With the increasing demand for high-performance and safe fuels in aerospace propulsion systems, gelled fuels have attracted increasing attention. Because of their unique structure, gelled fuels exhibit the advantages of both solid and liquid fuels, such as high energy density, controllable thrust and storage safety. This review provides an overview on design, preparation and performance characterization of gelled fuels. The composition, preparation process and gelation mechanism of gelled high-energy-density fuels are described. Considering these aspects, the rheology and flow behavior of gelled fuels is summarized in terms of the shear thinning property, dynamic viscoelasticity and thixotropy. Moreover, the progress of atomization of gelled fuels is reviewed with a focus on the effect of atomizing nozzles. In addition, the experiments and theoretical models of single droplet combustion and combustor combustion are described. Finally, research directions for the development and application of gelled fuels are suggested.

随着航空航天推进系统对高性能和安全燃料的需求不断增加，凝胶燃料越来越受到关注。由于其独特的结构，凝胶燃料同时具有固体和液体燃料的优点，如能量密度高、推力可控和储存安全。本综述概述了凝胶燃料的设计、制备和性能表征。介绍了胶凝高能量密度燃料的组成、制备工艺和胶凝机理。考虑到这些方面，凝胶燃料的流变学和流动行为总结为剪切稀化特性、动态粘弹性和触变性。此外，回顾了凝胶燃料雾化的进展，重点是雾化喷嘴的效果。此外，描述了单液滴燃烧和燃烧室燃烧的实验和理论模型。最后，提出了凝胶燃料的开发和应用的研究方向。