Preliminary Design of a Rotating Detonation Engine for Launch Vehicle Applications

摘要

This report describes the analysis and preliminary design of a full-size rotating detonation engine (RDE) for use in high-performance space launch vehicles. Although rotating detonation engine technology is still at a very low technology readiness level, the 10-15% gains in specific impulse which are theoretically possible offer appealing prospects for a future booster design. The engine design presented in this paper is a 2 MN unit suitable for cluster use on an orbital launch vehicle. The engine uses a gas-generator cycle with a conventional constant-pressure gas generator unit and a single-spool turbopump design. Additional performance gains are realized by combining the annular combustor of the RDE with a truncated plug or "aerospike" nozzle. Although an analytical, first-principles understanding of the RDE is still beyond the current state of the art, the engine architecture and cycle balance indicates that the performance gains measured in small-scale laboratory tests can translate to higher-performance engines for orbital-class launch vehicles.