Diode Laser Ignition of a Poly(Methyl Methacrylate) and Gaseous Oxygen Hybrid Motor

The performance of a diode laser igniter as a restart-capable device has been assessed for single-port, poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA)/gaseous oxygen (GOX) hybrid motors. For this testing a prototype version of the igniter has been designed and implemented as a substitute to a traditional methane/...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of propulsion and power 2020-09, Vol.36 (5), p.773-782
Main Authors: Dyrda, David M, Mechentel, Flora S, Cantwell, Brian J, Karp, Ashley C, Rabinovitch, Jason, Jens, Elizabeth T
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Ignition systems
Lasers
Polymethyl methacrylate
Prototype tests
Semiconductor lasers
Small satellites
Vacuum chambers
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Summary:The performance of a diode laser igniter as a restart-capable device has been assessed for single-port, poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA)/gaseous oxygen (GOX) hybrid motors. For this testing a prototype version of the igniter has been designed and implemented as a substitute to a traditional methane/GOX torch ignition system. Ignition tests have been conducted at atmospheric ambient conditions using an experimental single-port motor setup. Using three PMMA fuel grains, a total of 46 successful motor ignitions and restarts were achieved. These tests were conducted using a single multimode diode laser with an output power of 10.84 W and a nominal pulse length of 1 s. In addition, a total of 24 successful ignitions and restarts were demonstrated in a vacuum chamber with the same prototype igniter on a flight-scale PMMA/GOX motor under development for smallsat applications. The ignition transient is compared against baseline results from a torch ignition system for atmospheric tests, and the ignition delay performance is considered across all tests.
ISSN:1533-3876
0748-4658
1533-3876
DOI:10.2514/1.B37832