Combustion Performance and Deposit Characteristics of Boron–Aluminum Composite Fuel in a Powder-Fueled Ramjet: A Ground Test Study
Powder-fueled ramjets show great potential due to their unique advantages. How to further improve ramjet performance through methods such as fuel improvement is also an important focus. In this paper, a 14 km, Ma 3.0, ground test of a powder-fueled ramjet using boron–aluminum composite powder fuel (...
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| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2025-03-01
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| Series: | Molecules |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/1420-3049/30/7/1503 |
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| Summary: | Powder-fueled ramjets show great potential due to their unique advantages. How to further improve ramjet performance through methods such as fuel improvement is also an important focus. In this paper, a 14 km, Ma 3.0, ground test of a powder-fueled ramjet using boron–aluminum composite powder fuel (B–Al composite powder fuel) was conducted. The feasibility and combustion performance of B–Al composite powder fuel were verified. Under the condition of an air–fuel ratio of 19.39, the ramjet achieved independent self-sustaining combustion for 10 s, and the characteristic exhaust velocity efficiency (<inline-formula><math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><semantics><msubsup><mi>η</mi><mi>c</mi><mo>*</mo></msubsup></semantics></math></inline-formula>) reached 81.84%. Through SEM-EDS, XRD, and XPS, this study systematically analyzed the surface morphology, composition, and chemical state of the wall deposits in the combustion chamber after the test. The combustion behavior of the B–Al composite powder fuel in the ramjet was clarified. The composite powder fuel could be converted into smaller and more combustion-favorable reaction basic units during the combustion process. However, the imbalance and unevenness of Al and B in the combustion reaction and the non-reaction or reaction termination of B particles remain significant issues. This study shows that B–Al composite powder fuel has a good application basis and potential, and provides experimental data support for the subsequent improvement and optimization of the B–Al composite powder fuel system. |
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| ISSN: | 1420-3049 |