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Condensation of combustion products in the exhaust plumes of rocket engines in the upper atmosphere

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Abstract

The condensation process of water vapors in the exhaust plume of a rocket engine in the upper atmosphere is considered. We take into account the processes of particle heating during the release of latent heat of condensation, radiative heating, and energy losses to emission. From the solution of the equations of thermal balance and mass balance of condensing particles, we obtained the time dependences of variations in temperature and particle sizes. In the process of condensation, the thickness of the ice layer on particles may reach >70 Å.

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Original Russian Text © Yu.V. Platov, A.I. Semenov, B.P. Filippov, 2011, published in Geomagnetizm i Aeronomiya, 2011, Vol. 51, No. 4, pp. 556–562.

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Platov, Y.V., Semenov, A.I. & Filippov, B.P. Condensation of combustion products in the exhaust plumes of rocket engines in the upper atmosphere. Geomagn. Aeron. 51, 550–556 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1134/S0016793211040153

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1134/S0016793211040153

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