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Aerospace Engineering Commons

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Full-Text Articles in Aerospace Engineering

Propagation Of Detonation Waves In Tubes Split From A Pde Thrust Tube, August J. Rolling, Paul I. King, Fred R. Schauer Jul 2002

Propagation Of Detonation Waves In Tubes Split From A Pde Thrust Tube, August J. Rolling, Paul I. King, Fred R. Schauer

Faculty Publications

A Pulse Detonation Engine (PDE) combusts a fuel air mixture through detonation. Existing designs require spark plugs in each separate thrust tube to ignite premixed reactants. A single thrust tube could require the spark plug to fire hundreds of times per second for long durations. This paper reports on the use of a continuously propagating detonation wave as both a thrust producer and a single ignition source for a multi-tube system. The goal was to minimize ignition complexity and increase reliability by limiting the number of ignition sources. The work includes a systematic investigation of single tube geometric effects on …


Design Study Of Triggered Isomer Heat Exchanger-Combustion Hybrid Jet Engine For High Altitude Flight, Christopher E. Hamilton Mar 2002

Design Study Of Triggered Isomer Heat Exchanger-Combustion Hybrid Jet Engine For High Altitude Flight, Christopher E. Hamilton

Theses and Dissertations

This study investigated the possibility of utilizing a Triggered Isomer Heat Exchanger (TIHE) within a conventional jet engine in order to increase the endurance of a High Altitude Long Endurance (HALE) Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR) aircraft. Optimizations of the conventional and TIHE engines along with selection of a switchover flight condition, where the aircraft switches from combustion to TIHE operations, were made utilizing engine design and mission analysis software. Radiation shield weights were determined utilizing point source gamma ray shielding methods. The jet engine best suited for the hybrid use, where both combustion and TIHE components located in a …


Alternative Pulse Detonation Engine Ignition System Investigation Through Detonation Splitting, August J. Rolling Mar 2002

Alternative Pulse Detonation Engine Ignition System Investigation Through Detonation Splitting, August J. Rolling

Theses and Dissertations

A Pulse Detonation Engine (PDE) combusts fuel air mixtures through a form of combustion: detonation. Recent PDE research has focused on designing working subsystems. This investigation continued this trend by examining ignition system alternatives. Existing designs required spark plugs in each separate thrust tube to ignite premixed reactants. A single thrust tube could require the spark plug to fire hundreds of times per second for long durations. The goal was to minimize hardware and increase reliability by limiting the number of ignition sources. This research used a continuously propagating detonation wave as both a thrust mechanism and an ignition system …