Design and validation of ADRC-based variable thrust control for a low-cost ethanol-oxygen rocket engine

IF 5.4 2区计算机科学 Q1 AUTOMATION & CONTROL SYSTEMS

Control Engineering Practice Pub Date : 2024-12-18 DOI:10.1016/j.conengprac.2024.106200

Jingwei Xiong, Shang Liu, Hongbo Zhang

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

A low-cost ethanol-oxygen rocket engine was developed for powered landing experiments in academic settings, utilizing 3D printing technology and off-the-shelf components, albeit with significant uncertainties and instabilities. To address these challenges, this study presents a continuous variable-thrust control strategy based on Active Disturbance Rejection Control (ADRC) theory, designed to regulate oxygen pressure. The oxygen pressure dynamics were modeled by analyzing the relationship between the valve opening angle and the ratio of the valve’s outlet to inlet pressure. Due to difficulties in deriving a precise physical model, the relative valve opening was introduced, enabling the use of a first-order transfer function for system representation. An ADRC controller was subsequently designed to modulate the valve opening angle to regulate the engine thrust. Modeling inaccuracies, time delays, and performance instabilities arising from low-cost components were mitigated using an Extended State Observer (ESO). To ensure safe and efficient parameter tuning, a Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM)-based method was employed, avoiding the risks associated with online optimization during ignition. The controller’s effectiveness was verified through cold gas and ignition experiments, demonstrating its ability to accurately track target pressures and adjust thrust, thereby confirming its feasibility for variable-thrust control systems.

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来源期刊

Control Engineering Practice 工程技术-工程：电子与电气

CiteScore

9.20

自引率

12.20%

发文量

183

审稿时长

44 days

期刊介绍： Control Engineering Practice strives to meet the needs of industrial practitioners and industrially related academics and researchers. It publishes papers which illustrate the direct application of control theory and its supporting tools in all possible areas of automation. As a result, the journal only contains papers which can be considered to have made significant contributions to the application of advanced control techniques. It is normally expected that practical results should be included, but where simulation only studies are available, it is necessary to demonstrate that the simulation model is representative of a genuine application. Strictly theoretical papers will find a more appropriate home in Control Engineering Practice''s sister publication, Automatica. It is also expected that papers are innovative with respect to the state of the art and are sufficiently detailed for a reader to be able to duplicate the main results of the paper (supplementary material, including datasets, tables, code and any relevant interactive material can be made available and downloaded from the website). The benefits of the presented methods must be made very clear and the new techniques must be compared and contrasted with results obtained using existing methods. Moreover, a thorough analysis of failures that may happen in the design process and implementation can also be part of the paper. The scope of Control Engineering Practice matches the activities of IFAC. Papers demonstrating the contribution of automation and control in improving the performance, quality, productivity, sustainability, resource and energy efficiency, and the manageability of systems and processes for the benefit of mankind and are relevant to industrial practitioners are most welcome.