Propulsion Systems

Propulsion System
A machine that produces thrust to push an object forward

The amount of thrust depends on the mass flow through the engine and the exit velocity of the gas

Airplane Propulsion Systems

Propeller

Turbine (jet) engine

Ramjet or Scramjet

Rocket Planes

Why Are There Different Types of Engines?

Newtons 1st Law
Objects in motion tend to stay in motion and objects at rest tend to stay at rest unless something pushes or pulls on the object. Therefore: 1. Thrust from the propulsion system must balance the drag when the airplane is cruising. 2. Thrust from the propulsion system must exceed the drag for the airplane to accelerate.

Aircraft Motion

Propulsion System
Piston Engines and Propellers

Used most commonly on smaller aircraft They generally fly slower, and at lower altitudes

Propulsion System
Piston Engines and Propellers

Airliners and Cargo Planes

Spend most of the time in a cruise state High engine efficiency and low fuel usage more important than excess thrust Turboprop and turbofan propulsion used on airliners and cargo planes

Propulsion Systems
Jet propulsion is similar to the release of an inflated balloon.

Propulsion Systems
Turbojet
First really useful jet engine built

Propulsion Systems
Turbofan
Adds a large set of fan blades at the front of the inlet

Turboprop
The fan from turbofan is replaced with a propeller

Fighter Planes and Hypersonic Aircraft

Require high excess thrust to accelerate quickly and overcome high drag associated with high speeds High thrust is more important than engine efficiency

Rocket Powered Airplanes

Uses a rocket engine for propulsion Has higher speeds Propels only for a short period of time Unusual launch configurations
From another plane Vertically nose in the air and tail to the ground

Rocket Propulsion
Engine pushes itself forward or upward by producing thrust A rocket engine uses only propellant carried within it A rocket can operate in outer space, where there is almost no air

3 2 1 Liftoff!

How Do Rocket Engines Work?

Newtons 3rd Law: For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction.
1. Rocket engines generate thrust by putting a gas under pressure. 2. The gas escaping the rocket is called exhaust. 3. As the rocket pushes the exhaust backward, the exhaust pushes the rocket forward.

Rocket Propellant
Solid-Fuel Rockets
Burn a solid material called the grain Engineers design grains with a hollow core Propellant burns from the core outward Unburned propellant shields the engine casing from the heat of combustion

Rocket Propellant
Solid-Fuel Rockets
Hollow Core

Solid Fuel

Rocket Propellant
Liquid-Fuel Rocket
Carries fuel and oxidizer in separate tanks Fuel circulates through cooling jacket before entering combustion chamber Circulation preheats the fuel for combustion and helps cool the rocket

Rocket Propellant
Ion (Electric)
Coils are heated to change a fuel, such as xenon, into a vapor Hot platinum or tungsten ionization grid changes the flowing vapor into a stream of electrically charged particles called ions

Rocket Propellant
Nuclear
Uses heat from a nuclear reactor to change a liquid fuel into a gas Some of the fuel, heated by the nozzle of the rocket, flows through the turbine Turbine drives the fuel pump

Whats Next?
Our own experiments on jet propulsion!

Image Resources
Microsoft, Inc. (2008). Clip art. Retrieved September 10, 2008, from http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/clipart/default.aspx National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). (2008). Beginners guide to propulsion. Retrieved June 23, 2009, from http://www.grc.nasa.gov/WWW/K-12/airplane/bgp.html National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). (2008). NASA TV Video Gallery. Retrieved June 23, 2009, from http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/videogallery/index.html

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). (2008). NASA A closer look at the X-43 mission. Retrieved June 23, 2009, from http://www.nasa.gov/missions/research/x43-image-feature.html
National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). (2007). NASA Rocket. Retrieved June 23, 2009, from http://www.nasa.gov/worldbook/rocket_worldbook.html