TEME

Main Goals of the Project

The TEME project is aimed at developing and maturing liquid-oxygen/liquid-methane (LOx/LCH₄) space-propulsion technologies, with particular focus on regeneratively cooled combustion chambers for future applications on launchers and space systems. The main objective is to increase the technological readiness level through an incremental process based on the design, manufacturing, and testing of progressively more complex demonstrators. The project aims to validate innovative solutions for injection, combustion, and cooling made possible by detailed investigation of fundamental phenomena such as combustion processes, heat transfer, thermal loading on combustion-chamber walls, as well as the integration of traditional, additive, and electrodeposition manufacturing technologies. An additional objective is the acquisition of high-quality experimental data to strengthen national expertise in green-propulsion technologies and to support the development of future, larger-scale demonstrators.

CIRA Activities in the Project

CIRA is responsible for the overall execution of the project activities, including the design, verification, manufacturing, and testing of the LOx/LCH₄ demonstrators. The activities included the rebuilding of the DEMO-0A demonstrator test campaign, successfully completed in December 2022, as well as system-level studies related to the demonstrators, including DEMO-1A, in which masses were optimized and advanced design solutions were implemented. In parallel, CIRA has also designed and developed additional demonstrators, each conceived and tested to investigate the various physical phenomena involved in the operation of a LOx/LCH₄ rocket engine, from methane phase transition in the cooling channels to heat-flux reconstruction and combustion stability. For the optical inspection of the flame inside the combustion chamber, two demonstrators were developed, named SSBB-WHS and 3IWBB, the latter featuring three injectors and three quartz windows that provide optical access into the combustion chamber. Some of these demonstrators will be tested at the H-IMP facility. Across all activities, additive manufacturing and electrodeposition techniques were applied, thermo-fluid dynamic and structural analyses were carried out, and the internally developed numerical models were validated through comparison with experimental data.

General Project Information

Funding Programme: National Aerospace Research Program (PRO.R.A.) 

Start Date: 01/09/2021; End Date: 31/12/2031

Coordinating Organization: CIRA

Partners: CECOM S.R.L., University of Naples “Federico II”, CRAS / University of Rome “Sapienza”

CIRA Contact: Francesco Battista, f.battista@cira.it