Combustion chamber and injector unit for a combination of liquid and gaseous propellants

Claim 1

COMBUSTION CHAMBER AND PROPELLANT INJECTION APPARATUS FOR COMBUSTING GASEOUS OXYGEN AND LIQUID HYDROCARBON AND INTRODUCING DILUENT WATER TO REDUCE THE TEMPERATURE OF THE PRODUCTS OF COMBUSTION OF THESE PROPELLANTS FROM THEIR INTRINSIC STOICHIOMETRIC-ADIABATIC FLAME TEMPERATURE, WHICH IS IN THE ORDER OF 6000* F., DOWN TO A DESIRED RANGE OF TEMPERATURES OF THE ORDER OF 2500* F.3500* F., COMPRISING; (A) A CYLINDRICAL OUTER PRESSURE COMBUSTION CHAMBER SHELL MADE OF FERROUS MATERIAL, SAID SHELL HAVING OPPOSITE ENDS CONSISTING OF A COMBUSTION GAS DELIVERY END, AND A PROPELLANT INJECTION END, (B) A COMBUSTION CHAMBER ANNULAR HEAT TRANSFER LINER ADAPTED TO BE FITTED WITHIN THE INTERIOR OF THE OUTER SHELL IN CONTIGUOUS RELATIONSHIP TO ITS INNER PERIPHERAL SURFACE AND MADE OF CUPREOUS MATERIAL, SAID ANNULAR LINER MEMBER HAVING GAS DELIVERY AND PROPELLANT INJECTION ENDS CO-ADJACENT TO THE CORRESPONDING ENDS OF THE OUTER SHELL MEMBER, SAID HEAT TRANSFER LINER COMPRISING A FIRST CYLINDRICAL AXISL SECTION EXTENDING A PREDETERMINED AXIAL DISTANCE INWARDLY FROM ITS GAS DELIVERY END, AND A SECOND AXIAL SECTION ADJOINING THE INNER END OF THE FIRST CYLINDRICAL AXIAL SECTION AND EXTENDING TO THE LINER''S PROPELLANT INJECTION END, SAID SECOND AXIAL SECTION HAVING AN INCREASING ANNULAR WALL THICHNESS IN THE DIRECTION OF THE PROPELLANT INJECTOR END TO FORM A CONICAL SECTION OF THE CONBUSTION CHAMBER, THE WALLS OF THE CONICAL COMBUSTION CHAMBER SECTION HAVING A PREDETERMINED ANGLE OF CONVERGENCY RELATIVE TO THE LINER AXIS, SAID LINER AT TIS PROPELLANT INJECTION END FORMING A TRANSVERSE END FACE AND THE WALL OF THE CONICAL COMBUSTION CHAMBER SECTION INTERSECTING SAID TRANSVERSE END FAE AT A FIRST CIRCULAR LOCI DEFINING A CENTRAL APERTURE IN THE TRANSVERSE END FACE OF THE HEAT TRANSFER LINER, SAID FIRST AXIAL SECTIO OF THE HEAT TRANSFER LINER FORMING A CYLINDRICAL SECTION OF THE COMBUSTION CHAMBER ADJOINING AND COMMUNICATING WITH THE LARGE END OF THE CONICAL COMBUSTION CHAMBER SECTION AND THROUGH WHICH THE COMBUSTIO GASES FLOW PRIOR TO THEIR EMERGENCE FROM THE COMBUSTION GAS DELIVERY END OF THE HEAT TRANSFER LINER, (C) MEANS FORMING COOLANT WATER PASSAGES IN HEAT TRANSFER RELATION TO THE LINER AND BENEATH THE INNER PERIPHERAL SURFACE OF THE HEAT TRANSFER LINER, (D) A TRANSVERSE INJECTOR FACE PLATE MADE OF FERROUS MATERIAL DISPOSED ACROSS THE PROPELLANT INJECTION END OF THE HEAT EXCHANGE LINER, SAI DINJECTOR WALL HAVING AN INNER FACE IN ABUTTING RELATIONSHIP TO THE TRANSVERSE END FACE OF THE HEAT TRANSFER LINER, (E) A CIRCULAR CROSS SECTIONED HYDROCARBON INJECTION BORE FOR INJECTING LIQUID HYDROCARBON INTO THE CONICAL COMBUSTION CHAMBER SECTION, SAID HYDROCARBON INJECTION BORE BEING FORMED IN THE INJECTOR FACE PLATE AND OPENING INTO THE CIRCULAR APERTURE IN THE TRANSVERSE END FACE OF THE HEAT TRANSFER LINER, SAID HYDROCARBON INJECTION BORE HAVING A DIAMETER LESS THAN THAT OF SAID CIRCULAR APERTURE, (F) A CONVERGENT ANNULAR OXYGEN INJECTION SLIT FOR INJECTING GASEOUS OXYGEN INTO THE CONICAL COMBUSTION CHAMBER SECTION, SAID ANNULAR OXYGEN INJECTION SLIT BEING FORMED IN THE INJECTOR FACE PLATE AND OPENING INTO THE CIRCULAR APERTURE OF THE TRANSVERSE END FACE OF THE HEAT TRANSFER LINER, SAID ANNULAR OXYGEN INJECTION SLIT HAVING AN ANGLE OF CONVERGENCY WHICH IS EQUAL TO THE PREDETERMINED ANGLE OF CONVERGENCY OF THE CONICAL COMBUSTION CHAMBER SECTION, BUT WITH THE SLIT CONVERGING IN THE AXIAL DIRECTION OPPOSITE TO THAT IN WHICH THE CONICAL COMBUSTION CHAMBER SECTION CONVERGES, SAID ANNULAR OXYGEN INJECTION SLIT HAVING ITS INNER PERIPHERY INTERSECTING THE PERIPHERY OF THE HYDROCARBON INJECTION BORE IN THE TRANSVERSE PLANE OF THE INNER FACE OF THE INJECTOR FACE PLATE, SAID INTERSECTION OF THE INNER PERIPHERY OF THE ANNULAR OXYGEN INJECTION SLIT AND THE PERIPHERY OF THE HYDROCARBON INJECTION BORE DEFINING A SHARP CIRCULAR EDGE, SAID ANNULAR OXYGEN INJECTION SLIT HAVING A SLIT THICKNESS EQUAL TO THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE DIAMETER OF THE CENTRAL CIRCULAR APERTURE IN THE TRANSVERSE END FACE OF THE HEAT TRANSFER LINER AND THE DIAMETER OF THE HYDROCARBON INJECTION BORE SO THAT THE OUTER PERIPHERY OF THE OXYGEN INJECTION SLIT INTERSECTS THE INNER FACE OF THE INJECTOR FACE PLATE AT A SECOND CIRCULAR LOCI CONTIGUOUS TO THE FIRST CIRCULAR LOCI, AND (G) A PLURALITY OF ANGULARLY SPACED LIQUID DILUENT INJECTION ORIFICES FORMED IN THE WALL OF THE CONICAL COMBUSTION CHAMBER SECTION FOR DELIVERING DILUENT WATER INTO THE CONICAL COMBUSTION CHAMBER SECTION, SAID PLURALITY OF DILUENT INJECTION ORIFICES BEING DISPOSED AT AN AXIAL DISTANCE IN EXCESS OF THE NOMINAL DISTANCE AT WHICH THE MAJORITY OF THE COMBUSTION PROCESS HAS OCCURED.