De-risk assessment: Development of an Electric Pump for a Plug-In Hybrid Rocket Propulsion System

The study has allowed HyImpulse to explore criticalities in the development of an electric pump dedicated to hybrid rocket propulsion and to de-risk some of its most relevant components. It has allowed a system-level analysis corresponding to a preliminary design of the electric pump; HyImpulse has proposed a development timeline based on a cost effective strategy, namely to engineer only some of the components, while purchasing items requiring specialist expertise from commercially available products. A possible supply chain was laid out and options were evaluated based on component mass and efficiency. It was demonstrated that the electric pump architecture can indeed increase substantially the performance of HyImpulse’s vehicles, where applicable. The study demonstrated the possibility of utilizing a simple lip seal to isolate the pump from the rest of the system. A series of practical considerations emerged, allowing for invaluable experience to be used in the upgrade of the sealing system design. A list of updated design requirements was drafted. A methodology to design and test the seal prototype was developed and validated. In the context of the selection of bearing elements, a preliminary sizing of some key components was performed, including shaft, impeller and volute. Layout options for the pump were proposed.