Nano-Catalytic Particle Synthesis for Heterogeneous Combustion in Compact High-Thrust to Weight Ratio Propulsion Systems

Under NAVAIR Contract N683535-04-C-0240 Phase I, CFDRC has demonstrated the feasibility and advantages of using copper catalyst coated energetic nanoparticles to assist in heterogeneous cold start combustion for high-thrust propulsion applications. The feasibility studies were carried out using CFDRC’s multiphysics high fidelity engineering analysis tool. Enhancements and improvements were made to the analysis code to model in-flow heterogeneous catalysis of missile fuel JP10. During Phase II, the enhanced models will be used for studying the effect of copper on thermal stability of jet fuel and to design a filter to reduce the amount of copper contamination in jet fuels to acceptable levels. To achieve this, computational and experimental studies will be performed to identify and test new filter and support materials that do not interfere with fuel and its additives. Several filter configurations will be identified and evaluated, and finally a prototype filter will be designed for pilot-scale demonstration. Prototype testing and demonstration will be performed at CFDRC and NAVAIR. In Phase III, the filter design will be extended to full-scale operations for high-throughput Navy shipboard applications, and the developed technologies will be applied to advance energetic propulsion systems and other applications for both Navy and industry.