Supercritical carbon dioxide as a new working medium for pneumatic launch: A theoretical study

Abstract

Compared with the conventionally gaseous or liquid working media, the specific internal energy of supercritical carbon dioxide (SCD) is higher at the same temperature and pressure, and the critical temperature of carbon dioxide is close to room temperature, making SCD a potential new working medium for pneumatic launch. To analyze the feasibility of this conception, an analytical model of a pneumatic catapult is established on basis of the conservations of mass and energy. The model consists of a high-pressure chamber and a low-pressure chamber connected by multiple valves, and there is a movable piston in the low-pressure chamber that can push an aircraft to accelerate. The effects of the launch readiness state of SCD in the high-pressure chamber, the initial volume of the low-pressure chamber and the valve control on the movement of the aircraft are analyzed. It is found that there is a restrictive relation between the temperature and pressure of the launch readiness state of SCD, i.e., there is a maximum allowable launch readiness pressure when the launch readiness temperature is fixed. If this restrictive relation is not satisfied, the working medium in the low-pressure chamber will drop to its triple point within a few milliseconds, leading to a launch failure. Owing to this restrictive relation, there is an optimal launch readiness state of SCD with the highest working capacity for any allowable launch readiness temperature. The pressure of the low-pressure chamber will decrease significantly as the initial volume increases, leading to a decreased acceleration of the aircraft. The acceleration can be controlled below a critical value by a designed sequential blasting technique of multiple valves. The calculated results show that a 500 kg aircraft can be accelerated from 0 to 58 m/s in 0.9 s with 36 kg of carbon dioxide. This research provides a new technique for the controllable cold launch of an aircraft.