Conceptual design of single-stage launch vehicle with hybrid rocket engine using design informatics

Abstract

A single-stage launch vehicle with hybrid rocket engine has been conceptually designed by using design informatics, which has three points of view as problem definition, optimization, and data mining. The primary objective of the design in the present study is that the sufficient down range and the duration time in the lower thermosphere are achieved for aurora scientific observation whereas the initial gross weight is held down. Multidisciplinary design optimization and data mining were performed by using evolutionary hybrid computation under the conditions that polypropylene as solid fuel and liquid oxygen as liquid oxidizer were adopted and that single-time ignition is implemented in sequence. Consequently, the design information regarding the tradeoffs and the behaviors of the design variables in the design space was obtained in order to quantitatively differentiate the advantage of hybrid rocket engine.