DoD Scientific Research Offices Review Chemical Propulsion Programs Published July 27, 2007 AFOSR Public Affairs ARLINGTON, Va. -- The Air Force Office of Scientific Research here and the Army Research Office, N.C., completed a thorough annual review of basic research investments in combustion and diagnostics at a conference recently in Arlington. More than 40 engineers and scientists attended the 2006 AFOSR/ARO Contractors' Meeting in Chemical Propulsion. Dozens of researchers traveled from universities across the nation such as Yale University, the University of Southern California, and the Georgia Institute of Technology. Government agencies in attendance included the U.S. Naval Academy, the National Institute of Standards and Technology, and the Argonne National Laboratory. Topics presented during the three-day conference centered on hydrocarbon fuel characterization, combustion chemistry, and plasma propellant ignition. One of the attendees, Dr. Chung K. Law, a professor at Princeton University, discussed research entitled "Physical and Chemical Process in Flames." His research is to develop detailed and simplified chemical kinetics models for hydrocarbon combustion and to understand and quantify the dynamics that go on within a flame. "We (Law and his research team) performed rigorous theoretical analyses on the dual extinction limit behavior and intrinsic flame oscillations near both the extinction state for diffusion flames with radiation heat loss," Law said. This scientific understanding will go toward developing simulation models that will improve the efficiency of fuel combustion within new engine designs. Dr. Campbell D. Carter, Air Force Research Laboratory's Propulsion Directorate, presented his team's progress on research in ramjet engines. He said AFOSR funding is enhancing the team's scientific understanding in the areas of multiphase flows relevant to fuel injection into high speed, oxidizing streams and shock/boundary-layer interactions within the scramjet flow path. The chemical propulsion meeting provides AFOSR and ARO program managers and senior leaders the opportunity to receive progress reports on funded research. The meeting also provides an opportunity to fine-tune the direction of research projects and identify new emerging areas of research. "This year's review went extremely well," said Dr. Julian M. Tishkoff, AFOSR's program manager for combustion and diagnostics. "We have seen great promise for new scientific discoveries that are on the verge of leading to more efficient engines and fuels that would address, in part, the country's growing energy needs," The objective of the AFOSR combustion and diagnostics program is to research the fundamental understanding of the physics and chemistry of multiphase turbulent reacting flows. Understanding these flows is essential to improving the performance of chemical propulsion systems, including gas turbines, ramjets, scramjets, pulsed detonation engines, and chemical rockets. "We are interested in this science because the Army operates a large number of combustion and turbine engines in our vehicles and helicopters," said Dr. Kevin McNesby, acting program manager of propulsions and energetics for ARO. "We are additionally interested in the subject matter for the potential of future projectile propellant and unique explosive capabilities." The propulsion and energetics program for ARO is designed to fund university and national laboratory researchers focusing on fundamental science relating to hydrocarbon-based fuels, synthetic fuels (non-boiling fraction-derived), and energetic materials. While some of the Air Force and Army basic research discussed contractor's meeting is already contributing to propulsion technology in operational use across the services, it may take up to a few years before new scientific discoveries in the area of combustion and diagnostics can have far reaching commercial applications. By supporting research workshops like this, AFOSR continues to expand the horizon of scientific knowledge through its leadership and management of the Air Force's basic research program. As a vital component of the Air Force Research Laboratory, AFOSR supports the Air Force's mission of control and maximum utilization of air and space. Many of the technological breakthroughs enjoyed by millions today, such as lasers, GPS, and the computer mouse trace their scientific roots to research first funded by AFOSR.