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"Copenhagen Suborbitals" engineer explains rocket engine construction

rkman

By rkman
in KSP1 Discussion

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DonLorenzo

DonLorenzo

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floating launch platform tugged out to sea by their other project, a self built submarine. At least that\'s how they used to do it, before installing engines on the platform itself. These guys are seriously awesome.

Too bad the latest launch attempt I saw failed, because the hair dryer used to heat the LOX valve ran out of juice.

Did someone check the colour of these guys\' skin?

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boolybooly

boolybooly

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Interesting.

Looking at the CS motto, 'non lucror, exposita scientia, ad astra', what does that mean?

'not for money, for discovering knowledge, approach the heavens' ?

Meaning they have the highest of motivations? Glad to hear it... I do hope they have science backing.

Sorry DonLorenzo I dont quite understand, what about skin colour? Are you talking about the workmanlike patina of grime? An admirable sign in a dedicated engineer I am sure.

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Ascensiam

Ascensiam

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You live in Denmark, if I\'m not wrong.

So have you found more out about Copenhagen Suborbitals?

We do hear about some rocket projects, but it is not common, mainly because most believe it\'s gonna be a dud. I mean, how is a small country like us going to reach space?

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MedwedianPresident

MedwedianPresident

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We do hear about some rocket projects, but it is not common, mainly because most believe it\'s gonna be a dud. I mean, how is a small country like us going to reach space?

Yes, i don\'t mean that in 20 years, we will see Danish Space Battlecruisers,

but what think you? Will this project end successful?

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Randox

Randox

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Very interesting watch.

I hadn\'t thought about the cooling issue before. Using the fuel as a coolant is simply brilliant, and increases efficency a nice bit by turning what would be waste heat into useful energy (by pre heating the fuel making it even easier to burn). I also never thought about the precision that goes into the atomizer at the top of the combustion chamber.

Thanks for sharing!

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boolybooly

boolybooly

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Randox, fyi no disrespect to CS but today that mixer is effective and cheap but is entry level technology, I believe the Russians, with state funding, moved that design on to a more efficient pressurised premixer, with great success, though the principle is very dangerous unless engineered well because if you dont keep the flow rate up and flush it on shut down the fuel can ignite in the premixer and blow it up.

More recent 2006 ('Integrated Powerhead') mixing solution mentioned here, from Pratt and Whitney Rocketdyne, Inc. and Aerojet under NASA.

full-flow, staged-combustion, or FFSC ... has been designed as a re-usable engine system, capable of up to 200 flights ...

This FFSC cycle uses a fuel-rich pre-burner to drive the fuel turbopump, and an oxidizer-rich pre-burner to drive the oxygen turbopump. Because all of the propellants are burned in the preburners, more mass flow is available to drive the turbines than in a conventional staged combustion cycle.

The additional power enables lower turbine temperatures and less stress, translating into longer turbine life, a key factor for reusable rocket engine life.

In addition, the use of oxidizer-rich gas in the oxidizer turbine and fuel-rich gas in the fuel turbine eliminates the need for a complex propellant seal for the pumps. This increases engine system reliability. The innovation also includes a hydrostatic bearing technology that literally floats the turbine shaft on rocket propellants, eliminating wear and enabling high reusability.

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GWBBQ

GWBBQ

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floating launch platform tugged out to sea by their other project, a self built submarine. At least that\'s how they used to do it, before installing engines on the platform itself. These guys are seriously awesome.

Too bad the latest launch attempt I saw failed, because the hair dryer used to heat the LOX valve ran out of juice.

You completely missed the part where they spent a year making improvements, headed back out to sea, and had a successful test launch

Hopefully they\'ll make progress toward getting that pogo oscillation under control so their eventual pilot doesn\'t feel like he\'s riding in a paint mixer.

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  • 1 year later...
Sleipnir

Sleipnir

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We do hear about some rocket projects, but it is not common, mainly because most believe it\'s gonna be a dud. I mean, how is a small country like us going to reach space?

These guys truly are an inspiration. Science and exploration shouldnt be about monetary profit. Its a human endeavour. As the opening scene of Star Trek says, Space IS the final frontier and we are all on this journey together! You got the wrong attitude about this man, doesn't matter if Denmark is "small", it also has many brilliant minds that are as we see with Copenhagen Suborbital more than capable of building rockets. The number of "amateur" rocket builders and building companies is ever increasing as the years go by.

Its truly a good thing and amazing to see that we are no longer relying on governments with their "out-for-profit" type organizations to bring us closer to the stars and with that to the future as well.

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