Flow and Heat Transfer Characteristics of Low-Flow Resistance Rocket Kerosene under Supercritical Pressure

To explore the drag reduction effect of drag reducer on rocket kerosene under supercritical pressure and high temperature conditions, flow and heat transfer characteristics of rocket kerosene M and low-flow resistance rocket kerosene M-3 with drag reducer were investigated in a Φ2 mm×0.5 mm high-temperature alloy steel tube as active cooling channels. Experiments were conducted at pressure of 15 MPa, mass flow rates of 17 000-50 000 kg/(m2•s) (corresponding to the normal temperature flow rates of about 20-60 m/s), and heat flux range of 2.5-30 MW/m2. It indicated that: ① The heat transfer mechanism of the rocket kerosene under the test conditions was supercritical liquid-like forced convection heat transfer; ② The drag reducing effect of drag reducer on rocket kerosene was obvious, the maximum drag reducing rate reached up to 60%, and with the increase of fluid temperature, the Reynolds number increased, the drag reduction effect decreased, and the minimum drag reducing rate approached 20%; ③ For the rocket kerosene with drag reducing agents, the heat transfer reduction occurred significantly, however, the heat transfer performance of kerosene M-3 hardly changed in high Reynolds number conditions, and the Nusselt number ratio of M-3 to M kept at about 0.5; and ④ When the Reynolds number was below 63 000, the drag reduction was greater than the heat transfer reduction, while when the Reynolds number was greater than 63 000, the results reversed. © 2019, Editorial Office of Journal of Xi'an Jiaotong University. All right reserved.