45th AIAA/ASME/SAE/ASEE Joint Propulsion Conference & Exhibit

2 - 5 August 2009, Denver, Colorado

AIAA 2009-5494

Studies on a Pressurized Swirl Injector Bi-Propellant

Used in Rocket-motor
L. Rocco Jr. 1 , R.F.B.Gonalves 2 , J.A.F.F. Rocco 3 and K. Iha 4
Departamento de Qumica - Instituto Tecnolgico de Aeronutica - CTA,
So Jos dos Campos CEP 12228-901 - S.P. Brasil
The process of fuel injection in combustion chambers is of vital importance, under several
aspects, for the ideal operation of each motor. The responsible element for the introduction
of liquid and gaseous propellants in the combustion chamber of rockets and for the
transformation of liquid masses in sprays is the injector, that converts the potential energy of
the propelants in kinetic energy, for the pressure fall in its interior, forming a jet or liquid
sheet that dissolves in drops. Swirl type pressurized injectors, mono or bipropelants, are
object of constant studies to understand its operation in rocket-motor with liquid propelant,
because they produce conical liquid sheets and present a serie of differences in relation to the
axial type in terms of improvement of the combustion process as a whole. The fast formation
of a high number of drops, of convenient diameters, distributed in an extensive area, favors
the vaporization mechanisms due to the high surface of all, that quickly vaporize and enter
in combustion. Its production is a challenge for the techniques of conventional fabrication,
because of the complexity, dimensions, work conditions and its fixation in the injection head.
Injectors production from preexistent designs and the assembly of a structure which allowed
the tests of the same, was the object of this work, that generated pieces in brass which
allowed cold tests with the fluids kerosene and cut oil to confirm the formation of the hollow
conical spray and hot tests with melted paraffin to confirm the formation of spherical drops
of several sizes, which were measured in a profile projector, and analyzed by the process of
test sieving, revealing the existence of drops within the range of those already found in
literature.

Nomenclature
max
opt/ 2
DL
SMD
*
d1
1
D
Ni
Qi
Di
Di1 e Di2
Ni
Vi
i
a and b
a+b

=
=
=
=
=
=
=
=
=
=
=
=
=
=
=
=
=

wave growth
half wavelength
ribbon diameter filament
mean diameter of drop Sauter
axial waves
toroidal ligaments of diameter
circumferential waves
strip of drops diameter
number increment inside of Di
volume increment inside of Di
mean diameter of the range of size i
upper and under limits in the Di
number of drops in the range of size i
volume of measured liquid of the class i
number of classes of drop size or size of the considered field
any value corresponds to the investigated effect
called of order of the mean diameter

PhD Candidate, Chemistry Department, leo.rocco@ig.com.br AIAA member

PhD Candidate, Chemistry Department, rene@ita.br AIAA member
3
Professor, Chemistry Department, friz@ita.br AIAA member
4
Professor, Chemistry Department, koshun@ita.br AIAA member
2

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Copyright 2009 by the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Inc. All rights reserved.

D32, or SMD
Vesf = (4/3) r 3
Pesf = Vesf.
Aesf = 4 r 3

=
=
=
=

mean diameter of the drop Sauter

volume of the sphere where r is the ray of the sphere
weigh of the sphere where it is the specific mass
area of the sphere

I. Introduction
The complete understanding of the phenomena involved in the operation of pressurized swirl atomizers is
still a challenge for the researchers due to great complexity of the phenomena involved in the atomization
process.
The main factors that determines the quality of atomization of these atomizers are the properties of the
injected liquids, the physical properties of the gas in which this liquid is injected, the pressure of injection of
the liquid, the dimensions of the nozzle, and principally the final diameter of the exit hole on which
theoretical foresee, and experiments confirm, that the size of the mean drop is proportional to the the
thickness of the liquid sheet [1].
It is necessary a minimum speed of the sheet for its enlargement against the force of surface tension that
tends to contract the surface. As larger is the speed, the sheet expands and is elongated until a main extremity
is formed, where balance exists between the surface tension and the inertial forces. Its disintegration can
happen with or without perforations in the liquid sheet.
The generation of a wave movement in the sheet through the one which has areas corresponding to one or
half wavelength of the complete oscillation, will be torn before the extremity is reached. These torn areas,
when don't suffer disintegration for the action of air or turbulence, contract quickly under the action of the
surface tension, forming a net of lines.
Lefebvre [1] showed that the regularity of the disintegration process and the uniformity of production of
lines have a big influence in the drop size distribution. Perforations that happen in the sheet at the same
distance of the nozzle have a similar formation and the drop sizes are very constant in the disintegration of
perforated sheet. The disintegration of the wavy sheet is highly irregular, and consequently the drop sizes are
much more varied.
Atomizers that unload the liquid in the form of a sheet are usually capable to exhibit all the three manners
of sheet disintegration. Sometimes two different manners happen simultaneously, and its relative importance
can influence a lot, so much in the drop size, as in the distribution of its size.
Lefebvre [1] used an improved photographic technique and an especially projected source to combine a
discharge and intense illumination with short duration, and established that the ligaments are caused, mainly,
for perforations in the liquid sheet. If the perforations are caused by attrition with the air, the ligaments
separate very quickly. However, if the same ones are created through other means, as turbulence in the
nozzle, the ligaments break up more slowly. They ended that liquid sheets with high surface tension and
viscosity are more resistant to the breaking and the effect of the liquid density in the sheet disintegration is
very small.
Lefebvre [1] observed that the interaction between liquid and air produces waves that are unstable and
they dissolve in fragments that contract in ligaments and break up in drops. These drops are minors to high
velocity airstreams, because the ligaments are finer and they are formed closer to the nozzle.
The initial thickness of the liquid sheet, that it is directly proportional to the size of the injector nozzle, it
is important to determine the drop medium size produced, because it was observed that thicker films
produces thicker ligaments and larger drops.
The comparison among the magnitude of the wavelength of the disturbances that cause rupture of the
liquid sheet with its thickness is used by Lefebvre [1] to classify the liquid sheets in two groups.
In the first case, when the magnitude of the wavelength of the disturbances in the liquid surface is of the
same order of the sheet thickness, the rupture process begins closer to the nozzle exit and extends along the
sheet and the ligaments. The formed great structures and drops are unstable and they break up in smaller
drops than they tend to be wide of the order of the sheet thickness.
In the second case, when the magnitude of the wavelength of the disturbances in the liquid surface is
smaller than the sheet thickness, suface liquid disturbances are confined to a small area close to the surface
and as the disturbances grow, fine ligaments and small drops are removed of the surface. This disintegration
process happens in further areas of the nozzle.
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A. Liquid sheets
Instability and wave formation in the interface among the continuous and discontinuous phases are the
main factors in the rupture of a liquid sheet in drops plane in liquid sheets moving in the air. Forces of
surface tension try to do the protuberances return to their original position, but the local air static pressure
decreases (corresponding to the local increase in speed) and tends to enlarge the more distant external
protuberance. This corresponds to the pattern of instability for induced wind, where the forces of surface
tension are opposed in any movement of the interface of its initial plan and try to reestablish the balance,
while aerodynamics forces increases any interface divergence and promote the instability.
To formulate the problem, Lefebvre [1] considered an infinite two-dimensional liquid sheet of finite
thickness with air on both sides, without viscous effects and flow on rotational.
Using calculated velocities by Bernoulli equation, the pressure then can be evaluated and the displacements
determinated. As in the case of a liquid jet, an exponential increase in the wave amplitude happens under
certain conditions.
The growth tax has a defined maximum for a certain Weber number, especially to high Weber numbers
and the disturbance with this wavelength will dominate the interface and quickly disintegrate the sheet.
Lefebvre [1] proposed an expression for drops sizes produced by the rupture of a sheet with low viscosity
in form of fan. His model assume that the fastest wave growth ( max) is separated from the border in the
form of a ribbon with the width of half wavelength (opt/ 2). This ribbon immediately contracts in a diameter
filament DL, which subsequently dissolves in drops of equal diameter.
The medium diameter of drop Sauter (SMD) is the drop diameter that has the volume proportion and
surface area like the same of the total spray.
For a real case, where the liquid has finite viscosity and the thickness of the sheet decreases with the
movement as it increases the distance of the injector nozzle exit, Dombrowski and Johns [2] related the
measurements of the medium diameter Sauter of their works for a nozzle fan spray theoretically, for a low
viscosity flow, empirically correlating liquid sheet thickness, the distance of the nozzle, liquid dynamic
viscosity, its pressure and the sheet speed.
The theory of rupture of conical sheets produced by pressurized swirl injector nozzles is not totally
developed, but there are evidences that the ray of cone curvature has a desestabilized effect in the flotations.
Three different manners came from the sheet disintegration, described as ring, wave and perforated sheet.
In the ring way, as illustrated in Figure 1, occurs an unbalance in the extremity liquid sheet free owed the
unbalance between the surface tension forces and viscous forces that tend to unite the liquid and the forces
that tend to separate it, forming a margin breaks up for a mechanism that corresponds to the disintegration of
a free jet.
The resulting liquid continues moving in the direction of the original flow, staying fixed to the surface to
put thin lines (ligaments) that also quickly fracture in rows of drops. This disintegration way is very
prominent where the viscosity and surface tension of the liquid are high and produce big drops, with
numerous small drops around.

Figure 1. Hollow conical liquid sheet disintegration in ring and ligaments [1].
In the case of the waves, these are formed close to the nozzle and the wavelength for the maximum
growth causes periodic thickening of the liquid sheet towards the normal flow. Rings break outside of the
conical sheet, and the liquid volume contained in the rings can be dear as the volume of a ribbon cut out of
the sheet with a thickness same to the one of the sheet in the rupture distance and a width same to a
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wavelength. These cylindrical ligaments dissolve then in drops, in agreement with the mechanism of
Rayleigh.
The formation mechanisms, stabilization and disintegration of conical liquid sheets also studied by Mao,
Kuo [3], and Figure 2 illustrate surface waves dominating the disintegration of a conical hollow liquid sheet
what under ideal conditions, the axial waves * are they responsible for the creation of toroidal ligaments of
diameter d1 that possesses circumferential waves 1 what drive to the formation of the drops.

Figure 2. Hollow conical liquid sheet disintegration in waves [3]

In the disintegration of perforated sheet as shown by Inamura and Miyata [4], as show in Figure 3, holes
that show up in the sheet are delineated by formed margins of the liquid inside of which was formed initially,
that grow quickly in size until the margins of adjacent holes and they are founded to produce ligaments in an
irregular way that break up in drops of varied size.

Figure 3. Hollow conical liquid sheet disintegration in perforated sheet [4]

These disintegration manners can happen in a same hollow conical liquid sheet produced by a
pressurized swirl injector under several conditions of injection as low or high pressure or with or without it
influences of movement of the adjacent air.
B. Thickness of the liquid sheet
In swirl pressurized atomizers, the thickness of the liquid film in the end of the discharge hole is directly
related with the area of the nucleus of air.
Theory and practice indicate [1] that as higher the injection differential pressure, thinner the produced
liquid sheet and better the quality of the atomization. This is usually attributed to the increase of the speed of
discharge of the liquid, or also, partly, for the decrease of the thickness of the liquid film caused by the
increase of the differential pressure.
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An increase in the diameter of the final nozzle hole leads to a thicker film, because it reduces the
discharge coefficient. The thickness of the film increases with the increase of the area of the tangential
entrance holes of the liquid, because the flow increases in the nozzle, and it results in a thicker film. The
effect of a reduction in the diameter of vortex camera is the increase of the thickness of the liquid film. This
is attributed to the lowest action of the vortex that reduces the diameter of the nucleus of air inside the end of
the discharge hole. The effects of nozzle length and of the length of vortex camera in the thickness of the
film are quite small.
The thickness of the liquid film increases with the dimensions of the nozzle, liquid flow rate and viscosity
of the liquid and decreases with the increase in the density of the liquid and in the injection pressure.
The surface tension represents an important paper in the subsequent collapse of the liquid sheet in
ligaments and drops and the viscosity of the liquid is very important in the atomization process, because the
viscous forces oppose the atomization increasing the initial thickness of the film and resisting to the
disintegration of the liquid sheet in drops.
The effect of the density of the liquid in the thickness of the film is very small and probably the
influences in the atomization quality should be also small, and that is confirmed by the results of measures of
medium size of drop for swirl pressurized atomizers.
C. Drops diameters in conical sheets of a swirl pressurized injector
The average mean diameter of droplets for the same pressure drop and liquid flow rate is 2.2 to 2.5
smaller than that of jet injectors [5]
The mean drop diameter produced in conical sheets of swirl pressurized atomizers is calculated with base
in the thickness of the sheet and in the wavelength for the maxim growth rate.
Lefebvre [1] thought the sheet model plain infinite used in the theoretical analysis didn't represent the
conical spray of his experiences sufficiently.
For modulation dilatation of the liquid conical sheet, the effect of the change of the number of Weber in
the length and in the time of rupture of the sheet it is determined by the relative importance of the curvature
ray in the main direction of the flow. For the sinuous modulation the rupture of the film happens due to the
joining no lineal with the way dilatation and the length. The time of rupture of the sheet due to changes in the
number of Weber is influenced by the way no lineal of joining and for the behavior lineal dilatation and no
lineal.
For conical films, increases in the deviations of the liquid film drive it tuning and small drops soon stand
out of the fine ligaments and soon afterwards the film dissolves in agreement with Rayleighs mechanisms
rupture of jet.
Lefebvre [1] proposed an equation for the mean diameter of drop Sauter (SMD) produced by swirl
atomizers based in the notion that the disintegration of a liquid jet or sheet that leaves a nozzle is not caused
only by aerodynamic forces, but also and partly for the turbulence or other disruptive forces inside of the
liquid. These disturbances inside of the flow have a strong influence in the sheet disintegration, especially in
the first phase of the atomization. Subsequently, and even certain point simultaneously, the relative speed
between the liquid and the adjacent gas has an important paper in the atomization for its influence in the
development of the surface waves initially smooth and the production of unstable ligaments. Any increase in
this relative speed cause a reduction in the size of the ligaments, so that, when they dissolve many smaller
drops are produced. As the atomization process in swirl nozzles is highly complex is convenient to subdivide
it in two main phases. The first phase represents the generation of instabilities in the surface due to the
hydrodynamic effects and forces aerodynamics combined. The second phase is the conversion of the surface
protuberances in ligaments and then drops. It is recognized that this subdivision of the total process of
atomization in two separate and different phases, represents a simplification of the involved mechanisms,
however, it allows the formulation of an equation for SMD as:
SMD = SMD1 + SMD2
In the equation SMD1 represents the first phase of the atomization process. Its magnitude depends partly
on the Reynolds number of which supplies a measure of the disruptive forces inside of the liquid sheet.
These forces increase for increments in the speed of the liquid and in the thickness of liquid sheet and
decrease for an increase in the viscosity of the liquid. SMD1 is also influenced by the Weber number that
governs the development of capillary waves (undulations) in the liquid surface. The tax of growth of these
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disturbances in big projections is enough to break in the form of ligaments, depending on the relationship of
the aerodynamic forces among the interface liquid / air that its are opposed to the forces of superficial tension
that is Weber number.
The term SMD2 represents the final phase of the atomization process in the which the relative high-speed
induced to the interface of I liquidate / air, generated by the fast involvement of the conical sheet, it takes to
the separation of the surface protuberances generated in the first phase that it break up and they form
ligaments that break up in drops.
Couto, Carvalho and Neto [6] obtained an expression in which, leaving of the expression of Dombrowski
and Johns [2] for plane liquid sheets in fan, was considered the conical format and the axial components and
tangential speed of one of a hollow conical spray, produced by an atomizer pressurized of the type swirl.
D. External properties of the spray
The atomizer should fraction the liquid in small drops that should be distributed in the surrounding gas in
the form of a symmetrical and uniform spray.
The liquids sheet dissolves quickly in drops that tend to maintain the direction of the movement obtained
to the exit of the nozzle. Under the effect of the resistance of the air, the formed drops lose the pulse, mainly
the ones that are in contact with the adjacent gas forming a cloud of drops, finely atomized, suspended
around of the main body of the spray.
When the liquid is injected in inactive gas, currents of gas generated by the action of the own spray
influence in its physical structure and any increase of the angle of the spray cone will increase the extension
of this exposition, leading to a better atomization, reason for the which the angle of the cone of a spray is
very important.
In efficient dispersions the liquid mixtures happen quickly with the adjacent gas, and the evaporation
taxes are high. In pressurized swirl atomizers, the dispersion is governed mainly through other characteristics
of the spray, as the cone angle, mean size of the drop and distribution of drop size. The penetration, that is
the maxim distance reached by a spray when injected in stagnated air is determine for the magnitudes of the
forces contrary of the kinetic energy of the initial liquid jet and of the resistance aerodynamic of the adjacent
gas. The first formed drops give up it kinetic energy for the adjacent gas that it begins moving with the spray,
offering smaller resistance then for the following drops that consequently penetrate far away. The penetration
of the spray drives the introduction of fuel in areas of the combustion chamber according to the needs, as in
the walls, where vortexes of hot air are present, or it can still harm when the inadequate penetration results in
a mixture fuel-oxygen unsatisfactory.
The radial distribution of the liquid measures the radial volumetric symmetry of the fluid of the spray and
the distribution circunferential measures the circunferential volumetric symmetry of the fluid of the spray,
and they can also be done with base in the sizes of drops. The quality of the nozzle is important and the
distribution of the spray can be harmed to put bad superficial finish, imperfections in the hole, obstructions
or contaminations in the passages of the flow.
E. Distribution of the drops sizes in spray
The spray can be considered as a spectrum of drops sizes distributed under some medium value defined
arbitrarily and besides the mean drop size, other important parameter for the definition of a spray is in the
drop sizes distribution that the spray contains. The graphic representation of the drop sizes distribution can
be made in a histogram of drop size in which each ordinate represents the number of drops whose dimension
this among the limits D - D/2 e D + D/2 , where D is the strip of drops diameter that subtract and add to
the nominal drop diameter supplies the under and upper limit.
It is not always possible to count the number of drops, so the volume can be used (or the superficial area)
of the spray that corresponds to a range of drop sizes among D - D/2 and D + D/2 and is the resulting
distribution skewed to the right, shown in Figure 4, due to the weighting effect of the larger drops.
The histogram of the Figure 4 assumes the form of a frequency curve for values of small D and a large
number of samples. The values of the ordinates can be of several alternative manners as the number of drops
with a certain diameter. The relative number or fraction of the total, or the fraction of the total number for
size class, and in this case the area under the curve of frequency distribution, it should necessarily be equal to
1 Inclusions in the frequency plans can be made directly of the data of distribution of the drop sizes drawing
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 Ni / N Di , for D or Qi / Q Di , for D where Ni it is the number increment inside of Di e Qi

it is the volume increment inside of Di [2].
Qi = Ni ( / 6 ) [ 0,5 ( Di1 + Di2 ) ] 3

(1)

where Di1 e Di2 they are the limits upper and under in the Di (i nr) classes of drop size.

NUMBER
OF DROPS

DROP
VOLUME

N / D
or
Q / D

DROPS DIMETER

Figure 4 - Drop size histogram based on number and volume [1]

F. Mean diameters
The concept of mean diameter was generalized and standardized by Mugele & Evans [1] and in many
calculations of mass transfer and flow processes are convenient to work only with average or mean
diameters, instead of the complete distribution of drop size.
The equation
Da b = [ Ni Dia / Ni Dib ] 1/ ( a b )
(2)
Vi = Ni (4/3) (Di/2) 3
(3)
Ni = 3 Vi / 4 (Di/2)
(4)
where a and b can assume any value corresponds to the investigated effect, the sum of a + b is called of order
of the mean diameter, i represents the size of the considered field, Ni is the number of drops in the range of
size i, Di is the mean diameter of the range of size i and Vi is the volume of measured liquid (of the class i)
for the unit of volume, therefore a percentage.
D32, (SMD) it is the medium diameter of the drop Sauter whose proportion of the volume for the
superficial area is the same of the total spray, in the case of spherical drop format:
(5)
Volume of the sphere :
Vsph = (4/3)..r 3 where r represents the ray of the sphere
Weigh of the sphere :
Psph = Vsph.
where represents the specific mass
(6)
(7)
Area of the sphere :
Asph = 4..r 3

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G. Representative diameters
It is important to distinguish the concept among a representative diameter and a diameter that it supplies
an indication of atomization quality.
D 32 or SMD it can indicate correctly and adequately the "refinement" of the spray of the combustion
point of view, where many small drops are necessary to promote high initial evaporation taxes for a fast
ignition, because it has special significance for applications of transfer of heat and mass, but as any other
representative diameter can lead to erroneous conclusions on the delicacy of the spray.
Aspects as space and temporary sampling, sample size, saturation, evaporation and adhesion of drops
and collection point influence in the measurement of drop size and should be considered to guarantee that the
technique of measurement of size of chosen drop incurs the least possible mistakes than in practice are
already known.
Although a spray contains a larger proportion of small drops than great drops, are these few big drops
that prevail, determining the mean of diameter of drop of the spray, and then if a sample of drops is truly
representative as an all of the spray is important that the big drops are included.
H. Methods to measure sizes of drops.
Laser
A laser beam divided in two coherent laser beams of equal intensity and parallel polarization that are
guided in cross way, they form a control area through where passes the spray with drops to be measured.
These drops spread the light that is received then by an outline optical collector that sends the images of the
control area for the opening of a sensor one where the signs of the drops are registered.
They are equipments relatively easy to use with good flexibility of introduction of the sample and fast
measurement, but that demand knowledge for manipulation of data and they operate with restrictions in
dense means.
Based on the light scattering theories of Fraunhofer and Lorenz Mie, the equipment calculates a statistics
of distribution of size of a population of particles and it doesn't measure individual particles.
Melted wax technique
The paraffin wax is heated up to an ideal temperature above it fusion point, when it has close physical
properties of the aviation kerosene oil (density, 780 kg/m3 ; surface tension 0,027 kg/s2 , kinematic viscosity
1,5 x 106 m2/s) and it is injected then in the atmosphere, cooling and solidifying quickly, as proposed by
Joyce [1]
The wax drops solidified can be appraised and measures with the aid of optical instruments as
microscopes or profile projectors.
The analysis of a significant quantity of solid paraffin drops was conducted in the present work by using
granulometric sieves with brided metallic wires, in which the wax drops are separated in groups of
compatible diameters by the meshes openings.
The distribution of cumulative volume and medium diameter of mass will be measured directly and the
high number of drops in a sample turns the accurate procedure.
Besides the limitation in the choice of the material for test, other disadvantage of this technique is
changes in the physical properties of the wax drop that it cools quickly after leaving the atomizer, so that the
formation processes and secondary recombination cannot be reproduced accurately and for this reason the air
close to the nozzle or in the area where the fundamental process of atomization is happening, it should be
warm to the same temperature of the melted wax.

II. Experimental Procedures

A double and concentric swirl injector was used by Rocco [7], manufactured in brass for cold tests with
synthetic oil and kerosene oil, and hot ones with melted paraffin.
A milling cutter was used with digital marker, divide plate and drills to obtain the tangential holes of the
"swirl", besides a mechanical lathe with cut tools and drills.
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To guarantee the close fitting of the vortex chambers, the injectors were projected to use O-ring of
nitrilic rubber, ideal for derived of petroleum and work temperatures among - 50 and 120 0 C, guaranteeing
like this the gasket of the ensemble.
Figure 5 shows the internal injector, that it is longer and the external injector, that it is shorter.
Figure 6 shows the adapter that unites the ensemble injector to the injector head.

Figure 5. Internal injector, (longer) and

external injector, (shorter).

Figure 6. Adapter that unites the ensemble

injector to the injector head.

The angles of the formed cones can be altered by factors, as format of the vortex chamber and injection
pressure among others.
The tests equipment of fluids injection is composed by a pump of gears of straight teeth worked by
electric motor, manometer and valve of spheres to control the fluids flow, tank and system for maintenance
of the temperature of the paraffin wax melted to 700 C.
The bench of tests was used for the tests with cut oil for automatic lathes, commercial kerosene oil and
melted paraffin and Figures 7 and 8 shows the external and internal injectors no simultaneously, forming
hollow conical liquid sheets of kerosene with pressure below 1 atm.

Figure 7. External injector conical liquid sheets

Figure 8. Internal injector conical liquid sheets

Figure 9 shows the external and internal injectors operating simultaneously without interaction, forming
separated hollow conical liquid sheets of kerosene with pressure below 1 atm.

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Figure 10 shows the external and internal injectors operating simultaneously with interaction, forming
united hollow conical liquid sheets of kerosene with pressure below 1 atm.

Figure 10. External and internal sheets united

Figure 9. External and internal sheets separated
The paraffin melted to 70o C was injected at a pressure of 5 atm in both injectors. In the external injector
the mass flow was of 140 g/s and the cone angle of 118 0 and in the internal injector the mass flow was of
183 g/s and cone angle of 78o.
For the test sieving with wire cloth test sieve it was utilized an equipment to shake these sieves with
meshes 18, 20, 25, 30, 35, 40, 45, 50, 60, 70, 80, 100, 120, 140, 170, 200, 30, 270, 325, 400 e 500
manufactureted and calibrated according to ASTM E11.
For each injector a sample of 250 g of paraffin drops solidified was removed with which were made the
sieving tests and made registrations of drops images in the profile projector.
This material kept in each mesh was weighed then in analytical weighing and starting from the nominal
opening of each one, the number of particles was made calculations kept inside of each class, allowing like
this the calculation of SMD that resulted in SMD INT 5 = 0,214 mm for the internal injector and SMD EXT 5 =
0,296 mm for the external injector.
Figure 11 shows the external injector design and Figure 12 shows the angle of the cone formed by the
external injector with paraffin melted to 5 atm.

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118 0

Figure 12. The angle of the cone formed by the external

injector with paraffin melted to 5 atm.
Figure 11: External injector design
Figure 13 shows the solid paraffin wax (5 atm) on the collector (external injector) and Figure 14 shows
the solid paraffin wax (5 atm) on the perfil projector table

Figure 13. Solid paraffin wax (5 atm) on

the collector (external injector)

Figure 14. Solid paraffin wax (5 atm) on the

profile projector table

Figure 15 shows the internal injector design and Figure 16 shows the angle of the cone formed by the
internal injector with paraffin melted to 5 atm.

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78 0

Figure 15. Internal injector design

Figure 16. Angle of the cone formed by the external

injector with paraffin melted to 5 atm.

Figure 17 shows the solid paraffin wax (5 atm) on the collector (internal injector) and Figure 18 shows
the solid paraffin wax (5 atm) in the profile projector screen.

Figure 17. Solid paraffin wax (5 atm)

on the collector (internal injector)

Figure 18. Solid paraffin wax (5 atm) in the

profile projector screen

III. Results and conclusions

The manufacturing process of the injectors and injector head was considered efficient and satisfactory,
because it allowed the production of the necessary pieces and with good finish, making possible all the tests
accomplished inside of a good reliability pattern.
In several circumstances, in other words, varying the injected fluids and the work pressures, the cones
were formed in the external injector and in the intern and inside of the formation theories and disintegration
of hollow conical liquid sheets, found in the literature.
In the initial observations of the injected melted paraffin, done in the profile projector, it was possible to
identify that besides producing drops in the spherical format, as it would be of waiting, the same ones
presented different diameters.
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The rehearsals with wire cloth sieves made possible the calculations to determine the medium diameter of
drop Sauter (SMD):
In agreement with Rocco [7], the formation of the liquid sheet already feels to low pressures and flows,
so much for the internal injector as for the external.
The increase of the injection pressure doesn't have great effect in the angle of close spray to the exit of
the nozzle, but it causes significant alteration in the curvature of the spray, in the length of the liquid sheet
that it decreases as the pressure increases until not being more visibly identified and probably in the size of
the produced drops, therefore to high injection pressures it was formed a fine fluid fog.
Perforations are not observed in the liquid sheets in the area between the nozzle and strip of drop
formation, not evidencing the existence in the way sheets perforated proposed by Fraser and Eisenklam [1].
In the strip where happens the formation of the drops it is not clear enough to affirm that in it doesn't
happen perforations and arent clear enough to see rings, but ligaments seem to exist.
It is possible to observe ondulations in the liquid sheets that they evidence the development of dissociate
structures of the same ones that end for promoting the rupture of which results the drops.
In the area where already the drops are observed, the same ones come willing of such a form, aligned in
way vertical or oblique, indicating a process of rupture of ligaments.
The accomplished calculations revealed that the dimensions of the injector and mainly the angles of the
produced cones are compatible with the literature and the project methodology.
The particles imagery of solidified paraffin and accumulated in the collectors, so much for the external
injector as intern, indicated that there were a radial homogeneous distribution and circunferential of the
particle in the spray.

IV. Acknowledgements
CNPQ Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Cientfico e Tecnolgico
CAPES Coordenao de Aperfeioamento de Pessoal de Nvel Superior

V. References
[1] LEFEBVRE, A. H. Atomization and sprays. West Lafayette: Purdue University, 1989.
[2] DOMBROWSKI, N.; JOHNS, W. R. The aerodynamic instability and disintegration of viscous liquid
sheets. Chemical Engineering Science, v.18, n. 2, p. 203 -214, 1963.
[3] KUO, K. K. Recent advances in spray combustion: spray atmomization and drop burning phenpmena.
University Park: Pennsylvania State University, 1996. v.1 v.2
[4] INAMURA, T.; MIYATA, Spray characteristics of swirl coaxial injector and its modeling, K. Hirosaki
University, Hirosaki, TAMURA H., SAKAMOTO, H., National Aerospace Laboratory, Kakuda, Japan,
AIAA Paper 2001-3570, A01-34284.
[5] BAZAROV, V.; YANG, V.; PURI, P. Liquid rocket thrust chambers: aspects of modeling, analysis, and
design vol. Lexington 200, Progress in Astronautics and Aeronautics, Massachusetts, 2.004 . Cap. 2, p.
19 - 103.
[6] COUTO, H. S.; CARVALHO, J. A.; NETTO, D. B. Theoretical formulation for Sauter mean diameter of
pressure-swirl atomizers. Journal of Propulsion and Power, v. 13, n. 5, 1997.
[7] ROCCO, Jr. L.; Estudos Sobre Um Injetor Pressurizado Bi-Propelente Do Tipo Swirl Empregado Em
Motores-Foguete, Dissertao de Mestrado, Instituto Tecnolgico de Aeronutica, ITA Dezembro de
2006

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American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics