| 摘要 |
1, 148, 929. Jet propulsion plant; vapour generators; syringes. GENERAL ELECTRIC CO. Nov. 3, 1966 [March 8, 1966 (2)], No.49397/66. Headings F1J, F1Q and F1R. In a device for the propulstion of space vehicles or other purposes, liquid metal 24, such as mercury or an alkali metal, is vaporized and passed through a capillary aperture 16 as a jet. The liquid metal is contained within a stainless steel cylinder 10 lined with a glass tube 22 and a ceramic insulating plug 18 having an aperture 20 forming a metering chamber. The metal is pressurized by an inert gas supplied through a pipe 36 to above a piston 26, the pressure of approximately 1 atmosphere being insufficient to force the metal in the liquid state through the capillary aperture 16 in stainless steel end plate 14. The piston 26 may be omitted and the surface of the metal open to atmospheric pressure. When a thrust pulse is required, rectifier 42 is triggered to cause capacitor 40 to discharge and set up a potential across the metal 24, thus vaporizing the metal in chamber 20 and causing it to discharge through aperture 16 as a jet into an evacuated chamber 44. In a modification, Fig. 2 (not shown), the liquid metal is contained within a cylindrical chamber (13) bored in a ceramic (aluminium oxide) block (15) surrounded by a copper cylinder (10). Small tubes (17) extend from the chamber (13) to a ring shaped chamber (48) defined between a ceramic ring (43) and a disc (45) at the face of the block. The metal in chamber (48) is vaporized by induction when energy from a current pulse source (29) is supplied to a coil (25) mounted in a ring shaped channel (23) in the block face adjacent the chamber (48). |
