Continuous ultrasonic flow measurement for aerospace small pipelines

Area of Science:

• Aerospace Engineering
• Fluid Dynamics
• Sensor Technology

Background:

• Aerospace exploration necessitates advanced propellant flow measurement technologies for microgravity environments.
• Existing ultrasonic pulse measurements have limitations that hinder their application in demanding aerospace scenarios.
• Continuous ultrasonic wave propagation offers a promising alternative for overcoming these limitations.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and validate a continuous ultrasonic wave propagation flow meter for aerospace applications.
• To achieve a large measurement range and high precision in propellant flow measurement.
• To address the shortcomings of traditional pulse ultrasonic measurement configurations.

Main Methods:

• Fabrication of a novel continuous ultrasonic wave propagation flow meter.
• Laboratory validation using water flow experiments.
• Analysis of linearity, accuracy, and error factors, including Reynolds number and excitation signal frequency.

Main Results:

• The proposed ultrasonic flow meter demonstrates linearity in the [0, 80 ml/s] range, meeting typical aerospace requirements.
• Experimental data closely matches theoretical predictions, with deviations noted for stationary fluid.
• Measurement error is influenced by Reynolds number and is reduced with higher excitation frequencies.

Conclusions:

• Continuous ultrasonic wave propagation is a viable technology for precise propellant flow measurement in aerospace.
• The developed flow meter meets key performance criteria for microgravity applications.
• Further optimization regarding stationary fluid measurement and frequency selection can enhance performance.