VAPORIZATION OF LIQUID-OXYGEN (LOX) DROPLETS IN SUPERCRITICAL HYDROGEN ENVIRONMENTS

A comprehensive theoretical analysis has been developed to study vapor ization of liquid oxygen (LOX) droplets in hydrogen over a wide range of pressure. The formulation accommodates complete sets of conservatio n equations for both gas and liquid phases, and accounts for variable properties, thermodynamic non-idealities, and vapor-liquid phase equil ibria. The model is capable of treating the entire history of a vapori zing LOX droplet, including the thermodynamic phase transition through the critical mixing point. Various distinct high-pressure effects on the droplet behavior were investigated in depth. In particular, a para metric study of the droplet lifetime as a function of the ambient pres sure, temperature, and initial droplet diameter has been conducted. Th e droplet lifetime exhibits a strong pressure dependence and can be co rrelated well with the square of the initial diameter.