Design, development, and testing of LPRE (Liquid Propellant Rocket Engine) are difficult and expensive tasks. Prior to full-scale design, it is indispensable to optimize important parameters at sub-scale. Propellants flow rates are low for a sub-scale or laboratory scale combustion chambers. It is hard to satisfy chamber cooling and chill feed lines quickly with low flow rates of propellants. This paper proposes a detailed procedure for testing of a laboratory scale semi-cryogenic combustion chamber. Many tests were conducted with a small scale adjustable length combustion chamber. The injection head of the chamber was interchangeable. Liquid-liquid pressure swirl injector and like impinging injectors were used with two different injection heads. Liquid oxygen and kerosene were used as oxidizer and fuel, respectively. Oxidizer to fuel mixing ratio was 0.29–0.45 and the total propellant mass flow rate was 0.06–0.1 kg/s. Problems were faced during testing, including, explosion in the combustion chamber, fuel injector blockage, unstable combustion, incomplete chilling and blockage of cooling water channel, etc. A detailed procedure is designed on the basis of the lessons learned which was experimentally proved.
KHAN Taj Wali
,
QAMAR Ihtzaz
. Testing Procedure for Laboratory Scale Semi Cryogenic Combustion Chamber of LPRE with Problems Faced and Lessons Learned[J]. Journal of Thermal Science, 2022
, 31(6)
: 2171
-2177
.
DOI: 10.1007/s11630-022-1617-6
[1] Humble R., Space propulsion analysis and design, 2nd ed., The McGraw-Hill Companies, 1995.
[2] Rahman S.A, Hebert B.J., Large liquid rocket testing – strategies and challenges. 41st AIAA/ASME/SAE/ASEE Joint Propulsion Conference, Tucson, Arizona, 2005, AIAA Paper 2005-3564.
[3] Han Y.M, Kim S.H., Seo S., Lee K.J, Kim J.G., Seol W.S., Development of sub-scale combustor for a liquid rocket engine using swirl injector with external mixing. Journal of the Korean Society for Aeronautics and Space Science, 2004, 32(10): 102–111.
[4] Peretz A., Einav O., Hashmonay B.A, Birnholz A., Sobe Z., Development of a laboratory-scale system for hybrid rocket motor testing. Journal of Propulsion and Power, 2011, 27(1): 190–196.
[5] Andrés F., Alejandro U.P.J., Fabio R., Design, manufacture, assembly and testing of a liquid (LOX and gasoline) rocket motor for a vehicle with stratospheric apogee in colombia: The SUA II engine, 7th European Conference for Aeronautics and Space Sciences, Milano, 2017. DOI: 10.13009/EUCASS2017-282.
[6] Phillip J., Youngblood S., Grubelich M., Saul W.V., Hargather M.J., Development and testing of a nitrous-oxide/ethanol bi-propellant rocket engine. 52nd AIAA/SAE/ASEE Joint Propulsion Conference, Salt Lake, 2016. DOI: 10.2514/6.2016-5092.
[7] Bouziane M., Bertoldi A.E.M., Milova P., Hendrick P., Lefebvre M., Performance comparison of oxidizer injectors in a 1-kN paraffin-fueled hybrid rocket motor. Aerospace Science and Technology, 2019, 89: 392–406.
[8] Chandler F.O., Design and testing of a low thrust liquid oxygen and liquid methane rocket engine. AIAA Propulsion and Energy Forum, 2019. DOI: 10.2514/6.2019-3982.
[9] Kitsche W., Operation of a cryogenic rocket engine. Springer Aerospace Technology, Berline, 2009.
[10] Qi F., Regenerative cooling for liquid rocket engines. Journal of Thermal Science, 1995, 4: 54–58.
[11] Cho W.K., Seol W.S., Son M., Seo M.K., Koo J., Development of preliminary design program for combustor of regenerative cooled liquid rocket engine. Journal of Thermal Science, 2011, 20(5): 467–473.
[12] Khan T.W., Qamar I., Experimental study of effects of type of injectors on the performance of gas generator of liquid rocket engine, IOP Conference Series: Material Science and Engineering, 2020, 715: 012080. DOI: 10.1088/1757-899X/715/1/012080.
[13] Kang Z., Yanzhong L., Mengjian X., Lei W., Investigation of the chill-down behavior and thermal stress distribution of a cryogenic tank during the filling process. Phyicss Procedia, 2015, 67: 342–347.
[14] Keefer K.A., Hartwig J., Development and validation of an analytical charge – hold – vent model for cryogenic tank chilldown. International Journal of Heat and Mass Transfer, 2016, 101: 175–189.
[15] Park S., Kim Y., Jeong E., Optimization of the startup sequence of a liquid-propellant rocket engine, 7th European Conference for Aeronautics and Space Science, Milano, 2017. DOI: 10.13009/EUCASS2017-293.
[16] Michael P., Hukla J., Yang V., Habiballah M., Liquid rocket thrust chambers, AIAA, Virginia, 2004, pp. 339–357.
