Event Actions
University at Buffalo, The State University of New York
Abstract:
During the past 20 years, a new class of high regression n-alkane liquefying fuels have been discovered for hybrid rockets that produce significant increases in propulsion performance. Commonly used fuels include the use of paraffin wax that is inherently safe, cost effective, and therefore has great potential for reducing launch costs. The challenge of designing rockets with these fuels, however, is understanding the shear induced atomization processes occurring in the turbulent reacting boundary layers. In this seminar I’ll discuss existing propulsion theories of hybrid rockets based on classical Marxman theory, their limitations, and work being carried out at the Center for Hybrid Rocket Exascale Simulation Technology (CHREST) to improve on these theories using slab burner experiments and high- performance computing. The focus of the talk will be on describing the conjugate heat/mass transfer processes defining the diffusion flames in the boundary layer and predicting droplet sizes that control the overall burning rate.
Bio:
Dr. DesJardin is a Professor at the State University of New York at Buffalo (SUNY Buffalo). He received his Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from Purdue University in 1998. His list of achievements includes the Sandia National Labs Award of Excellence (2001, 2002), the National Science Foundation Career Award (2004) and the State University of New York Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Teaching (2009), UB Exceptional Scholar Award (2019). He is a Fellow of ASME (2020) and an Associate Fellow of AIAA (2016). Dr. DesJardin’s research activities focus on experimental and computational studies of turbulent reacting interfaces with applications to propulsion, fire science, biomass energy utilization and hydrogen combustion. He currently serves as Director of the Combustion and Energy Transport Laboratory (CET - https://www.cet-lab.org) and a DOE PSAAP Center for Hybrid Rocket Exascale Simulation Technology (CHREST - https://www.buffalo.edu/chrest.html ).
Host:
Dr. Xinfeng Gao