Study on Propellant Supply System for a Small-scale Supersonic Flight Experiment Vehicle (Study on a Propellant Management Device)

Abstract

Based on previous research on the smallscale supersonic flight experiment vehicle’s liquid supplying system for bioethanol and LOX by pressurant gas, sloshing in the fuel tank has been shown to harm the flight of the vehicle by causing gas entrainment, which can fail the propulsion system. To solve this problem, we consider installing a device that can suppress the pressurant gas entrainment in the fuel tank. This device consists of a wire mesh that traps fuel in the supply duct by capillary force. In this study, this propellant management device (PMD) is examined based on the results of analysis and experiment. A liquid discharge experiment using the simulated propellant was carried out, as a performance verification of the PMD. This paper confirms the PMD’s performance in preventing the entrainment of gas and supplying fuel at a maximum liquid discharge flow rate of 0.6 L/s in an actual flight model.