A method for verifying the model of tank operational pressurization process during development of propellant supply system in liquid rocket engines of launch vehicle propulsion systems

Abstract

During development of propulsion systems for launch vehicles, in order to verify the design results, standalone developmental tests of propellant supply system components were run in specially designed test setups outfitted with the required instrumentation. As an example of such work, this paper describes the experience of standalone developmental testing of operational pressurization of propellant tanks. During tests in the constructed test setups, heat and mass exchange processes were tried out with simulation of design modes of operational pressurization of propellant tanks filled with oxygen and hydrogen. As a result of these tests, a rationale was provided for selection of working mediums as the pressurization gas, design and characteristics of gas injection into propellant tanks, a method for evaluating the efficiency of the pressurization process. Empirical dependences were obtained that were used as the boundary conditions in the models for practical calculations for refining the modes and evaluating the efficiency of the propellant supply subsystem of propulsion systems. The paper calls attention to the need to use for the purpose of development of the propellant supply systems that involves computer simulations the results of such earlier work when designing advanced rocket propulsion systems. Key words: propulsion system, propellant supply system, development of pressurization process, test setup, pressurization gas, propellant components, heat and mass transfer intensity, process efficiency, liquid surface sloshing, computer simulations.