Quote:
Originally Posted by malloyd
I'd have to think about that more. At best I think it just changes the slope of the curve - the energy content increases a lot faster (with the square of the exhaust velocity) than the residence time falls (as 1/v).
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At constant thrust the mass flow rate is inversely proportional to velocity, and the residence time is also inversely proportional to velocity, so the mass in the chamber is inversely proportional to the square of velocity. The energy per unit mass is proportional to the square of velocity, and thus the energy in the chamber is constant (it's just pressure * volume * a constant that depends on how closely the propellant resembles an ideal gas).