RCAIDE.Library.Attributes.Propellants.Methane

Methane#

class Methane(*args, **kwarg)[source]#

Bases: Propellant

A class representing methane (CH4) fuel properties and emissions characteristics for propulsion applications.

tag#

Identifier for the propellant (‘Methane’)

Type:

str

reactant#

Oxidizer used for combustion (‘O2’)

Type:

str

density#

Fuel density in kg/m³ (422.6)

Type:

float

specific_energy#

Specific energy content in J/kg (5.34e7)

Type:

float

energy_density#

Energy density in J/m³ (2.26e10)

Type:

float

lower_heating_value#

Lower heating value in J/kg (5.0e7)

Type:

float

use_high_fidelity_kinetics_model#

Flag for using detailed chemical kinetics (False)

Type:

bool

fuel_surrogate_chemical_properties#

Simplified chemical composition {‘CH4’: 1.0}

Type:

dict

fuel_chemical_properties#

Detailed chemical composition {‘CH4’: 1.0}

Type:

dict

air_chemical_properties#

Air composition for combustion calculations {‘O2’: 0.2095, ‘N2’: 0.7809, ‘AR’: 0.0096}

Type:

dict

global_warming_potential_100#
100-year global warming potentials
  • CO2float

    Carbon dioxide (1)

  • H2Ofloat

    Water vapor (0.06)

  • SO2float

    Sulfur dioxide (-226)

  • NOxfloat

    Nitrogen oxides (52)

  • Sootfloat

    Particulate matter (1166)

  • Contrailsfloat

    Contrail formation (11)

Type:

Data

Notes

Methane is the simplest hydrocarbon fuel and main component of natural gas. It offers reduced carbon emissions compared to conventional fuels due to its high hydrogen-to-carbon ratio.

Definitions

‘Lower Heating Value’

Heat of combustion excluding latent heat of water vapor

‘Global Warming Potential’

Relative measure of heat trapped in atmosphere compared to CO2

‘Specific Energy’

Energy content per unit mass, higher than conventional jet fuels

Major Assumptions

  • Properties are for standard temperature and pressure conditions (15C, 1atm)

  • Pure methane composition (no higher hydrocarbons)

  • Standard atmospheric composition for air