Hypersonic flight with hydrocarbon-fueled airbreathing propulsion requires sharp leading edges. This generates high temperatures at the leading edge surface, which cannot be sustained by most materials. By integrating a planar heat pipe into the structure of the leading edge, the heat can be conducted to large flat surfaces from which it can be radiated out to the environment, significantly reducing the temperatures at the leading edge and making metals feasible materials. This paper describes a method by which the leading edge thermal boundary conditions can be ascertained from standard hypersonic correlations, and then uses these boundary conditions along with a set of analytical approximations to predict the behavior of a planar leading edge heat pipe. The analytical predictions of the thermostructural performance are verified by finite element calculations. Given the results of the analysis, possible heat pipe fluid systems are assessed, and their applicability to the relevant conditions determined. The results indicate that the niobium alloy Cb-752, with lithium as the working fluid, is a feasible combination for Mach 6–8 flight with a 3 mm leading edge radius.

The intense heat flux incident upon the leading edges of hypersonic vehicles traveling through the low earth atmosphere at speeds of Mach 5 and above requires creative thermal management strategies to prevent damage to leading edge components. Conventional thermal protection systems (TPSs) include the ablative coatings of NASA's Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo vehicles and the reusable reinforced carbon-carbon (RCC) system of the Space Shuttle Orbiter. The ablative approach absorbs heat by endothermic transformation (phase and/or chemical change to the polymeric coating). The heat is dissipated from the vehicle as the single-use coating eventually vaporizes. The RCC approach manages the intense heat by operating at high temperatures and radiating heat to its surroundings. The effectiveness of both approaches is predicated on keeping the heat flux that impinges upon the susceptible aluminum airframe below a critical level.ii ________________________________________________________________________ This dissertation has explored an alternative metallic TPS concept which seeks to redistribute the heat from the leading edge, thereby eliminating local hot spots. It makes use of high thermal conductance heat pipes coupled to the leading edge so that the thermal load may be redistributed from a high heat flux location (at the stagnation point) to regions where it can be effectively radiated from the vehicle. The sealed system concept is based upon the evaporation of a fluid near the heat source that sets up a region of elevated vapor pressure inside the pipe. The latent heat is transported down the resulting pressure gradient by the vapor stream where it condenses at cooler regions, releasing the heat for removal.Replenishment of the condensed working fluid to the evaporator region is accomplished through the capillary pumping action of a porous wick which lines the interior surface of the pipe.A design methodology for a wedge-shaped heat pipe is presented which uses a coupled flow-wall temperature model to construct design maps which relate design parameters of the leading edge system (overall length, wall thickness, and alloy) to its operating conditions (isothermal temperature, maximum temperature, maximum thermal stress). Potential bounds on heat transport due to physical phenomena linked to the sound speed within a chamber (sonic limit), capillarity, and boiling nucleation are considered by extending models developed for tube designs to the wedge geometry. A new heat flux limit is proposed which, should it be exceeded, subjects the leading edge to thermally-induced plastic deformation of the TPS. iii ________________________________________________________________________To investigate the validity of the design approach and thermal spreading effectiveness of the proposed concept, a low temperature wedge-shaped leading edge was designed and constructed using stainless steel as the case material and water as the working fluid. Under localized tip heating, the maximum temperatures were significantly reduced compa...

Sharp leading edges on hypersonic vehicles experience very large heating loads and consequent high temperatures. One strategy for for accommodating these effects is to provide very high effectively thermal conductivity which allows heat to be transferred from the hot leading edge to large cool surfaces for radiation into space. Heat pipes integrated within metallic leading edges provide this function, as well as being easy to manufacture and highly robust compared to other material choices. This paper will examine the feasibility of metallic leading edge heat pipes for hypersonic vehicles in Mach 7 flight. Using temperatures and heat fluxes calculated elsewhere, analytic approximations of the temperature distributions and stresses in a prototypical system are analyzed. The analysis is supplemented and confirmed by finite element calculations. Feasibility of the system is assessed by simple calculations on the operational limits of heat pipes.

The intense thermal flux at the leading edges of hypersonic vehicles (traveling at Mach 5 and greater) requires creative thermal management strategies to prevent damage to leading edge components. Carbon fiber composites and/or ablative coatings have been widely utilized to mitigate the effects of the impinging heat flux. This paper focuses on an alternative, metallic leading edge heat pipe concept which combines efficient structural load support and thermal management. The passive concept is based on high thermal conductance heat pipes which redistribute the high heat flux at the leading edge stagnation point through the evaporation, vapor flow, and condensation of a working fluid to a location far from the heat source. Structural efficiency is provided by a sandwich construction using an open-cell core that also allows for vapor flow. A low temperature proof-of-concept copper–water system has been investigated by experimentation. Measuring of the axial temperature profile indicates effective spreading of thermal energy, a lowering of the maximum temperature and reduced overall thermal gradient compared to a non-heat pipe leading edge. A simple transient analytical model based on lumped thermal capacitance theory is compared with the experimental results. The low-temperature prototype shows potential for higher temperature metallic leading edges that can withstand the hypersonic thermo-mechanical environment.

The intense thermal fluxes and aero-thermomechanical loads generated at sharp leading edges of atmospheric hypersonic vehicles traveling above Mach 5 have motivated an interest in novel thermal management strategies. Here, we use a low-temperature stainless steel-water system to experimentally investigate the feasibility of metallic leading edge heat pipe concepts for thermal management in an efficient load supporting structure. The concept is based upon a two-phase, high thermal conductance “heat pipe” which redistributes the localized thermal flux created at the leading edge stagnation point over a larger surface for effective removal. Structural efficiency is achieved by configuring the system as a wedge-shaped sandwich panel with an I-cell core that simultaneously permits axial vapor and returns liquid flow. The measured axial temperature profiles resulting from a localized thermal flux applied to the tip are consistent with effective thermal spreading that lowered the peak leading edge temperature and reduced the temperature gradients when compared with an equivalent structure containing no working fluid. A simple finite element model that treated the vapor as an equivalent, high thermal conductivity material was in good agreement with these experiments. The model is then used to design a niobium alloy-lithium system that is shown to be suitable for enthalpy conditions representative of Mach 7 scramjet-powered flight. The study indicates that the surface temperature reductions of heat pipe-based leading edges may be sufficient to permit the use of nonablative, refractory metal leading edges with oxidation protection in hypersonic environments.