The article aims at reviewing the drop regions (DR) of the launch vehicles (LV) separating parts (SP) and methods of their determination. The DRs include sea and land areas; going beyond them is associated with a number of environmental, economic, and political factors. Their combination dictates the need to ensure the safety of the people, transport, infrastructure, and environment from the negative impact of LV SPs and fuel residues. The Monte Carlo method is mostly used to determine the impact areas. It enables an estimation of the probability of the SPs of LVs falling in certain areas, constituting the DRs. These points are varied according to a set of different initial parameters. The methods of controlling the impact areas are contingently divided into engineering (based on a change in the design appearance of the LV), mathematical (which includes the changes in or optimization of the LV’s trajectory or its SP), and “soft landing” (implying the return of the LV’s to the spaceport or to a certain prepared area). The present analysis can be used as a starting point when choosing a method for determining and controlling the projected LVs and the SPs’ area of impact.
Reducing mass of the launch vehicle components structure to increase the payload mass launched into orbit is one of the main areas in developing the space services market. Modern designs of the launch vehicles require extremely high fuel mass fraction, which necessitates introduction of the low-density materials. Fuel tanks could count for 70...80% of the total product volume, which results in the development of tanks for the cryogenic fuel obtaining decisive importance in design and development of the new type of launch vehicles. Introduction of the composite materials in designing a cryogenic fuel tank makes it possible to lower its mass by 30% compared to a reference aluminum tank, which, accordingly, allows increasing the inserted payload mass. Review of the methods used in manufacturing the cryogenic composite fuel tanks is presented. Liner manufacturing technology and its material are proposed, taking into account the temperature difference during shaping and its interaction with the cryogenic fuel. Composite material and method for manufacturing the composite tank are selected. Design calculation of the composite cryogenic tank was carried out.
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