Simulation and Visual Tester Verification of Solid Propellant Slurry Vacuum Plate Casting

Using an improved Carreau constitutive model, a numerical simulation of the casting process of a type of solid propellant slurry vacuum plate casting was carried out using the Flow3D software. Through the flow process in the orifice flow channel and the combustion chamber, the flow velocity of the slurry passing through the plate flow channel was quantitatively analyzed, and the viscosity, shear rate, and leveling characteristics of the slurry in the combustion chamber were qualitatively analyzed and predicted. The pouring time, pouring quality, and flow state predicted by the numerical simulation were verified using a visual tester consisting of a vacuum plate casting system in which a pouring experiment was carried out. Studies have shown that HTPB three-component propellant slurry is a typical yielding pseudoplastic fluid. When the slurry flows through the flower plate and the airfoil, the fluid shear rate reaches its maximum value and the viscosity of the slurry decreases. The visual pouring platform was built and the experiment was controlled according to the numerically-calculated parameters, ensuring the same casting speed. The comparison between the predicted casting quality and the one obtained in the verification test resulted in an error less than 10 %. Moreover, the error between the simulated casting completion time and the process verification test result was also no more than 10 %. Last, the flow state of the slurry during the simulation was consistent with the one during the experimental test. The overall leveling of the slurry in the combustion chamber was adequate and no relatively large holes and flaws developed during the pouring process.