Thermal-Structural Design/Analysis of an Airframe-Integrated Hydrogen-Cooled Scramjet

This paper presents the salient features of a preliminary thermal-structural design and analysis study of a hydrogen-fueled, regeneratively cooled, airframe-integrated scramjet. This three-dimensional fixed geometry scramjet concept, which was developed at NASA Langley Research Center, is designed to operate over a flight Mach number range from 4 to 10. The thermal-structural study was focused on a scramjet application to one concept for a hypersonic research vehicle and was based on technology developed under the NASA Hypersonic Research Engine Project. State-of-the-art analytical methods consisting of lumped system and finite-difference steady-state thermal analyses and a finite-element structural analysis were used. The results of the study indicated that this scramjet concept is viable from both a structural mass and cooling requirement standpoint. However, advances in material and fabrication technology for hydrogen-cooled structures appear necessary for acceptable engine life for commercial application.