ME5309

NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF SINGAPORE

ME5309 – AIRCRAFT ENGINES AND ROCKET PROPULSION

(Semester II: 2018/2019)

Time Allowed: 2.5 Hours

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INSTRUCTIONS TO STUDENTS

1. Please write your student number only. Do not write your name.

2. This assessment paper contains FOUR (4) questions and comprises EIGHT (8) printed
pages.

3. Students are required to answer ALL questions.

4. Students are to write the answers for each question on a new page.

5. Please answer Questions 1 and 2 on one answer booklet, and Questions 3 and 4 on a
separate answer booklet. Please submit both sets of answer booklets separately.

6. This is a CLOSED BOOK EXAMINATION with authorized materials. Students are

allowed to bring one single sheet of A4 paper with formulae written and/or typed on both
sides.

7. All questions do not carry equal marks: Questions 1 and 2 carry 25 marks each; Question
3 carries 28 marks and Question 4 carries 22 marks.

8. A booklet containing Compressible Flow Tables has been provided for the purpose of this
examination. Please do not remove the booklet from the examination venue.

9. Programmable calculators are NOT allowed for this examination.

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Question 1

(a) Converging-diverging nozzles are found in rocket engines and low bypass-ratio
turbofan engines of military fighter aircraft. As shown in Figure 1, air ( = 1.4, R =
287 J/(kgK)) with a total pressure and total temperature of Pt = 1 MPa and Tt = 500 K,
respectively, enters a converging-diverging nozzle with a throat area Ath of 0.8 m2
subsonically. The cross-sectional area Ae at the nozzle exit is 1.6 m2. Assume that the
flow is quasi-one-dimensional and isentropic except across normal and/or oblique
shock waves.

(i) The nozzle exit is subjected to an ambient static pressure of 0.95 MPa.
Determine the Mach number at the nozzle exit, the air mass flow rate through
the nozzle and the throat Mach number.

(ii) If the Mach number at the nozzle exit is 0.45, determine the static and total
pressures at the nozzle exit.
(12 marks)

Figure 1

(b) Figure 2 shows the cross-sectional view of the supersonic inlet of a military fighter
aircraft designed to cruise at M1 = 2.5. The area ratio A1/A2 = 1.5. In order to control
and regulate the air ( = 1.4, R = 287 J/(kgK)) mass flow rate into the engine, a bleed
door of area A4 is deployed to bleed off part of the air back into the atmosphere. A
Prandtl Meyer expansion fan exists within the inlet at the front end of the bleed door.
An oblique shock wave exists in the free-stream flow above the inlet at the front end
of the bleed door. An oblique shock wave also exists at the rear end of the bleed door
within the inlet. The static pressure P3 at Station 3 is the same as the static pressure P4
at Station 4. It is known that P3/P1 = P4/P1 = 1.442, where P1 is the free-stream or
ambient static pressure. Assume that the flow is quasi-one-dimensional (except across
oblique shocks and expansion fans) and isentropic (except across shocks).

(i) Determine M2, the Mach number at Station 2.

(ii) Determine M3 and M4, the Mach numbers at Stations 3 and 4, respectively, as
well as the flow deflection angle .
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(iii) Express the fraction of air mass flow rate released back to the atmosphere
4 A4V4 sin 
as a function of A4/A1. Determine the value of A4/A1 for which
1 A1V1
this fraction is 10%.
(13 marks)

Figure 2
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Question 2

(a) A turbojet engine has been proposed to propel a long-range missile cruising at Mach
2.5 at an altitude of 10 km where the ambient static pressure and temperature are 26.5
kPa and –50C, respectively. The compressor (total) pressure ratio c is 20 and the
maximum allowable turbine inlet temperature Tt4 is 1800 K. Assume that the fuel
heating value is 43 MJ/kg and that air behaves as an ideal gas with  = 1.4 and R =
287 J/(kgK). Perform an ideal-cycle analysis and determine the following engine
performance parameters:

(i) Specific thrust;

(ii) Thrust Specific Fuel Consumption (TSFC).
(13 marks)

(b) In order to increase the specific thrust by 40%, the afterburner of the turbojet engine
described in Part (a) is deployed. Determine the percentage change in engine Thrust
Specific Fuel Consumption (TSFC) due to this 40% increase in specific thrust.
(5 marks)

(c) For the ideal non-afterburning turbojet engine operating under the conditions
described in Part (a), what will be the optimum compressor pressure ratio c for
achieving a maximum specific thrust? What will be the corresponding turbine
pressure ratio t? Determine the maximum achievable specific thrust.
(7 marks)
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Question 3

(a) A rocket-firing experiment has been conducted at sea-level with a liquid

monopropellant known as nitromethane (CH3NO2), which can undergo a combustion
reaction and decompose into gaseous reaction products. Chemical reaction (A) shows
the product composition under chemical equilibrium conditions:

1.0 → 0.8 0.2 0.7 0.8 0.5 (A)

(i) Determine the heat of reaction ∆ , of chemical reaction (A) occurring at

298.16 K;

(ii) Determine the adiabatic flame temperature , assuming that the

nitromethane’s initial temperature is 298.16 K.

Assume no dissociations. Table 1 lists the standard heat of formation ∆ , the

effective molar heat capacity , , and the mole fraction of species i.
Assume , , . , , 298.16 .

Table 1
Species i ∆ (J/mol) , , (J/mol-K)
–111,000 34 0.8
–394,000 55 0.2
0 32 0.7
–241,000 45 0.8
0 34 0.5
–113,000 1.0

(10 marks)

(b) In a rocket chamber (Figure 3), during an adiabatic heat addition process, the
adiabatic flame temperature is identical to the chamber temperature ( if
the chamber velocity is comparatively small. With the value of determined from
Part (a) and the following rocket performance parameters for a new liquid
monopropellant (nitromethane) rocket motor:

Specific impulse: 255 sec

Constant thrust: 500 N
Burning duration: 10 minutes

Determine the following rocket propulsion parameters at 1 atm:

(specific gas constant 462 J/(kgK) and 1.3 for the nitromethane reaction
products, 9.8 ⁄ , 1 atm =101,325 Pa)

(i) Mass flow rate of monopropellant;

(ii) Total mass of monopropellant;
(iii) Effective exhaust velocity c;
(iv) Chamber pressure ;
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∗
(v) Characteristic exhaust velocity ;
(vi) Nozzle throat diameter.
(18 marks)

Figure 3. Rocket Chamber and Nozzle

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Question 4

As shown in Figure 4, a supersonic aircraft is designed to cruise at a flight speed of M0 = 5.0.

0.5

Figure 4

(a) For the heat addition process, a supersonic entry combustion chamber is employed.
Assume isentropic flow from the vehicle inlet to the combustion chamber inlet. The
inlet conditions for the combustion chamber are as follows: Mach number 2,
static temperature 737 K. Determine the maximum amount of heat per unit air
mass (kJ/kg) that can be added in the combustion chamber without reducing the
mass flow rate. For this (kJ/kg), find the fuel-air ratio and the maximum
stagnation temperature ratio of the combustion chamber outlet to inlet , ⁄ , .
Assume the heating value of the fuel to be 40 MJ/kg. Neglect the fuel flow rate in
comparison to the air flow rate. Neglect friction and assume that air behaves as a
perfect gas with constant specific heats 1.4 and =1.004 kJ/(kgK)).
(7 marks)

(b) For the heat addition process, a subsonic entry combustion chamber is applied.
Assume isentropic flow from the vehicle inlet to the combustion chamber inlet. The
inlet conditions for the combustion chamber are as follows: Mach number 0.5,
static temperature 1263 K. Determine the maximum amount of heat per unit air
mass (kJ/kg) that can be added in the combustion chamber without reducing the
mass flow rate. For this (kJ/kg), find the fuel-air ratio and the maximum
allowable , ⁄ , .
(7 marks)
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(c) For a subsonic entry combustion chamber, there is an operational entry temperature
limit. To keep the entry stagnation temperature into the combustion chamber lower
than 1000 K, a precooler is proposed to be added ahead of the subsonic entry
combustion chamber. For the same inlet conditions of the combustion chamber
described in Part (b), determine the amount of heat per unit air mass to be removed by
the precooler to achieve , 1000 K. In addition, determine the final Mach number
of the air after the precooler and the maximum allowable , ⁄ , without
reducing the mass flow rate.
(8 marks)

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