Theses and Dissertations

Date of Award

5-1-2026

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science in Engineering (MSE)

Department

Mechanical Engineering

First Advisor

Isaac Choutapalli

Second Advisor

Arturo Fuentes

Third Advisor

Horacio Vasquez

Abstract

Pulsed jet propulsion systems produce inherently unsteady forces whose time-resolved characterization is essential for performance assessment, yet the measured load signal conflates aerodynamic forcing with the dynamic response of the measurement balance itself. This thesis develops a load centered framework for the dynamic characterization of a pulsed jet system, treating the measured load fluctuation as the primary physical observable rather than attempting full true-thrust reconstruction. A single-degree-of-freedom balance model identified through ringdown testing provides the structural reference scale, yielding a natural frequency of 8.5 Hz and damping ratio of 18%. Power spectral density, phase-averaging, and synchronous–residual decomposition is applied uniformly across 118 experimental runs spanning six test categories. Five dynamic-response dimensions are quantified: response strength, repeatability, harmonic structure, pulse-synchronous content, and structural influence. Three representative conditions (clean, complex, and structure-sensitive) illustrate the full response regime. Cross-condition trends reveal that stronger forcing yields cleaner harmonic structure, while pulse frequencies near the balance natural frequency let structural dynamics measurably shape the measurement.

Comments

Copyright 2026 Cesar Benitez. All Rights Reserved. https://proquest.com/docview/3371164767

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