College

College of Engineering and Polymer Science

Date of Last Revision

2023-05-06 09:07:10

Major

Mechanical Engineering

Honors Course

MECE: 461-002

Number of Credits

4

Degree Name

Bachelor of Science

Date of Expected Graduation

Spring 2023

Abstract

An additively manufactured (AM) liquid rocket engine, consisting of an injector, combustion chamber, and nozzle, was designed and printed using state-of-the-art methods and materials. The parts were manufactured using laser powder bed fusion. Additive manufacturing allowed for complex geometries and features, such as printing manifolds onto the components with a reduced number of parts. Additive, regenerative cooling channels were designed into the chamber and nozzle to allow for long-duration steady-state operation.

The feed system for the engine was designed and built to allow for pressure-regulated and steady-state testing. Tanks for the fuel and oxidizer were designed and built for a maximum 15 second test duration. A purging system was developed to keep the propellant lines clean and aid in engine shutdowns. A testing campaign was designed and conducted for characterization of this engine, including proof, water flow, cold flow, and hot fire testing. Issues with ignition were experienced and ultimately three hot fire tests were achieved for a total duration of ~14.5 seconds. This project shows that additive manufacturing can simplify many of the complicated and expensive operations when designing and building a liquid rocket engine, lowering the barrier to entry to the space industry.

Research Sponsor

Dr. Manigandan Kannan

First Reader

Thomas Teasley

Second Reader

Dr. Guo-Xiang Wang

Honors Faculty Advisor

Dr. Dane Quinn

Proprietary and/or Confidential Information

No

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