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On the contrary, venting LOX is very common and easily visible in the lead-up to nearly every Falcon 9 launch. Google "falcon 9 lox vent" for plenty of videos/p
by dandelany 10y ago
On the contrary, venting LOX is very common and easily visible in the lead-up to nearly every Falcon 9 launch. Google "falcon 9 lox vent" for plenty of videos/photos.
- dogma1138 10y agoThe "venting" you usually see isn't LOX, it's condensed water vapor, there are small bleeder valves in the LOX tanks and the fuel line but they are not designed or used for emergency pressure relief.
- TrevorJ 10y agoThey definitely do vent LOX boiloff.
- dogma1138 10y agoYes through the bleeder valves but a bleeder valve isn't an emergency pressure release valve. Bleeder valves are designed to bleed gas from a system which contains a liquid. They aren't designed to be used to relieve pressure in an emergency situation, infact under high enough pressure they stop working all together. In a more common setting you see these types of valves on breaks and on heating systems that use hot water, while they do bleed steam they bleed it in order to prevent the accumulation of gas and air bubbles within the system not to control the pressure.
- TrevorJ 10y agoAgreed, I wasn't contending that they are used in an emergency context.
- dandelany 10y agoThe cloud is water vapor. But it's not like water vapor is onboard the Falcon and being vented. Boiled-off oxygen is vented, and it's cold enough to cause the water vapor in the surrounding air to condense.
- dogma1138 10y agoYes like i said through the bleeder valves in the tanks and the fuel line, but this isn't an emergency release valve, you cannot use it to drain the tanks.