CRYOGENIC AND ITS APPLICATION (I N R OCKET PROPULSION )

Optimization and performance analysis

This report aims at introducing cryogenics to non-specialists. It tries to convey in a synthetic form the essential features of cryogenic engineering and to raise awareness on key design and construction issues of cryogenic devices and systems. It discusses the various applications of cryogenics with full insight on application of cryogenics in space and thermal applications. The report also provides experimental investigation and analysis of various processes involved.

Keywords: Cryogenics and its applications, design and construction

Bhoomika Mansharamani, Roll No: 1009740028 9/25/2012

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CRYOGENIC AND ITS APPLICATION (In Rocket propulsion)

Optimization and performance analysis

INTRODUCTION
What is cryogenics?

Cryogenics is defined as that branch of physics which deals with the production of very low temperatures and their effect on matter, a formulation which addresses both aspects of attaining low temperatures which do not naturally occur on Earth, and of using them for the study of nature or the human industry. In a more operational way, it is also defined as the science and technology of temperatures below 120 K. The reason for this latter definition can be understood by examining characteristic temperatures of cryogenic fluids (Table 1): the limit temperature of 120 K comprehensively includes the normal boiling points of the main atmospheric gases, as well as of methane which constitutes the principal component of natural gas. Today, liquid natural gas (LNG) represents one of the largest and fast-growing industrial domains of application of cryogenics (Figure 1), together with the liquefaction and separation of air gases. The densification by condensation and separation by distillation of gases was historically and remains today - the main driving force for the cryogenic industry, exemplified not only by liquid oxygen and nitrogen used in chemical and metallurgical processes, but also by the cryogenic liquid propellants of rocket engines and the proposed use of hydrogen as a clean energy vector in transportation. Table 1 Characteristic temperatures of cryogenic fluids [k]
Cryogen Methane Oxygen Argon Nitrogen Neon Hydrogen Helium * point Triple Point 90.7 54.4 83.8 63.1 24.6 13.8 2.2* Normal boiling Point 111.6 90.2 87.3 77.3 27.1 20.4 4.2 Critical Point 190.5 154.6 150.9 126.2 44.4 33.2 5.2

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CRYOGENIC ENGINE INTRODUCTION

The use of liquid fuel for rocket engines was considered as early as the beginning of 20 th century. The Russian K.E.Ziolkowsky, the American H.Goddard and the GermanRomanian H.Oberth worked independently on the problems of spaceflight and soon discovered that in order to succeed, rockets with high mass-flow were mandatory. Already then the combustion of liquid fuels seemed the most promising method of generating thrust. However it was not later until these pioneers made their attempts, the first big liquid powered rocket the German A-4 became reality in the mid-forties. This rocket became successful as the V-2 weapon. Liquid oxygen was used as the oxidizer and ethyl alcohol as the fuel which gave the rocket more than 300KN of thrust. It`s range was 300km. As the development of rocket engines continued, higher thrust levels were achieved when liquid oxygen and liquid hydrocarbon were used as fuel. This allowed the construction of the first intercontinental rocket with a range of more than 10,000km. Under normal atmospheric conditions, at temperature 300k and pressure 1 bar, these substances are in gaseous state. One cannot remedy the low density by increasing the pressure because the required tank structures would end being too heavy. The answer is to liquefy the fuels by cooling them down. This is why the fuels are also called cryogenic fuels. In the sixties, the steadily increasing payload weights and the corresponding demand for more thrust of the launcher lead to the use of liquid hydrogen for the Centaur upper stage. At the peak of this development was the US Space Shuttle Main Engine (SSME). In principle, cryogenic rocket engines generate thrust like all other rocket engines-by accelerating an impulse carrier to high speeds. In conventional aircraft engines the surrounding air is the main impulse carrier and fuel is the energy carrier. This is why such an engine requires the atmosphere not only to burn the fuel but also to generate thrust. But in rocket engines the impulse and energy carriers are identical and are present as fuel in the launcher. The chemical energy stored in the fuel is converted into kinetic energy by burning it in the thrust chamber and subsequent expansion in the nozzle, in the process creating thrust. In order to compare a variety of fuel combinations, a quantity known as specific impulse, which determines the thrust per kilogram of emitted fuel per second, is used. The favorite fuel and oxidizer combination used during the boost phase are Liquid Hydrogen(LH2) and Liquid Oxygen(LOX) which provide a specific impulse of 445 seconds, almost double that of hydrazine. The fuel is environmentally friendly, non-corrosive and has the highest efficiency of all nontoxic combinations. To liquefy hydrogen has to be cooled to a temperature of minus 273C. It`s boiling point is 20K only just above absolute on the temperature scale. Fuelling the booster rockets is a complex and hazardous process, for as soon as oxygen comes in contact with hydrogen, they spontaneously combust in a powerful explosion. Over the years cryogenic engines have become the backbone for boosters, used for placing heavy payloads in space, such as those used for the main engine for the space shuttle.

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HISTORY
The quest for low temperatures however finds its origin in early thermodynamics, with Amontonss gas pressure thermometer (1703) opening the way for the concept of absolute zero inferred a century later by Charles and Gay-Lussac, and eventually formulated by Kelvin. It is however with the advent of Boltzmanns statistical thermodynamics in the late nineteenth century that temperature until then a phenomenological quantity - could be explained in terms of microscopic structure and dynamics. Consider a thermodynamic system in a macrostate which can be obtained by a multiplicity W of microstates. The entropy S of the system was postulated by Boltzmann as:

S=kB ln W
With kB 1.38 10-23 J/K.

(1)

Adding reversibly heat dQ to the system produces a change of its entropy dS, with a proportionality factor T which is precisely temperature

T= dQ dS

(2)

Thus a low-temperature system can be defined as one to which a minute addition of heat produces a large change in entropy, i.e. a large change in its range of possible microscopic configurations. Boltzmann also found that the average thermal energy of a particle in a system in equilibrium at temperature T is

E ~ kB T

(3)

Consequently, a temperature of 1 K is equivalent to a thermal energy of 10-4 eV or 10-23 J per particle. A temperature is therefore low for a given physical process when kB T is small compared to the characteristic energy of the process considered. Cryogenic temperatures thus reveal phenomena with low characteristic energy (Table 2), and enable their application when significantly lower than the characteristic energy of the phenomenon of interest. From Tables 1 and 2, it is clear that low temperature superconductivity requires helium cryogenics. Table 2 Characteristic temperatures of low-energy phenomena
Phenomenon Debye temperature of metals High-temperature superconductors Low-temperature superconductors Intrinsic transport properties of metals Temperature [K] few 100 ~ 100 ~ 10 < 10

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Cryopumping Cosmic microwave background Superfluid helium 4 Bolometers for cosmic radiation few 2.7 2.2 <1

Braking the cryo barrier I

The successful liquefaction of Oxygen was announced at the meeting of the academy of Sciences in Paris on December24th, 1877 independently by the physicist Louis Paul Cailletet from Paris and the professor Raoul Pictet from Geneva. Cailletets apparatus 1. Compression to 200 bars in a glass tube with a hand-operated jack, using water and mercury for pressure transmission pre-cooling of the glass tube with liquid ethylene to -103C 2. Expansion to atmosphere via a valve

Braking the cryo-barrier II

Pictets apparatus

Production of oxygen under pressure in a retort. Two pre-cooling refrigeration cycles:

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1. First stage SO2(-10C) 2. Second stage CO2(-78C) oxygen flow is pre cooled by the Means of heat exchangers and Expands to atmosphere via a Hand valve

PRINCIPLE
Cryogenic Fuels/ Propellant In a cryogenic propellant, the fuel and the oxidizer are in the form of very cold, liquefied gases. These liquefied gases are referred to as super cooled as they stay in liquid form even though they are at a temperature lower than the freezing point. Thus we can say that super cooled gases used as liquid fuels are called cryogenic fuels. These propellants are gases at normal atmospheric conditions. But to store these propellants aboard a rocket is a very difficult task as they have very low densities. Hence extremely huge tanks will be required to store the propellants. Thus by cooling and compressing them into liquids, we can vastly increase their density and make it possible to store them in large quantities in smaller tanks. Normally the propellant combination used is that of liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen, Liquid oxygen being the oxidizer and liquid hydrogen being the fuel. Liquid oxygen boils at 297oF and liquid hydrogen boils at 423oF. Cryogenic Propellants
Propellant Density (kg/m3 ) Boiling point at atmospheric pressure (k) Liquid Hydrogen(Fuel) 70.8 20.2 Liquid Oxygen(Oxidizer) 1141 90.2

The principle of rocket propulsion depends on the following two laws: (i) Newtons third law of motion (ii) Law of conservation of momentum We have already read about these laws, and now we will see how they can be applied for propelling the rocket. The motion of a rocket is an interesting application of Newtons third law of motion & momentum principle. The rocket expels a jet of hot gases from its tail. This is say, an action force. The jet of hot gases exerts a force on the rocket, propelling it forward; this is the reaction force. From the momentum point of view, the hot gases acquire momentum in the backward direction & the rocket acquires an equal amount of momentum in the forward direction. The simplest example to understand the propulsion of rockets is that of a balloon. A balloon shooting forward (when the mouth of the balloon filled with air is released) and a

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rocket hurtling into space are propelled by similar forces. The air in a closed balloon exerts a uniform outward force. But when air rushes out of its neck (similar to exhaust gases leaving rockets) disturbs this equilibrium. Thus an equal and opposite force is exerted on the surface opposite to the neck. This drives the balloon forward. As we have seen in the previous section propellants are used to provide thrust to the rockets. These propellants on burning produces large amount of gas, which are allowed to pass through nozzle. On passing through the nozzle, high pressure is generated i.e. gas comes out with high pressure. Now to increase the thrust, one basic property is used while designing the nozzle. The neck of the nozzle is kept very small as compared to the body of the rocket. So the pressure of the gas increases and so does the velocity. Thus high thrust is achieved.

CONSTRUCTION OF CRYOGENIC ENGINE

What is Cryogenic rocket engine?

A cryogenic rocket engine is a rocket engine that uses a cryogenic fuel or oxidizer, that is, its fuel or oxidizer (or both) is gases liquefied and stored at very low temperatures. Notably, these engines were one of the main factors of the ultimate success in reaching the Moon by the Saturn V rocket.

During World War II, when powerful rocket engines were first considered by the German, American and Soviet engineers independently, all discovered that rocket engines need high mass flow rate of both oxidizer and fuel to generate a sufficient thrust. At that time oxygen and low molecular weight hydrocarbons were used as oxidizer and fuel pair. At room temperature and pressure, both are in gaseous state. Hypothetically, if propellants had been stored as pressurized gases, the size and mass of fuel tanks themselves would severely decrease rocket efficiency. Therefore, to get the required mass flow rate, the only option was to cool the propellants down to cryogenic temperatures (below 150 C, 238 F), converting them to liquid form. Hence, all cryogenic rocket engines are also, by definit ion, either liquid-propellant rocket engines or hybrid rocket engines.

Various cryogenic fuel-oxidizer combinations have been tried, but the combination of liquid hydrogen (LH2) fuel and the liquid oxygen (LOX)

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oxidizer is one of the most widely used. Both components are easily and cheaply available, and when burned have one of the highest entropy releases by combust ion, producing specific impulse up to 450 s (effective exhaust velocity 4.4 km/s).

Components
The major components of a cryogenic rocket engine are: combustion chamber (thrust chamber), pyrotechnic igniter, fuel injector, fuel cryopumps, oxidizer cryopumps, gas turbine, cryo valves, regulators, the fuel tanks, and rocket engine nozzle. In terms of feeding propellants to combustion chamber, cryogenic rocket engines (or, generally, all liquid-propellant engines) work in either an expander cycle, a gas-generator cycle, a staged combustion cycle, or the simplest pressure-fed cycle. The cryopumps are always turbopumps powered by a flow of fuel through gas turbines. Looking at this aspect, engines can be differentiated into a main flow or a bypass flow configuration. In the main flow design, all the pumped fuel is fed through the gas turbines, and in the end injected to the combustion chamber. In the bypass configuration, the fuel flow is split; the main part goes directly to the combustion chamber to generate thrust, while only a small amount of the fuel goes to the turbine. The engines burn liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen from the Space Shuttle external tank. They are used for propulsion during its ascent, in addition to the two more powerful solid rocket boosters and partly the Orbital Maneuvering System. Each engine can generate almost 1.8 meganewtons (MN) or 400,000 lbf of thrust at liftoff. The engines are capable of generating a specific impulse (Isp) of 453 seconds in a vacuum, or 363 seconds at sea level (exhaust velocities of 4440 m/s and 3560 m/s respectively). Overall, a space shuttle main engine weighs approximately 3.2 t (7,000 lb). The engines are removed after every flight and taken to the Space Shuttle Main Engine Processing Facility (SSMEPF) for inspection and replacement of any necessary components. The Space Shuttle's rocket engines are capable of operating at extreme temperatures. The liquid hydrogen fuel is stored at 253 degrees Celsius (423 degrees Fahrenheit). However, when burned with liquid oxygen, the temperature in the combustion chamber reaches 3,300 C (6,000 F), higher than the boiling point of iron. Each engine consumes 1,340 liters (340 gallons) of propellant per second. If the engine pumped water instead of liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen, an average-sized swimming pool could be drained in 75 seconds - or 25 seconds for the sum of the three used for the space shuttle launch. The engines perform as follows: Fuel and oxidizer from the external tank enters the orbiter at the orbiter/external tank umbilical disconnect and then the orbiter's main propulsion system feed lines. There the fuel and oxidizer each branch out into three parallel paths, to each engine. In each branch, prevalves must be opened to permit flow to the low-pressure fuel or oxidizer turbopump.

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WORKING
Cryogenic Engines are rocket motors designed for liquid fuels that have to be held at very low "cryogenic" temperatures to be liquid - they would otherwise be gas at normal temperatures. Typically Hydrogen and Oxygen are used which need to be held below 20K (-423F) and 90K (-297F) to remain liquid. The engine components are also cooled so the fuel doesn't boil to a gas in the lines that feed the engine. The thrust comes from the rapid expansion from liquid to gas with the gas emerging from the motor at very high speed. The energy needed to heat the fuels comes from burning them, once they are gasses. Cryogenic engines are the highest performing rocket motors. One disadvantage is that the fuel tanks tend to be bulky and require heavy insulation to store the propellant. Their high fuel efficiency, however, outweighs this disadvantage. The Space Shuttle's main engines used for liftoff are cryogenic engines. The Shuttle's smaller thrusters for orbital manuvering use non-cyogenic hypergolic fuels, which are compact and are stored at warm temperatures. Currently, only the United States, Russia, China, France, Japan and India have mastered cryogenic rocket technology. The cryogenic engine gets its name from the extremely cold temperature at which liquid nitrogen is stored. Air moving around the vehicle is used to heat liquid nitrogen to a boil. Once it boils, it turns to gas in the same way that heated water forms steam in a steam engine. A rocket like the Ariane 5 uses oxygen and hydrogen, both stored as a cryogenic liquid, to produce its power. The liquid nitrogen, stored at -320 degrees Fahrenheit, is vaporized by the heat exchanger. Nitrogen gas formed in the heat exchanger expands to about 700 times the volume of its liquid form. This highly pressurised gas is then fed to the expander, where the force of the nitrogen gas is converted into mechanical power.

ADVANTAGES
Storable liquid stages of PSLV and GSLV engines used presently release harmful products to the environment. The trend worldwide is to change over to eco-friendly propellants. Liquid engines working with cryogenic propellants (liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen) and semi cryogenic engines using liquid oxygen and kerosene are considered relatively environment friendly, non-toxic and non corrosive. In addition, the propellants for semicryogenic engine are safer to handle & store. It will also reduce the cost of launch operations. This advanced propulsion technology is now available only with Russia and USA. The semi cryogenic engine will facilitate applications for future space missions such as the Reusable Launch Vehicle, Unified Launch Vehicle and vehicle for interplanetary missions. High Specific Impulse Non-toxic and non-corrosive propellants
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Non-hypergolic, improved ground safety

DISADVANTAGES
Low density of liquid Hydrogen more structural mass Low temperature of propellants -Complex storage Transfer systems and operations Hazards related to cryogens Overall cost of propellants relatively high Need for ignition system

Drawbacks of Cryogenic Propellants

Highly reactive gases

Cryogens are highly concentrated gases and have a very high reactivity. Liquid oxygen, which is used as an oxidizer, combines with most of the organic materials to form explosive compounds. So lots of care must be taken to ensure safety. Leakage

One of the most major concerns is leakage. At cryogenic temperatures, which are roughly below 150 degrees Kelvin or equivalently (-190) degrees Fahrenheit, the seals of the container used for storing the propellants lose the ability to maintain a seal properly. Hydrogen, being the smallest element, has a tendency to leak past seals or materials. Hydrogen can burst into flames whenever its concentration is approximately 4% to 96%. It is hence necessary to ensure that hydrogen leak rate is minimal and does not present a hazard. Also there must be some way of determining the rates of leakage and checking whether a fire hazard exists or not. The compartments where hydrogen gas may exist in case of a leak must be made safe, so that the hydrogen buildup does not cause a hazardous condition.

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