A SBIR Phase I contract was awarded to Blazetech Corp. in September, 2018 for $149,999.0 USD from the U.S. Department of Defense and United States Air Force.
The Air Force wants to develop novel cycles for liquid rocket engines that either exceed the performance of modern pressure-fed, expander, or gas generator cycles, and provides an overall system benefit such as reduced complexity or lower cost. In Phase I, we propose to compare quantitatively the thermodynamic cycles of a Rotating Detonation Engine with that of a conventional constant pressure combustion rocket engine over a range of conditions. This comparison will determine the efficiency and pumping work requirement for each cycle for key propellants including cryogenic LH2/LOX and a hydrocarbon-based such as RP1-LOX. The RDE cycle will reduce the required fluid pressure entering the combustion chamber and consequently the work required by the turbopump. This has the potential of replacing the turbopump with a simpler electrically-driven pump powered by a battery. The pro and cons on the two cycles will be evaluated from a system point of view. In Phase II we will develop and perform risk reduction testing to demonstrate the potential performance increases and the operability/cost improvements for the new engine.