KR-20260062646-A - Liquid propellant rocket engine with thermoelectric power generation function

Abstract

The present invention relates to a liquid propellant rocket engine having a thermoelectric power generation function, and more specifically, to a liquid propellant rocket engine capable of providing power required to drive an electric motor by utilizing the temperature difference between the inside and outside of a combustion chamber.

Inventors

• 강태형

Assignees

• 주식회사 키노텍

Dates

Publication Date

20260507

Application Date

20241029

Claims (4)

1. An oxidizer tank in which an oxidizer in a liquid state is stored; A fuel tank in which fuel in a liquid state is stored; An oxidizing agent pump that pressurizes the above oxidizing agent; A fuel pump that pressurizes the above fuel; A combustor that receives and burns the pressurized oxidizer and fuel together from the oxidizer pump and the fuel pump; An electric motor that drives the above oxidizer pump and the above fuel pump together; A battery that supplies power to the above electric motor; A thermoelectric power generation unit comprising a thermoelectric element that transmits power generated from the difference between the internal and external temperatures of the combustor; A liquid propellant rocket engine having a thermoelectric power generation function, characterized by having a control unit that controls the power generated in the thermoelectric power generation unit to be supplied to the electric motor or charged to the battery.
2. In claim 1, the thermoelectric power generation unit A liquid propellant rocket engine having a thermoelectric power generation function, characterized by further comprising a cooling channel installed around the combustor with the thermoelectric element in between, wherein the cooling channel stores a heat medium having a temperature relatively lower than the internal temperature of the combustor.
3. In Paragraph 2, As the heat medium, a heat medium supply part extending from the fuel tank to one side of the cooling channel so that the fuel of the fuel tank flows into the cooling channel; A liquid propellant rocket engine having a thermoelectric power generation function, further comprising a heat transfer fluid circulation section extending to the fuel tank from the other side of the cooling channel.
4. In Paragraph 2, Further comprising an auxiliary battery that charges power generated from the thermoelectric element; The above thermoelectric elements are installed in multiple numbers between the combustion unit and the cooling channel, and Among the plurality of the above thermoelectric elements, some are connected to the auxiliary battery and the remaining some are connected to the battery, and The above control unit A liquid propellant rocket engine having a thermoelectric power generation function, characterized by being able to control the supply of power generated from the thermoelectric power generation unit to the auxiliary battery and the battery, and, when the electric motor is driven, receiving information on the charge state of the battery and, if it is below a set range, controlling the supply of power stored in the auxiliary battery to the electric motor, and controlling the power generated from the thermoelectric elements connected to the battery to charge the battery while the power from the auxiliary battery is supplied to the electric motor.

Description

Liquid propellant rocket engine with thermoelectric power generation function The present invention relates to a liquid propellant rocket engine having a thermoelectric power generation function, and more specifically, to a liquid propellant rocket engine capable of providing power required to drive an electric motor by utilizing the temperature difference between the inside and outside of a combustion chamber. A rocket is a spacecraft equipped with a propulsion system capable of flying in space, and it serves the role of transporting devices that perform missions in space, such as artificial satellites, into space. Liquid propellant rocket engines generate thrust by expelling high-speed, high-pressure gas obtained from burning oxidizer and fuel in a combustion chamber through a nozzle, and are used as representative propulsion systems for the aforementioned rockets. Such a liquid propellant rocket engine generally comprises: a main combustion chamber that burns an oxidizer and fuel; a main oxidizer line that guides the oxidizer to the main combustion chamber; a main fuel line that guides fuel to the main combustion chamber; a gas generator that generates high-temperature, high-pressure gas; an auxiliary oxidizer line that guides a portion of the oxidizer to the gas generator; an auxiliary fuel line that guides a portion of the fuel to the gas generator; a turbine that is rotated by the high-temperature, high-pressure gas of the gas generator; and an oxidizer pump and a fuel pump that are coupled to the turbine on a single shaft. Looking at the starting process of a liquid propellant rocket engine, the turbine starter first drives the turbine to raise the pressure using the oxidizer and fuel pumps. In this state, the auxiliary oxidizer and auxiliary fuel lines are opened to supply oxidizer and fuel to the gas generator. The supplied oxidizer and fuel combust in the gas generator to produce combustion gases, and these high-temperature combustion gases drive the turbine again to rotate the oxidizer and fuel pumps. Once the oxidizer and fuel pumps generate a certain pressure, the main oxidizer and main fuel lines are opened to supply fuel and propellant into the main combustion chamber. The propellant and fuel supplied to the main combustion chamber combust and are expelled externally as high-temperature gases through the nozzle. Through this process, the engine is started. There is a problem of increased launch weight because additional oxidizer and fuel must be loaded to drive the gas generator, and energy loss occurs because the gas used to initially drive the turbine is vented externally. To solve these problems, U.S. Registered Patent No. 6457306 and U.S. Published Patent No. 20140260186 disclose a rocket engine assembly in which the gas generator and turbine assembly are omitted and an electric motor for driving a pump is provided. Additionally, Taiwan Korean Registered Patent No. 10-1682418 discloses a liquid rocket engine capable of cooling an overheated electric motor. Referring to FIG. 1, a conventional liquid propellant rocket engine using an electric motor includes an oxidizer tank (11) containing an oxidizer in a liquid state, a fuel tank (12) containing fuel in a liquid state, an oxidizer pump (13) for pressurizing the oxidizer, a fuel pump (14) for pressurizing the fuel, a main combustion chamber (15) for receiving and burning the pressurized oxidizer and fuel together, a pressurizing tank (16) for pressurizing the oxidizer tank (11) and the fuel tank (12) together to meet the inlet pressure requirements of the oxidizer pump (13) and the fuel pump (14), an electric motor (17) for driving the oxidizer pump (13) and the fuel pump (14) together, and a battery (18) for supplying power to the electric motor (17). In addition, a conventional liquid propellant rocket engine using an electric motor includes an inlet side oxidizer line (L11) connecting the inlet side of an oxidizer tank (11) and an oxidizer pump (13), an inlet side fuel line (L21) connecting the inlet side of a fuel tank (12) and a fuel pump (14), an outlet side oxidizer line (L12) connecting the outlet side of an oxidizer pump (13) and a main combustion chamber (15), and an outlet side fuel line (L22) connecting the outlet side of a fuel pump (14) and a main combustion chamber (15). And, as illustrated in FIG. 1, the liquid propellant rocket engine may further include a first cooling line (L31) in which one end is branched from the outlet oxidizer line (L12), the middle part passes through an electric motor (17), and the other end is exposed to the outside air, and a second cooling line (L32) in which one end is branched from the outlet fuel line (L22), the middle part passes through a battery (18), and the other end is connected to the inlet fuel line (L21). In addition, an oxidizer valve (V10) and a fuel valve (V20) are provided in the outlet oxidizer line (L12) and the outlet fuel line (L22), respectively, so that when a certain amou