Convective Heating at the Deflecting Surface of a Rocket Launch-Pad

Abstract

Summary: When a large rocket or missile is fired, the hot exhaust gases must be allowed to escape without damaging structures or equipment in the vicinity of the firing area. Generally, the exhaust gases are directed harmlessly away from the launching installation by water-cooled deflecting surfaces fabricated in steel. In arid areas such as Woomera, where water is not available in large quantities, there is the possible danger that a steel efflux deflector will melt, and other materials such as refractories may be more suitable for the deflecting surface. To provide data for the design of uncooled efflux deflectors, a heating rate investigation of the Blue Streak installation at Woomera has been carried out theoretically and experimentally. The heat transfer coefficient and stagnation temperature at the efflux deflecting surface are calculated theoretically with the aid of model test results. Heat transfer coefficients derived from temperature measurements on steel plates embedded in the deflecting surface are compared with the theoretical results. It is concluded that simple aerodynamic heat transfer theory can provide an effective engineering estimate of the temperature rise of an efflux deflecting surface.