PREDICTION OF THE HEAT TRANSFER COEFFICIENTS ON SOLID SURFACES EXPOSED TO A ROCKET EXHAUST PLUME

IN THE PATH OF A ROCKET MOTOR EXHAUST, VARIOUS SOLID SURFACES SUCH AS THE ROCKET NOZZLE, JET VANES, AND TURBINE BLADES ARE SUBJECTED TO VERY HIGH TEMPERATURES AND LARGE HEAT FLUXES. OFTEN SERIOUS EROSION OF THESE SURFACES OCCURS WITHIN A FEW SECONDS. THE FLOW IN THE EXHAUST PLUME IS NOT ONLY SUPERSONIC AND VERY HOT BUT USUALLY CONTAINS ALUMINUM PARTICLES, WHICH CHANGE THE PROPERTIES OF THE PLUME GAS AND CAUSE INTENSE THERMAL RADIATION. METHODS ARE REQUIRED FOR A RELIABLE PREDICTION OF THE HEAT TRANSFER COEFFICIENT ON SURFACES EXPOSED TO THE ROCKET EXHAUST. THE OBJECTIVE OF THE PRESENT PROPOSAL IS TO DEVELOP A COMPUTATIONAL METHOD FOR OBTAINING THE LOCAL AND OVERALL HEAT TRANSFER COEFFICIENTS ON THE SOLID SURFACES IN THE EXHAUST PLUME. THE PROJECT TEAM AT INNOVATIVE RESEARCH, INC. WILL USE ITS GENERAL EXPERTISE IN THE AREA OF COMPUTATION OF FLUID FLOW, HEAT TRANSFER, AND THERMAL RADIATION. IN PHASE I, WE SHALL DEMONSTRATE THE APPROACH ON A TWO-DIMENSIONAL SITUATION. PHASE II WILL BE DEVOTED TO THE MORE COMPLETE, THREE-DIMENSIONAL MODEL AND AN EXTENSIVE STUDY OF THE PROBLEM.