Developing Evaluation Measures for the Second Stage Next Generation Engine on Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicles
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Calhoun: The NPS Institutional Archive Theses and Dissertations Thesis Collection 2012-03 Developing Evaluation Measures for the Second Stage Next Generation Engine on Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicles Panczenko, Jason A. Monterey, California. Naval Postgraduate School http://hdl.handle.net/10945/6849 NAVAL POSTGRADUATE SCHOOL MONTEREY, CALIFORNIA THESIS DEVELOPING EVALUATION MEASURES FOR THE SECOND STAGE NEXT GENERATION ENGINE ON EVOLVED EXPENDABLE LAUNCH VEHICLES by Jason A. Panczenko March 2012 Thesis Co-Advisors: Doug Nelson Jeff Emdee Second Reader: Christopher Brophy Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited THIS PAGE INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK REPORT DOCUMENTATION PAGE Form Approved OMB No. 0704-0188 Public reporting burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 1 hour per response, including the time for reviewing instruction, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information. Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden, to Washington headquarters Services, Directorate for Information Operations and Reports, 1215 Jefferson Davis Highway, Suite 1204, Arlington, VA 22202-4302, and to the Office of Management and Budget, Paperwork Reduction Project (0704-0188) Washington DC 20503. 1. AGENCY USE ONLY (Leave blank) 2. REPORT DATE 3. REPORT TYPE AND DATES COVERED March 2012 Master’s Thesis 4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE Developing Evaluation Measures for the Second Stage 5. FUNDING NUMBERS Next Generation Engine on Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicles 6. AUTHOR(S) Jason A. Panczenko 7. PERFORMING ORGANIZATION NAME(S) AND ADDRESS(ES) 8. PERFORMING ORGANIZATION Naval Postgraduate School REPORT NUMBER Monterey, CA 93943-5000 9. SPONSORING /MONITORING AGENCY NAME(S) AND ADDRESS(ES) 10. SPONSORING/MONITORING Space and Missile Systems Center AGENCY REPORT NUMBER Los Angeles, CA 90245 11. SUPPLEMENTARY NOTES The views expressed in this thesis are those of the author and do not reflect the official policy or position of the Department of Defense or the U.S. Government. IRB Protocol number _____N/A___________. 12a. DISTRIBUTION / AVAILABILITY STATEMENT 12b. DISTRIBUTION CODE Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited A 13. ABSTRACT (maximum 200 words) The United States has been the leading nation in space technology, as space is a vital asset in military dominance. But to sustain its position in the area of space lift, the current U.S. second stage liquid propulsion engine, the RL10 (developed in 1958) needs to be replaced. This replacement requires systems engineering methods and new technological advances to adhere to mission requirements and constraints of current platforms. This thesis provides a history of the Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle (EELV), U.S. liquid propulsion, and the RL10 LH2/LOX engine to analyze tradeoffs between major requirements in new upper stage development and to provide a recommendation of evaluation measures. The results are a proactive case presenting the benefits of a new upper stage engine on EELV, a tradeoff comparison between rocket propulsion engine cycles, a waterfall model for engine qualification and testing of liquid propulsion rocket engines, and testing recommendations for NGE qualification. Additionally, the thesis recommends specific impulse, thrust, and thrust-to-weight values that should be used as a design baseline for the next generation upper stage engine on EELV. These recommendations should be of value to engineers or program managers who are or will be responsible for acquiring replacement propulsion systems. 14. SUBJECT TERMS upper stage, liquid propulsion, second stage, evolved expendable launch 15. NUMBER OF vehicle, EELV, expander cycle, regression analysis, next generation engine, rocket engine, LPRE, PAGES rocket testing, propulsion testing, 87 16. PRICE CODE 17. SECURITY 18. SECURITY 19. SECURITY 20. LIMITATION OF CLASSIFICATION OF CLASSIFICATION OF THIS CLASSIFICATION OF ABSTRACT REPORT PAGE ABSTRACT Unclassified Unclassified Unclassified UU NSN 7540-01-280-5500 Standard Form 298 (Rev. 2-89) Prescribed by ANSI Std. 239-18 i THIS PAGE INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK ii Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited DEVELOPING EVALUATION MEASURES FOR THE SECOND STAGE NEXT GENERATION ENGINE ON EVOLVED EXPENDABLE LAUNCH VEHICLES Jason A. Panczenko Captain, United States Air Force B.S. Mechanical Engineering, Michigan Technological University, 2007 Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF SCIENCE IN SYSTEMS ENGINEERING from the NAVAL POSTGRADUATE SCHOOL March 2012 Author: Jason A. Panczenko Approved by: Douglas Nelson Thesis Co-Advisor Jeffery Emdee Thesis Co-Advisor Christopher Brophy Second Reader Clifford Whitcomb Chair, Department of Systems Engineering iii THIS PAGE INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK iv ABSTRACT The United States has been the leading nation in space technology, as space is a vital asset in military dominance. But to sustain its position in the area of space lift, the current U.S. second stage liquid propulsion engine, the RL10 (developed in 1958) needs to be replaced. This replacement requires systems engineering methods and new technological advances to adhere to mission requirements and constraints of current platforms. This thesis provides a history of the Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle (EELV), U.S. liquid propulsion, and the RL10 LH2/LOX engine to analyze tradeoffs between major requirements in new upper stage development and to provide a recommendation of evaluation measures. The results are a proactive case presenting the benefits of a new upper stage engine on EELV, a tradeoff comparison between rocket propulsion engine cycles, a waterfall model for engine qualification and testing of liquid propulsion rocket engines, and testing recommendations for NGE qualification. Additionally, the thesis recommends specific impulse, thrust, and thrust-to-weight values that should be used as a design baseline for the next generation upper stage engine on EELV. These recommendations should be of value to engineers or program managers who are or will be responsible for acquiring replacement propulsion systems. v THIS PAGE INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK vi TABLE OF CONTENTS I. INTRODUCTION........................................................................................................1 A. SCOPE ..............................................................................................................1 B. PURPOSE .........................................................................................................2 C. RESEARCH .....................................................................................................2 D. BENEFITS OF STUDY ...................................................................................2 II. EVOLVED EXPENDABLE LAUNCH VEHICLE HISTORY ..............................5 A. CURRENT BOOSTER SYSTEMS ................................................................6 1. Atlas V ...................................................................................................6 a. Atlas V Configuration ...............................................................7 b. Atlas V Performance .................................................................8 2. Delta IV .................................................................................................9 a. Delta IV Configuration .............................................................9 b. Delta IV Performance .............................................................10 B. RL10 BACKGROUND ..................................................................................10 C. REASONS FOR A NEW UPPER STAGE ENGINE .................................12 D. FUTURE OF EELV .......................................................................................14 E. CHAPTER SUMMARY ................................................................................14 III. BACKGROUND AND FUNDAMETALS OF LIQUID PROPULSION .............17 A. HISTORY OF LIQUID PROPULSION IN THE UNITED STATES ......18 B. ROCKET PERFORMANCE FUNDAMENTALS .....................................19 1. Definitions and Equations .................................................................19 a. Specific Impulse ......................................................................20 b. Performance and Efficiency ...................................................21 c. Thrust ......................................................................................22 d. Relationships ...........................................................................23 C. BASIC COMPONENTS ................................................................................24 D. ENGINE CYCLES.........................................................................................25 1. Gas Generator Cycle ..........................................................................26 2. Expander Cycle ..................................................................................26 3. Staged-Combustion Cycle .................................................................27 E. TYPES OF PROPELLANTS ........................................................................27 F. UPPER STAGE ENGINE COMPARISON ................................................28 G. CHAPTER SUMMARY ................................................................................29 IV. ANALYSIS