Sanso-methan(center dot)nenryo rich preburner no nensho tokusei. (Combustion characteristics of the LO(sub 2)/GCH(sub 4) fuel-rich preburners for staged combustion cycle rocket engines).

摘要

Studies are in progress aiming at developing a first-stage engine for a space transporting airframe that uses hydrocarbon fuel which is more advantageous than liquid hydrogen in terms of spacific impulse, cost, and handling. This paper describes a combustion test using a subscale combustor to investigate combustion characteristics of fuel-rich preburners using oxygen and methane as propellants. Three types of preburners with coaxial propellant injectors were fabricated. Using oxygen and gaseous methane at room temperature as propellants, the test was conducted at combustion pressures ranging from 6.7 Mpa to 11.9 Mpa and a mixing ratio ranged from 0.16 to 0.42. The combustion characteristics were evaluated using combustion gas temperature efficiency, (eta) T(sub C), and characteristic velocity, (eta) C(sup *). Knowledge was obtained from comparing the experimental values with the theoretical values that (eta) T(sub C) and (eta) C(sup *) are governed mainly by the mixing ratio and the combustion pressure and that these efficiencies can be arranged systematically by inducing a corrected mixing ratio that has taken the combustion pressure into consideration. 25 refs., 31 figs., 3 tabs.