Augmentation and Control of Burn Rates In Plasma Devices.
Abstract
The boundary layer in electrothermal chemical devices plays a major role in burn process at the plasma propellant interface. The set of experiments conducted at NC State University on JA-2 solid granular propellant showed evidence of enhanced burn rates when the plasma is injected normal to the grains, for the tested range of pressure between 55 and 90 MPa (8,000 and 12,000 psi, respectively) over 400 gs pulse length. Results showed a geometry influence on the burn rates when plasma is injected at an inclination angle to the surface of the propellant. Calculations were performed using SODIN code and compared to values obtained from optical emission spectroscopy. Core and boundary layer plasma temperatures are about 1.7 and 0.8 eV, respectively. The heat flux at the boundary layer is about 10% of that of the source, suggesting that the plasma energy deposited on the propellant is mostly absorbed in the boundary layer. The obtained value of the energy transmission factor (f approx. = 10%) suggests that radiative heating may be limited during the bum of the propellant due to limited energy transport to the surface, and that plasma kinetic pressure has a stronger effect on the bum rate than the plasma radiative heat flux.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jul 01, 1996
- Accession Number
- ADA310741
Entities
People
- Mohamed A. Bourham
Organizations
- North Carolina State University