Abstract
Slurry fuels for air-breathing propulsion systems are important because of their potential for greater energy release per unit volume compared to purely liquid fuels. As an extension of past work on carbon and boron slurry fuels, the present study focuses on aluminum and aluminum/carbon slurries. In the present study, ignition and combustion of aluminum-based slurry droplets were explored both experimentally and analytically. Specifically, the effects of droplet diameter, ambient gas temperature, ambient oxygen mole fraction, and slurry composition on ignition and combustion times were studied together with the influence of these parameters on the mode of combustion and the nature of the residual condensed products.