Air-Hydrogen Heat Exchangers for Advanced Space Launchers

Autor: Nicolas Heintz, James J. Murray, Philippe Ngendakumana, Patrick Hendrick, Francisco F. Romera, Didier Bizzarri
Rok vydání: 2009
Předmět:
Zdroj: Journal of Propulsion and Power. 25:1211-1219
ISSN: 1533-3876
0748-4658
DOI: 10.2514/1.41780
Popis: This paper deals with air-hydrogen heat exchangers intended to provide in-flight oxygen collection capability to a reusable or semireusable two-stages-to-orbit launcher with an oxygen collection phase in supersonic cruise at Mach 2.5. It aims to present a theoretical but mainly technological and experimental feasibility study of heat exchangers sufficiently efficient and reliable to suit the extreme requirements of this application. Two precoolers of two different types (shell and tubes, and plate and fins) have been selected and designed with the objective of fulfilling all constraints of the concept in terms of performance, leak tightness, reliability, compactness, etc. This design process has been validated with four subscaled breadboards (two of each type) tested on two test benches (for performance and leak tightness), developed by Belgium and Spain, in on-design and off-design conditions. All these results highlight the suitability of the new technologies given the extreme requirements of the concept. An optimum design for each technology is recommended considering its proper advantages and disadvantages. An innovative precooler technology is presented and tested. © 2009 by Patrick Hendrick.
Databáze: OpenAIRE
Popis
Abstrakt:This paper deals with air-hydrogen heat exchangers intended to provide in-flight oxygen collection capability to a reusable or semireusable two-stages-to-orbit launcher with an oxygen collection phase in supersonic cruise at Mach 2.5. It aims to present a theoretical but mainly technological and experimental feasibility study of heat exchangers sufficiently efficient and reliable to suit the extreme requirements of this application. Two precoolers of two different types (shell and tubes, and plate and fins) have been selected and designed with the objective of fulfilling all constraints of the concept in terms of performance, leak tightness, reliability, compactness, etc. This design process has been validated with four subscaled breadboards (two of each type) tested on two test benches (for performance and leak tightness), developed by Belgium and Spain, in on-design and off-design conditions. All these results highlight the suitability of the new technologies given the extreme requirements of the concept. An optimum design for each technology is recommended considering its proper advantages and disadvantages. An innovative precooler technology is presented and tested. © 2009 by Patrick Hendrick.
ISSN:15333876
07484658
DOI:10.2514/1.41780