AFRL Successfully Completes GDE-2 Testing

  • Published
  • By Plans and Programs Directorate
  • AFRL/XP
WRIGHT-PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Ohio --  AFRL engineers completed testing of the second-generation Ground Demonstration Engine, known as GDE-2, at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Langley Research Center's 8 ft high-temperature tunnel (Hampton, Virginia).

The GDE-2 is a hydrocarbon-fueled supersonic combustion ramjet (scramjet) engine featuring a single integrated flowpath, fuel control system, and closed-loop thermal management system. AFRL successfully completed the final test series, which included an assessment of the engine's inlet performance and operability as a function of cowl lip position and angle of attack.

Previously completed tests involved the assessment of a closed-loop hydrocarbon fuel system utilizing JP-7 fuel; demonstration of engine light sequence; verification of various design tools (e.g., aerothermal, structural, and control); and evaluation of engine structural integrity, hot gas valve operational characteristics, and engine thrust and performance at Mach 5.

A collaborative effort between the Air Force, NASA, and GDE-2 builder Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne, this test program is developing technologies for future hypersonic propulsion systems, which have application to rapid response strike and space access missions.

The program also serves as an invaluable risk reduction activity for the scramjet engine that will power the X-51A flight test vehicle, currently scheduled to fly in December 2008.