Propulsion, in one form or another, is one of the oldest technologies known to the human race. This technology has been utilized in various applications from a simple bicycle to a high-speed bullet train, a catamaran to a submarine, and a helicopter to a hypersonic missile.
The motivation behind propulsion science and technology has been, from the days of primitive man, to travel, explore, defend, and sometimes to conquer.
Chemical propulsion is a complex science involving several disciplines. In the past several decades, extensive research has been carried out worldwide in order to advance the scientific findings and to utilize them for technology applications. The subject is vast, as evident from the numerous publications of textbooks, monographs, and journal articles. This book is an attempt to provide a source of reference, for a practicing engineer or a graduate student, or as a textbook for a graduate course in Advanced Topics in Combustion, as it covers some of the major issues in propulsion science and technology today in a single volume.
Today’s propulsion systems are required to produce larger and more rapid release of energy from smaller and more compact combustors, to cope with the demand for increased speed and range, and a wider operational envelope.
Associated with these requirements are higher temperatures, increased heat transfer and thermal load, and frequent off-design operation. For current and future propulsion systems the following three major criteria are important:
(1) increase the speed and range of vehicles: commercial and military transport and weapons
(2) obtain the maximum combustion efficiency and stable operation possible
(3) to comply with environmental constraints
These three items form the primary subject matter for this book.
The editor has had the opportunity to envision, initiate, and monitor research projects in propulsion for more than a decade under the sponsorship of the Office of Naval Research (ONR).
The topics covered range from the concept of convective Mach number to counterflow fluidic thrust vectoring; electrorheological fuels to electromagnetic propulsion; and marine propulsion to aircraft and missile propulsion.
This publication is essentially an assembly of results from selected research projects that depict the advances in propulsion science made in the past several years in the context and mission of this book, particularly in air-breathing propulsion.
In addition to the Introduction and Conclusion chapters (written by the editor), the book contains chapters under the following sections:
1. Advanced fuel synthesis and characterization
2. Fundamental combustion issues
3. Control of combustion
4. Emissions and plumes
These chapters are written by those who have actually conducted the research, either independently or as part of a team, on projects that were monitored by the editor. They describe the issues, the approach used, the results obtained, and they show how the scientific findings can be extended to practical applications. In his introductory chapter, the editor has tried to guide
the reader through the contents of the four sections of the book. In particular, the interrelations among the chapters in each section are illustrated so as to aid the reader to appreciate how the research by various investigators is focused to obtain the fundamental understanding relevant to propulsion applications.
In Section 1, the synthesis, combustion characterization, and numerical investigation of high-energy-density fuels are described. The synthesis methods of
these fuels and their properties and combustion chemistry (both at microscopic and macroscopic levels) are covered. Section 2 deals with some important fundamental issues in combustion that are relevant to propulsion. The solutions provide the understanding needed to design modern and future combustion de- vices that will be volume and weight limited; be capable to operate at higher
temperatures and in more hostile conditions; be designed for improved performance, stealth, and maneuverability; and be able to comply with more stringent constraints at a wide range of loads.
