Trw Limited

Other

Northrop Grumman Systems Corporation

Space Exploration Technologies Corp.

Thomas J Mueller

William D Kruse

John J Weede

Gordon A Dressler

Scott J Rotenberger

Eddie W Campbell

Melvin L Chazen

A bi-propellant rocket engine may include a primary propellant flowing in a central passageway, a secondary propellant flowing in a secondary passageway generally coaxial with central passageway and a pintle tip having a central chamber sidewall coaxial with the primary passageway and surrounding a central chamber, the central chamber sidewall having a first plurality of apertures there through so that some of the primary propellant exits the central chamber transverse to the flow of the secondary propellant in the secondary passageway. The pintle tip may have a secondary chamber sidewall, substantially thicker than the primary chamber sidewall, surrounding a secondary chamber downstream of and in fluid communication with the primary chamber, the secondary chamber sidewall having a second plurality of apertures there through so that some of the primary propellant exits the secondary chamber transverse to the flow of the secondary propellant in the secondary passageway. The pintle tip may have an end wall generally traverse to the flow of the primary propellant in the central passageway and adjacent the secondary chamber sidewall so that the flow of primary propellant through the secondary chamber sidewall cools a downstream face of the end wall during combustion of the mixed propellants adjacent the downstream face of the end wall. The pintle tip may be used for mixing a first liquid with a second liquid.

Pintle injector tip with active cooling

A method is provided for using high concentrations of hydrogen peroxide to drive a turbine ( &prime;) in a turbopump fed rocket engine ( &prime;). The method includes the steps of: (a) receiving fuel into a fuel rich pre-burner ( ); (b) receiving high concentrations of hydrogen peroxide into the pre-burner ( ); (c) converting the fuel and hydrogen peroxide into a fuel rich gas; and (d) passing the fuel rich gas through a turbine ( &prime;), thereby using high concentrations of hydrogen peroxide to drive the turbine. Thus, by utilizing a fuel rich pre-burner ( ) that operates at a very low mixture ratio, the drive gas for a turbine ( &prime;) can be maintained at moderate temperature levels.

Pre-burner for low temperature turbine applications

The present invention provides a rocket engine ( ) that is self-compensating on nozzle thrust coefficient for varying ambient backpressures. The rocket engine ( ) includes a combustion chamber ( ) having an injector end ( ) and a nozzle end ( ). A propellant injector ( ) is in fluid communication between a propellant line and an inside periphery of the combustion chamber injector end ( ). A nozzle throat ( ) is formed at the nozzle end ( ) of the combustion chamber ( ). A nozzle exit cone ( ) extends outwardly from the nozzle throat ( ). A plug support ( ) is coupled between a nozzle plug ( ) and the propellant injector ( ). The nozzle plug ( ) aerodynamically self-compensates for changes in ambient backpressure at the nozzle exit cone ( ) such that the nozzle thrust coefficient is maximized for any ambient backpressure.

Pintle injector rocket with expansion-deflection nozzle

The hopper tee provides increased material flow rates and includes a first hollow pipe section having an upper end and an opposite lower end, the upper end including an inlet opening for connecting to a discharge opening of a hopper for receiving material contained in the hopper therethrough, and an interior cylindrical side wall forming an internal passage connecting the inlet opening to the lower end for flow of the material thereto. The hopper tee includes a second hollow pipe section having a first open end, an opposite second open end, an intermediate portion therebetween, and an interior cylindrical side wall forming an internal passage connecting the first and second open ends providing a flow path for a flow of air therethrough, the lower end of the first hollow pipe section being connected to the intermediate portion of the second hollow pipe section forming a material inlet port connecting the internal passage of the first hollow pipe section to the internal passage of the second hollow pipe section for flow of the material into the flow path. The hopper tee further includes an element or flow director disposed in the internal passage of the second hollow pipe section having a surface protruding from the cylindrical side wall thereof into the flow path and oriented at an acute angle with respect to a cylinder axis of the side wall, for directing a portion of the flow of air adjacent to the material inlet port away from the port at an increased velocity for inducing the flow of the material through the port into the flow path.

Hopper tee and integral discharge valve

A method is provided for using high concentrations of hydrogen peroxide to drive a turbine ( ) in a turbopump fed rocket engine ( ). The method includes the steps of: (a) receiving fuel into a fuel rich pre-burner ( ); (b) receiving high concentrations of hydrogen peroxide into the pre-burner ( ); (c) converting the fuel and hydrogen peroxide into a fuel rich gas; and (d) passing the fuel rich gas through a turbine ( ), thereby using high concentrations of hydrogen peroxide to drive the turbine. Thus, by utilizing a fuel rich pre-burner ( ) that operates at a very low mixture ratio, the drive gas for a turbine ( ) can be maintained at moderate temperature levels.

Pre-burner operating method for rocket turbopump

A high temperature thrust chamber for spacecraft (20) is provided herein. The high temperature thrust chamber comprises a hollow body member (12) having an outer surface and an internal surface (16) defining the high temperature chamber (10). The body member (12) is made substantially of rhenium. An alloy (18) consisting of iridium and at least alloying metal selected of the group consisting of rhodium, platinum and palladium is deposited on at least a portion of the internal surface (16) of the body member (12). The iridium and the alloying metal are electrodeposited onto the body member (12). A HIP cycle is performed upon the body member (12) to cause the coating of iridium and the alloying metal to form the alloy (18) which protects the body member (12) from oxidation.

High temperature thrust chamber for spacecraft

An improved IR detector system is described which uses a plurality of IR detection modules coupled to a central computer to determine the location of an intrusion to the system. Each IR detection module has a plurality of optically isolated lens and detector pairs arranged in an arcuate array coupled to a local microprocessor chip which is unique to that module such that each lens and detector pair produces a response to a sensed intrusion along a particular radial of the array's arc to allow the local microprocessor to produce a coded signal to the central computer which corresponds to the direction of the sensed intrusion. Using a triangulation algorithm, the central computer combines the coded signals from whichever of the plurality of IR detection modules are active to compute the location of the intrusion.

Growing community of inventors

Long Beach, CA, United States of America

Thomas J Mueller