Vortex-Fired Liquid-Fuel Rocket Combustion Chambers
TBMG-6941
09/01/2000
- Content
Liquid-fuel rocket engines that utilize vortex flow fields to keep combustion-chamber walls cool have been investigated in computational simulations and experiments. In an engine of this type, the vortex flow establishes radial gradients of pressure and density that cause the lower-density hot combustion products to be confined near the central axis of the combustion chamber while cold gases yet to be burned are centrifuged to the combustion-chamber wall. Keeping combustion-chamber walls cool in this manner reduces or eliminates damage by heat and oxidation, thereby (1) eliminating the need for leak-prone cooling passages, (2) extending the operational lifetimes of combustion chambers, and (3) creating an opportunity to fabricate combustion-chamber walls more easily, using relatively inexpensive materials (possibly even lightweight composite materials) instead of expensive alloys.
- Citation
- "Vortex-Fired Liquid-Fuel Rocket Combustion Chambers," Mobility Engineering, September 1, 2000.