Ce rapport de thèse porte sur une étude expérimentale et théorique de l'ébullition en microgravité. Les expériences furent réalisées en condition de gravité terrestre, en vol parabolique et en fusée-sonde. Les expériences en vol parabolique ont montré l'influence de divers paramètres sur le transfert thermique et ont mis en évidence les mécanismes contrôlant le transfert thermique. De l'écriture des équations gouvernant ces mécanismes et de l'identification des échelles caractéristiques, une corrélation permettant d'estimer le transfert de chaleur lors de l'ébullition en microgravité pour une large gamme de fluide est bâtie. L'expérience en fusée-sonde a permis d'étudier l'influence des gaz incondensables et notamment de la convection Marangoni sur le comportement de l'ébullition et sur le transfert thermique. / Between the different propulsion phases, the Ariane V rocket passes through microgravity periods and solar radiation can induce boiling in its cryogenics tanks. Experiments were performed during 6 parabolic flights and in a sounding rocket to study pool boiling in microgravity. In the parabolic flight experiments, the influence of pressure, subcooling and surface roughness was studied. It is showed that subcooling has a weak effect on microgravity boiling heat transfer, and that roughness is an important factor also in microgravity. Detailed results on the behavior of bubbles and on the superheated liquid layer show that the heat transfer mechanisms can be divided in two groups : the primary mechanisms which directly take energy from the wall and the secondary mechanisms which transport the energy stored in the fluid by the primary mechanisms, from the vicinity of the wall to the bulk liquid. The secondary mechanisms appear not to limit primary mechanism heat transfer which explains the weak influence of gravity on heat transfer. From the study of equations governing primary mechanisms and the definition of new scales, a correlation is built to predict heat transfer in microgravity for a wide variety of fluids. In the sounding rocket experiment, the influence of non-condensable gases was studied. The existence of two regimes of boiling heat transfer with non-condensable gas is established. The temperature in the primary bubble is directly measured and the influences of both Marangoni convection and non-condensable gas on both heat transfer and bubble growth are also considered.

Quantensensoren auf Basis ultra-kalter Atome sind gegenwärtig auf dem Weg ihre klassischen Pendants als Messintrumente sowohl in Präzision als auch in Genauigkeit zu überholen, obwohl ihr Potential noch immer nicht vollständig ausgeschöpft ist. Die Anwendung von Quantensensortechnologie wie Materiewelleninterferometern im Weltraum wird ihre Sensitivität weiter steigen lassen, sodass sie potentiell die genauesten erdbasierten Systeme um mehrere Grössenordnungen übertreffen könnten. Mikrogravitationsplattformen wie Falltürme, Parabelflugzeuge und Höhenforschungsraketen stellen exzellente Testumgebungen für zukünftge atominterferometrische Experimente im Weltraum dar. Andererseits erfordert ihre Nutzung die Entwicklung von Schlüsseltechnologien, die hohe Standards in Bezug auf mechanische und thermische Robustheit, Autonomie, Miniaturisierung und Redundanz erfüllen müssen. In der vorliegenden Arbeit wurden erste Interferometrieexperimente mit degenerieten Quantengasen in Schwerelosigkeit im Rahmen des QUANTUS Projektes durchgeführt. In mehr als 250 Freifall-Experimenten am Bremer Fallturm konnte die Präparation, freie Entwicklung und Phasenkohärenz eines Rubidium Bose- Einstein Kondensates (BEC) auf makroskopischen Zeitskalen von bis zu 2 s untersucht werden. Dazu wurde ein BEC-Interferometer mittels Bragg-Strahlteilern in einen Atomchip-basierten Aufbau implementiert. In Kombination mit dem Verfahren der Delta-Kick Kühlung (DKC) konnte die Expansionsrate der Kondensate weiter reduziert werden, was zur Beobachtung von effektiven Temperaturen im Bereich von 1 nK führte. In einem Interferometer mit asymetrischer Mach-Zehnder Geometrie konnten Interferenzstreifen mit hohem Kontrast bis zu einer Verweildauer von 2T = 677 ms untersucht werden. / State-of-the-art cold atomic quantum sensors are currently about to outpace their classical counterparts in precision and accuracy, but are still not exploiting their full potential. Utilizing quantum-enhanced sensor technology such as matter wave interferometers in the unique environment of microgravity will tremendously increase their sensitivity, ultimately outperforming the most accurate groundbased systems by several orders of magnitude. Microgravity platforms such as drop towers, zero-g airplanes and sounding rockets are excellent testbeds for advanced interferometry experiments with quantum gases in space. In return, they impose demanding requirements on the payload key technologies in terms of mechanical and thermal robustness, remote control, miniaturization and redundancy. In this work, first interferometry experiments with degenerate quantum gases in zero-g environment have been performed within the QUANTUS project. In more than 250 free fall experiments operated at the drop tower in Bremen, preparation, free evolution and phase coherence of a rubidium Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC) on macroscopic timescales of up to 2 s have been explored. To this end, a BEC interferometer using first-order Bragg diffraction was implemented in an atomchip based setup. Combined with delta-kick cooling (DKC) techniques to further slow down the expansion of the atomic cloud, effective temperatures of about 1 nK have been reached. With an asymmetrical Mach-Zehnder geometry, high-contrast interferometric fringes were observed up to a total time in the interferometer of 2T = 677 ms.

<div>Optimal control theory (OCT) exists since the 1950s. However, with the advent of modern computers, the design community delegated the task of solving the optimal control problems (OCPs) largely to computationally intensive direct methods instead of methods that use OCT. Some recent work showed that solvers using OCT could leverage parallel computing resources for faster execution. The need for near real-time, high quality solutions for OCPs has therefore renewed interest in OCT in the design community. However, certain challenges still exist that prohibits its use for solving complex practical aerospace problems, such as landing human-class payloads safely on Mars.</div><div><br></div><div>In order to advance OCT, this thesis introduces Epsilon-Trig regularization method to simply and efficiently solve bang-bang and singular control problems. The Epsilon-Trig method resolves the issues pertaining to the traditional smoothing regularization method. Some benchmark problems from the literature including the Van Der Pol oscillator, the boat problem, and the Goddard rocket problem verified and validated the Epsilon-Trig regularization method using GPOPS-II.</div><div><br></div><div>This study also presents and develops the usage of trigonometry for incorporating control bounds and mixed state-control constraints into OCPs and terms it as Trigonometrization. Results from literature and GPOPS-II verified and validated the Trigonometrization technique using certain benchmark OCPs. Unlike traditional OCT, Trigonometrization converts the constrained OCP into a two-point boundary value problem rather than a multi-point boundary value problem, significantly reducing the computational effort required to formulate and solve it. This work uses Trigonometrization to solve some complex aerospace problems including prompt global strike, noise-minimization for general aviation, shuttle re-entry problem, and the g-load constraint problem for an impactor. Future work for this thesis includes the development of the Trigonometrization technique for OCPs with pure state constraints.</div>

Cette thèse vise à modéliser les instabilités hydrodynamiques générant des détachements tourbillonnaires pariétaux (ou VSP) responsables des Oscillations De Pression dans les moteurs à propergol solide longs et segmentés par interaction avec l’acoustique du moteur. Ces instabilités sont modélisées en tant que modes de stabilité linéaire globaux de l’écoulement d’un conduit à parois débitantes. En supposant que les structures pariétales émergent d’une perturbation de l’écoulement de base, des modes discrets et indépendants du maillage utilisé sont calculés. Dans ce but, une discrétisation par collocation spectrale multi-domaine est implémentée dans un solveur parallèle afin de s’affranchir de la croissance polynomiale des fonctions propres et de la présence de couches limites. Les valeurs propres ainsi calculées dépendent explicitement des frontières du domaine, à savoir la position de la perturbation et celle de la sortie, et sont ensuite validées par simulation numérique directe. On montre alors qu’elles permettent bien de décrire la réponse à une perturbation initiale de l’écoulement modifié par une rupture de débit pariétale. Ensuite, la simulation d’une réponse forcée par l’acoustique se fait sous forme de structures tourbillonnaires dont les fréquences discrètes sont en accord avec celles des modes de stabilité. Ces structures sont réfléchies en ondes de pression de même fréquences remontant l’écoulement. Finalement, la simulation numérique et la théorie de la stabilité permettent de montrer que le VSP, dont la réponse est linéaire vis-à-vis d’un forçage compressible comme l’acoustique, est le phénomène moteur des Oscillations De Pression. / The current work deals with the modeling of the hydrodynamic instabilities that play a major role in the triggering of the Pressure Oscillations occurring in large segmented solid rocket motors. These instabilities are responsible for the emergence of Parietal Vortex Shedding (PVS) and they interact with the boosters acoustics. They are first modeled as eigenmodes of the internal steady flowfield of a cylindrical duct with sidewall injection within the global linear stability theory framework. Assuming that the related parietal structures emerge from a baseflow disturbance, discrete meshindependant eigenmodes are computed. In this purpose, a multi-domain spectral collocation technique is implemented in a parallel solver to tackle numerical issues such as the eigenfunctions polynomial axial amplification and the existence of boundary layers. The resulting eigenvalues explicitly depend on the location of the boundaries, namely those of the baseflow disturbance and the duct exit, and are then validated by performing Direct Numerical Simulations. First, they successfully describe flow response to an initial disturbance with sidewall velocity injection break. Then, the simulated forced response to acoustics consists in vortical structures wihich discrete frequencies that are in good agreement with those of the eigenmodes. These structures are reflected into upstream pressure waves with identical frequencies. Finally, the PVS, which response to a compressible forcing such as the acoustic one is linear, is understood as the driving phenomenon of the Pressure Oscillations thanks to both numerical simulation and stability theory.

<div>Since as early as the 1920s, dinitrogen tetroxide (N2O4) has been regarded as a promising oxidizer in rocket propulsion systems. In more recent times, its predecessor, mixed oxides of nitrogen (MON), remains a top contender among oxidizers, due to its unique characteristics such as low freezing temperature and compatibility with common spacecraft materials. Today, these N2O4-based oxidizers are the preferred choice in many upper stages, launch escape systems, reaction control systems, liquid apogee engines, and in-space primary propulsion systems. N2O4-based oxidizers are a key factor in rocket propulsion, and thoroughly understanding their history, development, characteristics, synthesis, and composition analysis are crucial for space exploration today and into the future.<br><br></div><div>To fully understand and predict the physical properties of a MON sample, it is important to measure and quantify its chemical composition. The recommended method for MON composition analysis, as prescribed by the Department of Defense’s Defense Specification (MIL-SPEC) document on N2O4, involves the oxidation of NO and dinitrogen trioxide (N2O3) in the MON sample to determine their amounts. An equation unofficially called the “MIL-SPEC equation” is then used to determine the amount of NO needed to mix with N2O4 to synthesize that particular MON sample. However, no explanation is given as to how the equation was derived, or its significance.<br><br></div><div>This thesis aims to collect and organize key information on the synthesis, handling, and composition analysis of MON propellant. First, the history of development of N2O4-based oxidizers was researched, and current and future uses of N2O4 and MON propellants were identified. Then a method for synthesis and composition analysis was devised and tested. Water contamination was expected of skewing the results, so the process of water contamination was examined analytically. Then a detailed derivation of the MIL-SPEC equation was conducted, to fully understand its mechanics. An attempt was then made to reverse-engineer an unexplained numerical value in the equation, labeled by the author as the “solubility factor”. Several derivations were provided with varying degrees of complexity, producing alternative solubility factors of varying accuracies. Finally, experimental data was applied to these derived, hypothetical solubility factors and the MIL-SPEC solubility factor, with the intent of determining whether improvements could be made to the MON composition determination process.<br><br></div><div>The results suggest that the MIL-SPEC equation is sufficient for providing a relatively accurate measurement of the composition of a MON sample, while also being easy to implement, both in taking the necessary measurements and in conducting the numerical calculation. However, some minor adjustments to the equation could produce consistently more accurate composition measurements without adding any more difficulty or complication.</div>

<p>Additive manufacturing of gun propellants is an emerging and promising field which addresses the limitations of conventional manufacturing techniques. Gun propellants are manufactured using wetted extrusion, which uses volatile solvents and dies of limited and constant geometries. On the other hand, additive techniques are faced with the challenges of maintaining the gun propellant’s energetic content as well as its structural integrity during high pressure combustion. The work presented in this thesis demonstrates the feasibility of producing functioning gun propellant grains using vibration-assisted 3D printing, a novel method which has been shown to extrude extremely viscous materials such as clays and propellant pastes. At first, the technique is compared to screw-driven additive methods which have been used in printing gun propellant pastes with slightly lower energetic content. In chapter two, diethylene glycol dinitrate (DEGDN), a highly energetic plasticizer, was investigated due to its potential to replace nitroglycerin in double base propellants with high nitroglycerin content. A novel isoconversional method was applied to analyze its decomposition kinetics. The ignition and lifetime values of diethylene glycol dinitrate were obtained using the new isoconversional method, in order to assess the safety of using the plasticizer in a modified double base propellant. In chapter three, a modified double base propellant (M8D) containing DEGDN was additively manufactured using VAP. The printed strands had little to no porosity, and their density was nearly equal to the theoretical maximum density of the mixture. The strands were burned at high pressures in a Crawford bomb and the burning was visualized using high speed cameras. The burning rate equation as a function of the M8D propellant as a function of pressure was obtained. Overall, this work shows that VAP is capable of printing highly energetic gun propellants with low solvent content, low porosity, with high printing speeds, and which have consistent burning characteristics at high pressures. </p>

<p>This work investigated the effects of varying the crystal sizes of ammonium perchlorate (AP) when embedded with a polymeric binder, hydroxyl-terminated polybutadiene (HTPB) on impact-induced temperature behavior.  AP and HTPB are the most used oxidizers and fuel binders in the aerospace solid rocket design industry. In this study, samples of 200 µm and 400µm coarse AP crystals in HTPB were constructed using a conventional hand-mixing method. Using a parametric optimization technique such as the Taguchi method, direct-ink-writing as the additive manufacturing process was used for achieving the required shape fidelity in printing HTPB and by introducing ultraviolet polymers to decrease the curing time.</p> <p>A drop hammer experiment in conjunction with an infrared camera was used to study the impact-induced behavior in the conventionally made AP-HTPB samples. The thermal images obtained from the camera at millisecond resolution are invaluable and provide information about distribution across the sample surface, and the evolution of temperature rise observed in the samples which are complex and not easily understood otherwise and therefore help in improving and attaining desired propellant performance. A two-sample t-Test has been utilized to infer the results and statistical nonsignificance has been observed in the highest temperature rises among 200 µm and 400 µm AP-HTPB sample conditions but a difference in temperature distribution has been observed. A much uniform distribution of temperature over the sample surface on impact is observed in thermal images of 200 µm AP-HTPB sample condition compared to 400 µm AP-HTPB sample condition.</p>

The objective of this study was to design a launch vehicle capable of deploying a nanosatellite into a Sun-synchronous orbit at 500 km orbital altitude from the JAS 39E/F Gripen fighter aircraft. This was achieved by first performing theoretical calculations for the required nozzles and solid propellant grain configurations for the first two solid stages, followed by the necessary liquid propellant configuration for the third stage. Lastly, two methods were investigated in solving the trajectory ascent problem for the launch vehicle design. First, by stating the trajectory problem as an initial value problem while guessing a Sigmoidal steering law. Secondly, by stating the trajectory problem as a boundary value problem. The latter was solved by transcribing the trajectory problem into a nonlinear program where a parametric steering law was derived using a Sequential quadratic programming algorithm.Ultimately, resulting in a launch vehicle design with a gross lift-off mass of 1,289 kg, capable of launching an 8.4 kg payload into the targeted orbit, with suggested modifications to increase the possible payload mass to 12.9 kg. / Målet med den här studien var att designa en luftlanserad trestegsraket kapabel till att transportera en nanosatellit upp till en solsynkron omloppsbana på 500 km altitud från ett JAS 39E/F Gripen jaktflygplan. Det gjordes genom att först beräkna de nödvändiga dysorna och krutladdningsformerna för de två första stegen tillsammans med en flytande bränsledesign för det tredje steget. Två metoder undersöktes för bananalysen. Först genom att anta en Sigmoidal styrningsfunktion för pitchen, sedan genom att transkribera problemet till ett icke-linjärt program där en parametrisk styrlag togs fram genom att använda en Sequential quadratic programming algoritm. Slutligen presenterades en raketdesign med en total vikt på 1 289 kg, kapabel till att skjuta upp en nyttolast på 8,4 kg till den önskade omloppsbanan tillsammans med förslag som kan öka den möjliga nyttolasten till 12,9 kg.

A need to find better achievement has always been required in the space industrythrough time. Advanced technologies are provided to accomplish goals for humanityfor space explorer and space missions, to apprehend answers and widen knowledges. These are the goals of improvement, and in this thesis, is to strive and demandto understand and improve the mass of a space nozzle, utilized in an upperstage of space mission, with an expander cycle engine. The study is carried out by creating design of experiment using Latin HypercubeSampling (LHS) with a consideration to number of design and simulation expense.A surrogate model based optimization with Multidisciplinary Design Optimization(MDO) method for two different approaches, Analytical Target Cascading (ATC) and Multidisciplinary Feasible (MDF) are used for comparison and emend the conclusion. In the optimization, three different limitations are being investigated, designspace limit, industrial limit and industrial limit with tolerance. Optimized results have shown an incompatibility between two optimization approaches, ATC and MDF which are expected to be similar, but for the two limitations, design space limit and industrial limit appear to be less agreeable. The ATC formalist in this case dictates by the main objective, where the children/subproblems only focus to find a solution that satisfies the main objective and its constraint. For the MDF, the main objective function is described as a single function and solved subject to all the constraints. Furthermore, the problem is not divided into subproblems as in the ATC. Surrogate model based optimization, its solution influences by the accuracy ofthe model, and this is being investigated with another DoE. A DoE of the full factorial analysis is created and selected to study in a region near the optimal solution.In such region, the result has evidently shown to be quite accurate for almost allthe surrogate models, except for max temperature, damage and strain at the hottestregion, with the largest common impact on inner wall thickness of the space nozzle. Results of the new structure of the space nozzle have shown an improvement of mass by ≈ 50%, ≈ 15% and ≈ -4%, for the three different limitations, design spacelimit, industrial limit and industrial limit with tolerance, relative to a reference value,and ≈ 10%, ≈ 35% and ≈ 25% cheaper to manufacture accordingly to the defined producibility model.

Includes Van Allen thesis (M.S.)--University of Iowa, 1936, and thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Iowa, 1939.