Annual Report 2016 - Mechanical Engineering

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20 Selected Highlights
Selected Highlights 2016
SFB TRR 40: Fundamental Technologies for the Develop­
ment of Future Space-Transport-System Components
under High Thermal and Mechanical Loads
n The European space industry prepares itself the future generations of
space-transportation and launcher systems to ensure Europe’s independent
access to space. Only such a capability ensures the political and economic
independence of EU member states whose industries and security rely to
a significant extent on usage and exploitation of the near-earth orbit, and
whose scientific interests lie in Earth and planetary exploration.
Future generations of space-transporta-
tion systems will offer a variety of launch
capabilities and different levels of reusa-
bility. They will rely on chemical propulsion
systems as primary engines, as this type
of propulsion offers the best compromise
between development and production
cost, and efficiency for the foreseeable
future. The particularly high complexity and
extreme thermal and mechanical loads of
chemical propulsion engines call for inten-
sive fundamental research as a prerequisite
for radical improvements
and innovative technical
solutions. Critical, thermally
and mechanical highly
loaded components of space
transportation systems with
chemical propulsion engines
are the focus of the collabo-
rative research center. The main areas of
research are the combustion chamber, the
nozzle, aftbody flows around the integrated
rocket engine, and structure cooling.
The scientific objective of TRR 40 is to
perform fundamental research to accom-
plish a significant gain in efficiency and
reliability and a reduction in the cost of
future primary propulsion engines for
space transportation systems. The power-
to-mass density of the main-stage Ariane
5 engine ‘Vulcain 2’ is almost 2 MW/kg,
a ratio which no other known man-made
energy-conversion machine reaches. A
single Ariane 5 rocket engine (Vulcain 2)
develops up to 1360 kN of thrust – this is
equivalent to all four engines on a A380
airbus. The cooling power needed to
prevent the nozzle from failure surpasses
100 MW/m2, the power of thrust chamber
totals 3 GW and the mass flow of liquid
oxygen and hydrogen exceeds 300 kg/s.
The sheer numbers underline that novel
interdisciplinary technological design
procedures are needed to take the devel-
opment of rocket engines to new levels in
reliability and performance. The scientific
core subject of all divisions within the
collaborative research center TRR 40
is the multi-disciplinary investigation of
nonlinear coupled thermomechanical
systems. Model development is based
on experimental findings and validation
through detailed numerical simulation in all
participating projects.
Innovative cooling concepts are needed
for combustion chamber temperatures of
about 3500K and multi-scale, multi-phys-
ics modeling approaches are developed
to handle injection temperatures near
the critical point of 50-70K. Dynamic
thermomechanical loads, highly unsteady
wake flows, new materials and alternative
propulsion fuels are among the main focus
areas in the interdisciplinary modeling
efforts.
Together with the leading universities in
Germany in rocket propulsion (RWTH
Aachen University, TU Braunschweig,
University of Stuttgart, The University of
the Armed Forces Munich), the German
national aeronautics and space research
centre (DLR) and the industiral partner Air-
bus-Safran Launchers, the TUM is leading
the 25 projects in its third (and final) funding
period. The German Research Foundation
(DFG) has granted another four years and
€10m to the TRR 40, which is the largest
research center funded by the DFG in
engineering sciences. The combination of
excellent research capabilities and world-
class experimental facilities together with
an industrial partner is unique among the
DFG-funded research centers.
Prof. Dr.-Ing.
Nikolaus Adams
Aerodynamics and
Fluid Mechanics
Phone +49.89.289.16142
Contact