Development of a metal-powder fuel for a novel in-space propulsion technology

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The research project seeks to use tools in computational fluids dynamics to predict the behaviour of aerosolized metal powder combustion for the development of a novel in-space propulsion technology. The predictive modelling will enable the development of a proof of concept and accelerate Columbiad's development time to bring this technology to market. Three scientific challenges will be addressed as part of this work: (1) injection and dispersion prediction of micro- and nanoparticles in turbulent flows; (2) heat release due to nanothermite reaction; (3) induction heating of aerosolized, ferrous aerosolized particles. These unresolved scientific issues lie at the heart of the technological development for this engine. To address these scientific questions, we will be extending the development of our existing computational tools to account for the additional physics involved in these multi-physics and multi-scale problems. The methodology to tackle these problems is the (i) identification of the underlying physical mechanism (e.g. turbulent transport of aerosolized particles); (ii) use or development a mathematical model, with appropriate fidelity, to capture the identified physics (combustion mechanism, induction heating etc.); (iii) simulation of a representative setup to characterize the desired engineering features (e.g. mixing of nanoparticles, injection system etc.); and, (iv) post-process, infer and understand the results generated. The engineering insight useful to the technology development will be gleaned from step (iv).