and gaseous oxygen was used to atomize the gel. The engine operating conditions were as follows: chamber pressures ranging from 1−2.8 MPa (150−400 psia), gel propellant mass flow rates ranging from 8−40 g/s, gaseous oxygen mass flow rates ranging from 14−27 g/s, and O/F ratios ranging from 0.5−3.1. The percentage of Alex® particles in the gelled RP-1 propellant ranged from 0−55% by weight. The c* combustion efficiency was found to range from 70−99%. Test results indicate that the addition of Alex® particles to gelled RP-1 propellant increases not only the density specific impulse, but also the c* combustion efficiency over gelled non-aluminized RP-1 propellant. Results show that among the three formulations, the 5-wt% Alex gel appears to be the best in terms of range of c* efficiencies and the least data scatter.
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Pan Lun, E Xiu‐Tian‐Feng, Cao Jinwen, Xue Kang, Design and Synthesis of Nanofluid Fuels, in High‐Energy‐Density Fuels for Advanced Propulsion, 2020. Crossref
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Xue Kang, Cao Jinwen, Pan Lun, Zhang Xiangwen, Zou Ji-Jun, Review on design, preparation and performance characterization of gelled fuels for advanced propulsion, Frontiers of Chemical Science and Engineering, 16, 6, 2022. Crossref