Scramjet Engines: The First Forty Years

Curran, E. T.

doi:10.2514/2.5875

Cited by 628 publications

(214 citation statements)

References 22 publications

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“…Thermal protection is one of the key issues when developing both air-breathing and rocket engines, especially in a scramjet [1][2][3]. The thermal load is extremely large due to a high combustion temperature and high flight Mach number.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Numerical heat transfer analysis of transcritical hydrocarbon fuel flow in a tube partially filled with porous media

et al. 2016

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Hydrocarbon fuel has been widely used in airbreathing scramjets and liquid rocket engines as coolant and propellant. However, possible heat transfer deterioration and threats from local high heat flux area in scramjet make heat transfer enhancement essential. In this work, 2-D steady numerical simulation was carried out to study different schemes of heat transfer enhancement based on a partially filled porous media in a tube. Both boundary and central layouts were analyzed and effects of gradient porous media were also compared. The results show that heat transfer in the transcritical area is enhanced at least 3 times with the current configuration compared to the clear tube. Besides, the proper use of gradient porous media also enhances the heat transfer compared to homogenous porous media, which could help to avoid possible overtemperature in the thermal protection.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Numerical heat transfer analysis of transcritical hydrocarbon fuel flow in a tube partially filled with porous media

et al. 2016

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“…The concept of supersonic combustion was explored in 1957 by MacKay and Weber [9], whose study became one of the theoretical cornerstones of scramjet research [7]. In the late 1950s and early 1960s, this concept had been demonstrated experimentally by Nicholls [10] Background P a g e | 6…”

Section: Scramjets: An Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The concept of supersonic ramjet combustion has been around since as early as 1946, with Roy's proposal to add heat to a supersonic stream by means of a standing wave [7,8]. The concept of supersonic combustion was explored in 1957 by MacKay and Weber [9], whose study became one of the theoretical cornerstones of scramjet research [7].…”

Section: Scramjets: An Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In the limited space available here, it is not possible to provide a complete history of the supersonic combustion ramjet (scramjet), but Curran's review of the first forty years of scramjet research [7] provides a thorough grounding for the interested reader. The following highlights were heavily informed by his work.…”

Section: Scramjets: An Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The field of scramjet research opened up considerably during this time period, with research in inlet, combustor and outlet configurations coming out of McGill University [7,12], and broad-scope theoretical studies from Johns…”

Section: Scramjets: An Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Design of asymmetric shape-transition hypersonic inlets

Jones¹

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P a g e | i AbstractScramjet engines suffer performance penalties at off-design conditions, due to the fact that the engine is designed for one particular set of flight characteristics. Thermal compression has been suggested as one way of addressing poor off-design performance.For thermal compression to occur in the combustor, the incoming airflow must be of a non-uniform pressure distribution. This paper investigates the generation of a non-uniform compression field at the combustor entrance by designing an asymmetric inlet with uneven compression ratios.A complicating factor is that scramjet engines must be carefully body-integrated onto the vehicle forebody to maximise air capture and reduce drag. Any attempt at designing an inlet suitable for thermal compression must body-integrated.One challenge in designing an asymmetric inlet is the current selection of 3D surface modelling tools available to designers. The secondary goal of this project is to improve the current surface generation method for CFD analysis by identifying a new tool to carry out the design process. Ideally, the modelling process should be rapid and user-friendly.The tools selected for this project were 3DReshaper®, Blender™ andMeshLab.This project follows through the design of an asymmetric inlet using a combination of these tools, with a view to providing a non-uniform pressure distribution at the combustor entrance. The ease and usability of the modelling method was evaluated, and found to provide no real improvement over the current method. One tool, Rhinoceros®, has been identified as having potential for future investigation, due to its mesh-to-NURBS surface conversion functionality.The inlet design was tested in an Eilmer4 CFD simulation, and was found to be successful in generating non-uniform pressure distribution at Abstract P a g e | ii the outlet (Figure i). However, an unanticipated shock effect was noted in the inlet, which reduced the effectiveness of the non-uniformity. This effect was due to a shock reflection off the cowl closure point, indicating that a greater understanding of cowl placement is necessary when designing this type of inlet.Figure i -Non-uniform pressure distribution at the inlet exit due to asymmetric inlet shape.Several avenues for future research have been identified. Foremost is an investigation into the cowl closure behaviour contributing to the unwanted shock in the inlet. In addition, testing of new modelling techniques to overcome the problems identified with Blender™ and 3DReshaper® is recommended. Creating a stronger, quicker, easier design process will enable iterative designs to be created and assist in resolving the reflected shock issue. Once this has been completed, a full system analysis can be carried out to determine whether this type of thermal compression inlet has any positive effect on scramjet engine performance.

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Numerical analysis of supersonic combustion ramjet with upstream fuel injection

Savino¹,

Pezzella²

2003

Numerical Methods in Fluids

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SUMMARYThis paper describes possible fuel injection scheme for airbreathing engines that use hydrocarbon fuels. The basic idea is to inject fuel at the spike tip of the supersonic inlet to achieve mixing and combustion e ciency with a limited length combustion chamber. A numerical code, able to solve the full NavierStokes equations in turbulent and reacting ows, is employed to obtain numerical simulations of the thermo-uidynamic ÿelds at di erent scramjet ight conditions, at Mach numbers of M = 6:5 and 8. The feasibility of the idea of the upstream injection is checked for a simple axisymmetric conÿguration and relatively small size.The results are discussed in connection with the potential beneÿts deriving from the use of new ultra high temperature ceramics (UHTC).

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Scramjet Engines: The First Forty Years

Cited by 628 publications

References 22 publications

Numerical heat transfer analysis of transcritical hydrocarbon fuel flow in a tube partially filled with porous media

Numerical heat transfer analysis of transcritical hydrocarbon fuel flow in a tube partially filled with porous media

Design of asymmetric shape-transition hypersonic inlets

Numerical analysis of supersonic combustion ramjet with upstream fuel injection

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