This marks the first phase of high-temperature testing, a significant milestone in the development of the company’s SABRE engine that hopes to revolutionise hypersonic flight.
The precooler heat exchanger is a vital component of engine and is an enabling technology for other precooled propulsion systems and a range of commercial applications.
This ground-based test achieved the highest temperature objective of the Company’s HTX testing programme and took place at its specially constructed facility at the Colorado Air and Space Port in the US.
The precooler test item was designed and constructed at Reaction Engines’ headquarters in the UK, before being shipped to the Company’s Colorado site for testing.
During the latest series of tests, Reaction Engines’ precooler successfully quenched airflow temperatures in excess of 1,000°C in less than 1/20th of a second. The tests demonstrated the precooler’s ability to successfully cool airflow at speeds significantly in excess of the operational limit of any jet-engine powered aircraft in history.
Mach 5 is more than twice as fast as the cruising speed of Concorde and over 50% faster than the SR-71 Blackbird aircraft – the world’s fastest jet-engine powered aircraft.
This most recent test builds upon the success of previous HTX hot tests undertaken in April which saw the precooler successfully operate at temperatures of 420ᵒC) – matching the thermal conditions corresponding to Mach 3.3 flight.
Mark Thomas, chief executive, Reaction Engines, commented: “In addition to its use in our SABRE class of air breathing rocket engines, there are numerous exciting commercial applications for our precooler technology, which delivers world-leading heat transfer capabilities at low weight and compact size, and we are seeing significant interest from a range of potential customers and technology partners.”
These applications include the development of precooled systems that would significantly enhance the performance of existing jet engine technology, along with applications in automotive, aerospace, energy and industrial processes.
The significant testing milestone was at the company’s test facility in Colorado
The major testing milestone is the culmination of 30 years of engineering innovation since Reaction Engines was founded in 1989 by three propulsion engineers from Rolls-Royce: Alan Bond, Richard Varvill and John Scott-Scott.
The HTX hot heat exchanger test programme was supported under a contract to the Company’s US subsidiary Reaction Engines Inc. by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA).
Following this significant testing milestone, the company will embark on achieving the next steps of the SABRE programme while also pursuing nearer-term opportunities that will benefit from the addition of the Company’s heat exchanger technology.
