Study of traveling conduction wave accelerator
Abstract
The traveling conduction wave accelerator is a repetitive impulse gas accelerator designed to achieve high density, high-velocity gas flow with reduced heat transfer. Two limiting modes of operation can be distinguished for this accelerator, resulting in either pulsed or pseudo-continuous gas flows, and these are treated theoretically and their suitability for space propulsion and hypersonic wind-tunnel applications are discussed. Expected values are obtained for thrust, specific impulse, and efficiency for space propulsion applications with a pulsed gas outflow and values for stagnation pressure, stagnation enthalpy, and efficiency for operation with a pseudo-continuous gas outflow are also obtained. It is shown that the traveling conduction wave accelerator can be expected to operate as a high specific impulse-medium thrust space propulsion rocket with a significant reduction in the round trip times to the planets, compared with the round trip times expected to be achievable with other propulsion systems existing or proposed.
- Publication:
-
AIAA Journal
- Pub Date:
- January 1976
- DOI:
- 10.2514/3.61336
- Bibcode:
- 1976AIAAJ..14...85B
- Keywords:
-
- Accelerators;
- Gas Flow;
- Heat Transfer;
- Hypersonic Wind Tunnels;
- Propulsion System Performance;
- Spacecraft Propulsion;
- Traveling Waves;
- Enthalpy;
- Flow Velocity;
- Propulsive Efficiency;
- Rocket Thrust;
- Specific Impulse;
- Stagnation Pressure;
- Plasma Physics