• Transactions of the Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers B
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• v.40 no.2
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• pp.93-102
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• 2016

An experimental study has been conducted to verify the startup characteristic of a Center Body Diffuser (CBD) for simulating a low pressure environment when at high altitudes. Vacuum chamber pressure and startup characteristics of the CBD were investigated according to various geometries of the center body structure by a cold gas flow test. The test results show that the startup pressure is lowest when the center body contraction angle is approximately $15^{\circ}$. The startup characteristic of the CBDs significantly improves when the diffuser inlet length ($L_d/D_d$) is decreasing and the divergence length ($L_s$) is increasing. Additionally, it is possible to simulate various high altitude, low pressure conditions for various rocket engines that have different nozzle expansion ratios by adjusting the center body's position inside the diffuser.