Theoretic-experimental evaluation of the solid-propellant grain erosive burning

The high demands for the flow rate and thrust characteristics specified for the modern solid-propellant rocket motors (SRM) under the strict mass and overall dimensions constraints require high level of mass fraction of propellant. And in the process of propellant grain combustion, erosive burning often takes place (increase of propellant burning rate depending on combustion products flow rate along the grain channel). This may play both negative (off-design increase of chamber pressure) and positive role (for example, increasing the launch thrust-to-weight ratio of the rocket). It is typical of the main SRMs of various rocket systems (multiple launch rocket systems, anti-aircraft guided missiles, tactical missiles, boosters). This paper proposes a methodology for calculating the internal ballistic characteristics of a solid propellant rocket motor under erosive burning, which is relatively time and resource consuming. The methodology is based on equidistant model of propellant grain combustion, where grain is divided lengthwise into a number of intervals. For any point of time during the engine operation, burning area and port area of each interval are calculated, taking into account erosive impact on each interval; total burning area is the sum of all intervals burning areas. Gas flow rate in each interval of the grain channel is calculated using gas-dynamic equations. The motor mass flow rate is a mass input sum of all the intervals; and the burning rate in each interval is estimated with proper erosion factor. The combustion chamber pressure had been calculated for four erosive burning models proposed by different authors. All the models showed convergence with the experimental SRM test data sufficient for engineering estimate (in particular, for maximum chamber pressure and combustion time). Selected as a result erosive burning model may be used to design new motors with solid propellants similar in chemical composition, and the model parameters are to be further customized using the test specimens.