Sungcho Kim

Test and Performance Evaluation of Small Liquid- monopropellant Rocket Engines

Test and evaluation have been performed for the monopropellant hydrazine (N2H4) rocket engines producing 0.95 lbf (4.2 N) of nominal steady-state thrust at an inlet pressure of 350 psi (2.41 MPa). Typical thrust and thermal behaviors under the high-altitude simulation environment are shown with a brief introduction to test configuration and procedures. Performance features which have the entire dependency on propellant inlet pressures are depicted for a set of thrusters in terms of the vacuum thrust at continuous firing mode, vacuum impulse bit at pulsed operation mode, and specific impulses at the both modes, respectively. A slight deviation of impulse-bit performance of the thrusters specific to present production program from the standard bounds of 1-lbf thruster at a low range of inlet pressures is noted from the point of view of the catalytic reaction activities, change of which can be incurred by the kinds of catalyst: the differences of catalyst production lines rather than the formulation nature composed of active metal (iridium) and catalyst carrier (aluminum oxide). In addition to the summary for statistical consideration of performance parameters as to the thrusters selected as flight model, predictions which are obtained from theoretical rocket performance calculation based upon chemical equilibrium reaction of the monopropellant-grade hydrazine of practical use, is overlaid to the test results. Equilibrium product composition at the nozzle exit is jotted down with the prominent role of ammonia dissociation fraction to the performance of hydrazine rocket engines.

PIV Measurements on the Change of the Three-Dimensional Wake Structures by an Air Spoiler of a Road Vehicle

The three-dimensional vortical structures formed in the wake behind a road vehicle were measured using a particle image velocimetry (PIV) technique and the change of the structures by the existence of an air spoiler was investigated. The measurements were carried out in severalx-y, y-z andz-x planes to obtain full three-dimensional flow fields, including an out-of-plane velocity component, obtained by interpolating the velocities in the other plane. Then, the velocity gradient tensor is evaluated to obtain the vortex core by theλ2-definition. The relationship between streamwise, longitudinal and spanwise vortices is systematically analyzed by overlapping the vortex lines and vortex cores and the whole flow topology is compared in both cases with and without an air spoiler. As a result, an air spoiler was found to weaken the C-pillar vortices producing strong wing tip vortices, which reduce downwash flow and longitudinal vortices increase in the vertical direction. The recirculation zone formed when an air spoiler is installed is higher and narrower than without a spoiler.

Temperature Analysis for Optimizing the Configuration of the Linear Cell

The market demand of display devices is drastically increasing in the information technology age. The research on OLED (Organic Light Emitting Diodes) display with the luminescence in itself is being more paid attention than LCD (Liquid Crystal display) with the light source from the back. The vapor deposition process is most essential in manufacturing OLED display. The temperature distribution of the linear cell in this process is closely related to securing the uniformity of organic materials on the substrate. This work analyzed the temperature distribution depending on the intervals between the crucible and the heating band as well as on the amount of the heat flux from the heating band. Moreover, the roles of the water jacket and the configuration of the cover within the linear cell were examined through the temperature analysis for six configurations of the linear cell. Under the above temperature analysis, the variations in the intervals and the amount of the heat flux were considered to have an effect on building the uniform temperature distribution within the crucible. It is predicted that the water jacket and the adequate configuration of the cover will prevent the blowout and clogging phenomena, respectively. The results can be used as the fundamental data for designing the optimal linear cell.

Effects of an Air Spoiler on the Wake of a Road Vehicle by PIV Measurements

A particle image velocimetry (PIV) technique has been used to analyze the flow characteristics behind a road vehicle with/without an air spoiler attached on its trunk and also to estimate its effect on the wake. A vehicle model scaled in the ratio of 1/43 is set up in the mid-section of a closed-loop water tunnel. The Reynolds number based on the vehicle length is 105. To investigate the three-dimensional structure of the recirculation zone and vortices, measurements are carried out on the planes both parallel and perpendicular to the free stream, respectively. The results show significantly different vorticity distributions in the recirculation region according to the existence of the air spoiler. The focus and the saddle point, appearing in the wake, are disposed differently along the spanwise direction. Regarding the streamwise vortices, the air spoiler produces large wing tip vortices. They have opposite rotational directions to C-pillar vortices which are commonly observed in the case that an air spoiler is absent. The wing tip vortices generate the down force and as a result, they might make the vehicle more stable in driving.

A Study on the Spray Characteristics of a Liquid-Propellant Thruster Injector by PIV/PDA Optical Measurements

Spray characteristics of an injector employed in liquid-propellant thrusters are investigated by optical measurement techniques such as Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) and Dual-mode Phase Doppler Anemometry (DPDA). The injector adopted in this experiment has 8 holes each of which has 30° cant angle from the center-axis with 16/1000 inches of hole diameter. Instantaneous plane images captured by PIV technique are examined in order to judge a pass-fail criterion of spray injection performance according to the specific pressures supplied. DPDA through which two-dimensional velocity components can be acquired is also applied in order to measure the velocity and size of spray droplets which were not obtainable from the PIV measurement. The non-dimensional parameters (e.g., Reynolds, Weber, and Ohnesorge numbers) based on the velocity data measured by DPDA are used to characterize the spray behavior in terms of the atomization and turbulence nature. Objectives of this experiment are to establish a non-intrusive evaluation technique for the injector performance and to utilize the clear understanding of spray characteristics for the design of brand-new thrust chamber as well.Copyright

Computation of a Two-dimensional Nozzle Flow with the Variation of Pressure and Length Ratios

The Navier-Stokes equations are numerically solved for a two-dimensional small nozzle with the area ratio of 1.8 between the throat and the exit. The shock structures are verified inside the nozzle and near the exit varying with the pressure ratio and the length of the diverging part, respectively. Especially the irregular patterns in the pressure distribution near the throat are analyzed based on the geometric characteristics. It is found that there are similar phenomena in the shock wave structure between the pressure ratio and the length changes. Also there exists a normal shock just between two different oblique shocks crossing each other in special cases.ࠀȀ耀Ѐ

Temperature Analysis for the Linear Cell in the Vapor Deposition Process

The OLED (Organic Light Emitting Diodes) display recently used for the information indicating device has many advantages over the LCD (Liquid Crystal Display), and its demand will be increased highly. The linear cell should be designed carefully considering the uniformity of thin film on the substrate. Its design needs to compute the temperature field analytically because the uniformity for the thin film thickness depends on the temperature distribution of the source (organic material). In the present study, the design of the linear cell will be modified or improved on the basis of the temperature profiles obtained for the simplified linear cell. The temperature distributions are numerically calculated through the STAR-CD program, and the grids are generated by means of the ICEM CFD program. As the results of the simplified linear cell, the temperature deviation was shown in the parabolic form among the both ends and the center of the source. In order to reduce the temperature deviation, the configuration of the rectangular ends of the crucible was modified to the circular type. In consequence, the uniform temperature is maintained in the range of about 90 percent length of the source. It is expected that the present methods and results on the temperature analysis can be very useful to manufacture the vapor deposition device.

Temperature Analysis for the Point-Cell Source in the Vapor Deposition Process

The information indicating device plays an important part in the information times. Recently, the classical CRT (Cathod Ray Tube) display is getting transferred to the LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) one which is a kind of the FPDs (Flat Panel Displays). The OLED (Organic Light Emitting Diodes) display of the FPDs has many advantages for the low power consumption, the luminescence in itself, the light weight, the thin thickness, the wide view angle, the fast response and so on as compared with the LCD one. The OLED has lately attracted considerable attention as the next generation device for the information indicators. And also it has already been applied for the outside panel of a mobile phone, and its demand will be gradually increased in the various fields. It is manufactured by the vapor deposition method in the vacuum state, and the uniformity of thin film on the substrate depends on the temperature distribution in the point-cell source. This paper describes the basic concepts that are obtained to design the point-cell source using the computational temperature analysis. The grids are generated using the module of AUTOHEXA in the ICEM CFD program and the temperature distributions are numerically obtained using the STAR-CD program. The temperature profiles are calculated for four cases, i.e., the charge rate for the source in the crucible, the ratio of diameter to height of the crucible, the ratio of interval to height of the heating bands, and the geometry modification for the basic crucible. As a result, the blowout phenomenon can be shown when the charge rate for the source increases. The temperature variation in the radial direction is decreased as the ratio of diameter to height is decreased and it is suggested that the thin film thickness can be uniformed. In case of using one heating band, the blowout can be shown as the higher temperature distribution in the center part of the source, and the clogging can appear in the top end of the crucible in the lower temperature. The phenomena of both the blowout and the clogging in the modified crucible with the nozzle-diffuser can be prevented because the temperature in the upper part of the crucible is higher than that of other parts and the temperature variation in the radial direction becomes small.

Computational Flow Analysis around Coaxial Rotor Blades with Various Ducts

Regarding the aircrafts with a rotor blade system, the miniaturization of them is limited due to the rotor blade length and the tail rotor system. To miniaturize an aircraft, an equipment is required that increases thrust and also shortens the length of the rotor blade. The present study will conduct the flow analysis for miniaturizing the aircraft by applying a duct to the coaxial rotor blade system without tail rotor. First, the verification on the calculated results was conducted through the computational flow analysis on the coaxial rotor blade system without a duct. Then, the flow analysis for the coaxial rotor blade systems was performed including Ka-60 duct, Single duct, Twin duct, and Double duct, respectively. From the numerical results, the thrust coefficient appeared higher with the duct than without a duct for the coaxial rotor blade system. Especially, in the case of Double duct, the thrust was improved due to the increase of incoming flow and the extension of the wake area. These results will be used as the basic concepts for miniaturizing the aircraft with the rotor blade system. The flow analysis on the coaxial rotor blade system including the fuselage remains as a future work.

An Experimental Study on the Injector-spray Behavior of a Liquid-propellant Thruster

The behavior of spray emanating from an injector to be employed in a liquid-propellant thrust chamber is investigated by optical measurement techniques. The injector has eight holes, each of which has 30 cant angle from the center-axis with the diameter of 0.406 mm. In order to examine an atomization process according to the spray-generation conditions and the evolution along spray downstream, variational features in the velocity and size of droplets obtained through Dual-mode Phase Doppler An 799emometry (DPDA) are delineated and discussed together with instantaneous plane images captured by using Nd:Yag laser sheet beam. A categorization of spray-flow regime representing the atomization and turbulent nature is made through evaluating the non-dimensional parameters, i.e., Reynolds number and Weber number based upon the theoretical injection velocity. These qualitative and quantitative data of spray breakup will be a firm basis for the design of brand-new thruster