Reaction Engines - Turning up the Heat with UKAEA’s TSP

At Reaction Engines, a heat exchanger developer, the UKAEA Technical Support Package has been used in developing a prototype pre-cooler for a Single Stage to Orbit (SSTO) vehicle capable of achieving speeds between Mach 3 and Mach 5 allowing the vehicle to break free of the Earth's gravitational field.

Based on a 20 year technology study of HOTOL and SKYLON space planes, Reaction Engines has shown that heavily pre-cooled air-breathing engines combined with rocket mode operation for the latter ascent stage is capable of achieving earth orbit. Successfully developing an air-breathing engine is dependent on the performance of the heat exchangers that cool the incoming air. “Our objective is to cool hot gas from 1,000°C to - 100°C in the pre-cooler prior to compression. By understanding the flow of hot gas through the pre-cooler matrix we are able to adjust the matrix pattern and maximise heat transfer from gas to coolant,” said Reaction Engines Propulsion Engineer Helen Webber.

In its latest use of UKAEA’s TSP, to visualise the flow path of gas through the tube matrix, Reaction Engines has used a high-speed camera operating at 1,800 frames per second which is normally deployed by UKAEA fusion scientists on MAST to record the evolution of plasma during fusion. The camera images have allowed Reaction Engines to capture the cross counter flow across the matrix and identify any problem areas.

For further information on Reaction Engines please visit: www.reactionengines.co.uk

Back