diff --git a/reference/glossaries/propulsionglossary.md b/reference/glossaries/propulsionglossary.md index de2ef78..df9e3eb 100644 --- a/reference/glossaries/propulsionglossary.md +++ b/reference/glossaries/propulsionglossary.md @@ -2,69 +2,30 @@ {% tabs %} {% tab title="General" %} -| Term/Acronym | Definition | Links and Resources | -| :--- | :--- | :--- | -| O/ F Ratio or Mixture Ratio | Mixture Ratio is the ratio of the liquid oxidizer flow rate divided by the liquid fuel flow rate, with both flow rates being measured as mass flow rates. The best performance \(highest specific impulse\) is obtained at a specific optimum mixture ratio. | | +| Word | Definition | Assosciated Links and Resources | +| ------------------------------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | +| O/ F Ratio or Mixture Ratio | Mixture Ratio is the ratio of the liquid oxidizer flow rate divided by the liquid
fuel flow rate, with both flow rates being measured as mass flow rates. The best performance (highest specific impulse) is obtained at a
specific optimum mixture ratio. | | +| Chamber Pressure | The Chamber Pressure is the pressure in the combustion chamber of an
operating rocket propulsion system. | | +| Propellant | Propellant is the stored matter that is energized and ejected. It is commonly in the form of a Liquid
Propellant (stored in vehicle or missile tanks) or a Solid Propellant (stored
inside its combustion chamber). Rocket propellants undergo a chemical reaction
or a Combustion Process (usually at high chamber pressure and high
temperature) that transforms them into hot gaseous reaction products or Exhaust
Gases, which are then accelerated and ejected through a Supersonic Nozzle. | | +| Specific Impulse | Specific Impulse is a parameter indicating propulsion system performance. It can
be defined as the thrust of an equivalent rocket propulsion system (same chamber
pressure, same propellant, same nozzle throat to exit area ratio) that has a
propellant mass flow of unity. Higher values indicate a better system. | | +| Total Impulse | Total Impulse is the integral of thrust over the propulsion operating time. It is a
measure of the total kinetic energy of the nozzle exhaust gas as released by the
combustion of all the available propellant in the propulsion system. For constant
thrust operation it is the average thrust multiplied by the effective propulsive
operating duration or it is also the mass of the total expelled propellant multiplied
by the average specific impulse. | | +| RPA | Rocket Propulsion Analysis: Software tool that helps model out conceptual rockets | [http://www.rocket-propulsion.com/index.htm](http://www.rocket-propulsion.com/index.htm) | +| Cryogenic Propellants | Cryogenic propellants are subcooled liquids at low temperature (such as liquid
oxygen or liquid hydrogen); they are gases at ambient temperatures. | | +| Nozzle Area ratio | The Nozzle Area Ratio is the nozzle exit area divided by the nozzle throat area.
For optimum gas expansion in a nozzle the gas pressure at the nozzle exit is equal
to the local ambient atmosphere pressure. Typical values of this nozzle area ratio
are between 4 and 20 for expansion to sea-level pressure and between 40 and 200
for operation at very high altitude (space vacuum). | | +| Ablative Chamber or Nozzle Well | An Ablative Chamber or Nozzle Well absorbs heat (from the hot gases) by
having some of the heated ablative well material (e.g., reinforced organic fibers in
an organic matrix or phenolic resins) vaporized, endothermically decomposed into
gaseous species, or charred. The evaporated gas products flow out of the ablative
material and form a protective cooler gas layer at the wall’s surface. | | +| Liquid Engine (LE) | A Liquid Propellant Rocket Engine commonly has these principal components: one or two
propellant tanks, one or more thrust chambers, a feed mechanism (pumps —
driven by a turbine or displacing the propellant in the tank(s) by high pressure
inert gas), piping and control valves, and sometimes servo- valves (for starting,
stopping, throttling, or mixture ratio control). | | +| Rocket Propulsion Systems | A Rocket Engine (it uses liquid propellants) and a Rocket Motor (solid propellants) are the two most common types of Rocket Propulsion System. | | +| Components of a rocket engine | A Rocket Engine usually consists of one or more Thrust Chambers, one or
more Tanks for storing propellants, a Feed Mechanism to force the liquids into
the thrust chamber, a Power Source to provide energy to the feed mechanism,
suitable Piping and Valves to transfer the liquid propellants, a structure to
transmit the thrust force to the vehicle, and Controls to initiate and regulate the
propellant flow rates. | | +| Components of a thrust chamber | The Thrust Chamber, also often called Thruster (usually for low thrust and
repeated starts), has an Injector (where propellants are introduced and metered), a
Combustion Chamber (where liquid propellants react and burn) and a
converging-diverging Nozzle, where the hot combustion gas is accelerated and
ejected at supersonic velocities. | | +| Solid rocket propellant | Solid Rocket Propellant typically consists of an oxidizer (usually a crystalline
solid like ammonium perchlorate), an organic Fuel (such as a rubbery polymer
like polybutadiene, which also acts as the glue to hold the grain together), and
various additives to improve performance, storage, thrust-time profile,
manufacture, aging, etc. Additives include liquid Plasticizers, Explosives,
Burning Rate Catalysts, etc. | | +| burn rate | The Burning Rate is the rate of regression of the burning grain surfaces as
propellant is consumed or burnt (inches per second) in a direction normal to the
surface. Surfaces that are bonded to the case walls or to insulators, will not burn. | | +| inhibitor | Inhibitors are layers of non-burning materials that are glued to exposed grain
surfaces so that they will not burn. The propellant flow and, therefore, also the
thrust are proportional to this burning rate and the exposed burning surface. The
burning rate varies with chamber pressure and the initial ambient temperature of
the grain. | | +| internal insulator | Internal Insulators are layers on the inside of the case wall made of material
with low thermal conductivity; they protect the case from the hot combustion
gases and prevent it from reaching the temperature where the case material loses
its strength | | +| external insulator | External Insulators are applied to the outside of liquid propellant tanks or solid
propellant motor cases to protect against excessive heat transfer from hot air,
when flying through the atmosphere at high speed. | | +| Attitude control | Attitude Control (vehicle rotation) and a limited amount of Flight Velocity
Change can also be achieved by a series of small thrusters, which are located in
various locations on the vehicle. By Pulsing individual thrusters or pairs of
thrusters (repeated short duration operations) the vehicle can be rotated and
maneuvered. | | +| Erosion | In uncooled nozzles the gradual Erosion of the nozzle throat causes a small increase in nozzle cross-sectional area and thus a small decrease in chamber pressure and thrust.

| {% endtab %} -{% tab title="Cooling" %} - - -| Term/Acronym | Full Phrase | Explanation | -| :--- | :--- | :--- | -| Regenerative Cooling | | Regenerative cooling, in the context of rocket engine design, is a configuration in which some or all of the propellant is passed through tubes, channels, or in a jacket around the combustion chamber or nozzle to cool the engine. This serves two purposes: 1\) it cools the combustion chamber and 2\) it warms the fuel -- making the combustion reaction more efficient. \[1\] | -| Ablative Cooling | | With ablative cooling, combustion gas-side wall material is sacrificed by melting, vaporization and chemical changes to dissipate heat. As a result, relatively cool gases flow over the wall surface, thus lowering the boundary-layer temperature and assisting the cooling process. | -| Film Cooling | | Film cooling is used in many applications to reduce convective heat transfer to a surface. Gas which is cooler than the freestream is passed onto the external surface via small slots or rows of holes within the surface. The aim is to introduce the coolant into the boundary layer without significantly increasing turbulence and entraining additional hot freestream gas. \[[1](https://apps.dtic.mil/sti/pdfs/ADA234288.pdf)\] \[[2](http://dept.me.umn.edu/labs/tcht/measurements/what.html)\] \[[3](http://thermopedia.com/content/759/)\] | -| Water cooling | | Water cooling uses water instead of existing propellant to cool the system. \[[1](https://apps.dtic.mil/dtic/tr/fulltext/u2/486409.pdf)\] | -{% endtab %} - -{% tab title="Tanks" %} - - -| Term/Acronym | Full Phrase | Explanation | -| :--- | :--- | :--- | -| | | | -{% endtab %} - -{% tab title="Feed Systems" %} - - -| Term/Acronym | Full Phrase | Explanation | -| :--- | :--- | :--- | -| | | | -{% endtab %} - -{% tab title="Injector" %} - - -| Term/Acronym | Full Phrase | Explanation | -| :--- | :--- | :--- | -| | | | -{% endtab %} - -{% tab title="Thrust Chamber" %} - - -| Term/Acronym | Full Phrase | Explanation | -| :--- | :--- | :--- | -| | | | -{% endtab %} - -{% tab title="Solids" %} - - -| Term/Acronym | Full Phrase | Explanation | -| :--- | :--- | :--- | -| | | | -{% endtab %} - -{% tab title="Valves" %} - - -| Term/Acronym | Full Phrase | Explanation | -| :--- | :--- | :--- | -| | | | -{% endtab %} {% endtabs %}