Shape and trajectory optimisation of hypersonic waveriders: For long range, stable and controllable re-entry flight

Waveriders are high-lifting hypersonic configurations with great potential to become a future reusable launch vehicle concept. However, in a re-entry flight scenario, standard waverider designs face challenges such as stability, controllability, heat load management, and performance at off-design conditions. In this research, a baseline...

Sequencing for the MCLP: a Comparison of a Genetic Algorithm and a Heuristic Algorithm

Labour shortage in the logistic sector and the poor work conditions as a baggage handler are a major and highly relevant problem for airports around the world. A solution is provided by Vanderlande Industies: a baggage loading robot. Since the efficiency of the stacking process is sufficient, operators that overlook the robot must intervene...

Mars Ascent Vehicle trajectory optimisation: Investigation of the optimum trajectory for the Mars Ascent Vehicle to bring samples from the Martian surface to its orbit

The Mars Ascent Vehicle will bring samples back from the surface of Mars to its low orbit in 2031. Its preliminary design has been performed by NASA, defining it as a two-stage solid propellant rocket. However, a research gap exists in finding what the optimum solid rocket motors geometries are to bring the Martian samples to a target orbit...

Characterisation of Shape-Based Methods and Combination with Coasting Arcs

Low-thrust propulsion's main advantage is its efficient propellant usage. This holds for manoeuvres as well as for major orbital changes, both for LEO/MEO/GEO satellites and for interplanetary missions. In designing such missions, extensive numerical models as well as less demanding analytic first-order approximations can be used. A specific...

Optimizing a Solar Sailing Polar Mission to the Sun: Development and Application of a New Ant Colony Optimizer

In the context of metaheuristic global optimization, we present the definition and development of two new ant colony optimizers (ACO): a single-objective mixed-integer one, called ACOmi, and a multi-objective hypervolume-based one, called MHACO. In particular, after having performed a verification and validation phase over a wide set of problems...

Rocket engine inducer design optimisation to improve its suction performance

This thesis presents the results of a design optimisation of an inducer for a rocket engine turbopump. Its main goal was to optimise a shape of the inducer blades to enlarge an operating range of the entire pump that is limited by cavitation. The blade was parameterised with four parameters: sweep angle, sweep radius, incidence angle and blade...