Port-Hamiltonian formulation and stabilizing controller for a liquid propelled rocket engine

Authors

Jules Gibart, Hélène Piet-Lahanier, Francois Farago

Abstract

Reusable technology in the field of space launchers requires complex maneuvers to land a launcher first stage, requiring variable thrust from the rocket engine. The developments in electrical actuators allowed the introduction of closed-loop controllers for liquid propelled rocket engines (LPRE). While closed-loop controllers have been suggested in the literature with robustness guarantees, few stability proofs have been given. The LPRE is a complex non-linear system, rendering a direct approach to determine a Lyapunov function complex. In this paper, a reformulation of the state-space equations into a model more adapted to stability analysis is proposed, and a passivity approach is derived to prove the stability. In addition, a closed-loop controller that enforces the passivity of the system is designed, with a new equilibrium assignment. Simulated results illustrate the performances of the closed-loop controlled engine.

Keywords

Liquid propellant rocket engine; Stability analysis; Port-Hamiltonian framework; Non- linear control design

Citation

• Journal: Control Engineering Practice
• Year: 2025
• Volume: 163
• Issue:
• Pages: 106389
• Publisher: Elsevier BV
• DOI: 10.1016/j.conengprac.2025.106389

BibTeX

@article{Gibart_2025,
  title={{Port-Hamiltonian formulation and stabilizing controller for a liquid propelled rocket engine}},
  volume={163},
  ISSN={0967-0661},
  DOI={10.1016/j.conengprac.2025.106389},
  journal={Control Engineering Practice},
  publisher={Elsevier BV},
  author={Gibart, Jules and Piet-Lahanier, Hélène and Farago, Francois},
  year={2025},
  pages={106389}
}

Download the bib file

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