Development of a Low-Cost Vortex-Cooled Thrust Chamber Using Hybrid Fabrication Techniques

摘要

Through an internally-funded effort, Orbital Technologies Corporation (ORBITEC) has developed a reaction control thruster that demonstrates a new approach to rocket propulsion hardware implementation. This new method has the potential to significantly reduce the cost and complexity of designing and fabricating aerospace combustion devices. The key features of the thruster, designated the MAELSTROM-G25, are the use of ORBITEC's patented vortex-cooled combustion chamber in conjunction with a new manufacturing approach called hybrid fabrication. These two innovations provide avenues to reduced cost through enhanced design flexibility, increased freedom in material selection, minimized heat loads on the thrust chamber assembly, and shortened design-build cycles.