Numerical Study on Post-Combustion Chamber Impact on Hybrid Rocket Performance

Andrija DABANOVIC, Joël MARTIN, Stefan MAY, Viola WARTEMANN

DOI Number: XXX-YYY-ZZZ

Conference number: HiSST 2024-00120

In chemical propulsion, propellant masses are generally the largest part of the overall weight. Hence,
combustion efficiency is a key aspect of the system’s performance and small improvements within the
combustion process can result in significant changes in project costs or mission longevity. To analyze
detailed chemical and physical processes, direct measurements are cost-intensive and limited to lab-
scale devices. Numerical investigations have therefore become a widely used tool to simulate the inner
flow and combustion of propulsion systems. In hybrid rocket engines, post-combustion chambers are
used to improve the mixing and combustion process. Nevertheless, these components imply additional
structural mass and engine length. This study analyzes the influence of different post-combustion
chamber lengths on the combustion efficiency. The simulations were performed in two-dimensional,
axisymmetric domains with fuel mass flow and detailed combustion modeling. The efficiency is shown
to increase linearly with increasing post-chamber length. However, it is significantly influenced by
turbulator components. With these results, the qualitative influence of post-combustion chambers is
analyzed, enabling optimization of engine design while ensuring sufficient combustion efficiency.

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Computational Fluid Dynamics, Hybrid Rocket Propulsion, Numerical Simulations, Post-combustor Design

In Categories: 1.Events, HiSST 2024, Propulsion Systems and Components

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