レーザー着火マイクロ固体ロケットにおける燃焼室圧力制御による性能向上

概要

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The authors have developed laser ignition micro solid rocket which is a propulsion system suitable for 10-kg-class microspacecrafts. Although the specific impulse is expected to increase by reducing the throat area, higher combustion chamber pressure with the smaller throat causes a couple of serious problems. One is throat erosion and the other is break of combustion chamber. In order to prevent these difficulties, we made three improvements in design of thruster. First, we reinforced the throat, and throat erosion did not occur. Secondly, we changed the ignition surface of the propellant. As a result, peak pressure reduced, but specific impulse also reduced. Thirdly, we made the propellant to encapsulate to constrain the combustion surface, and peak pressure reduced considerably. We designed thrusters which had smaller throat than conventional, and established the increase in specific impulse by 17%. We visualized the combustion chamber, and it was found that capsule could control the combustion surface of propellant.