Solid propellant engineering
Measuring microwave burning rate of solid propellants under conditions of rapidly changing pressure
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Measuring microwave burning rate of solid propellants under conditions of rapidly changing pressure
Method of making solid propellant rocket motor having reliable high altitude capabilities, long shelf life, and capable of firing with nozzle closure with foamed plastic permanent mandrel
Storage of solid propellants in either a dry or a vacuum environment causes a significantly greater increase in the propellants' modulus and maximum tensile strength than does ambient storage. It is postulated that these physical property changes can be attributed to the effect trace amount of moisture has on the bond between the propellants' binder and oxidizer.
Sterile solid propellant motor for planetary and lunar landings - chemical sterilization, heat sterilizable propellants, and silicone propellant development
Transverse-mode solid-propellant combustion instability in vortex burner
Solid propellant rocket engine performance computer programs using group transformation method
Solid propellant electric thrustor /SPET/ using pulse plasma for spacecraft attitude control and stationkeeping
Erosion resistance and thermal stress cracking tests of rocket nozzle materials with solid propellants
Factors influencing combustion rate in solid propellant rocket engines
Solid propellant burning rate behavior during abrupt environmental pressure excursions, using transient combustion model
Combustion instability data with same solid propellants by T-burner and L super asterisk burner, discussing theoretical models of transient combustion
Solid propellant engine structural analysis, examining transient thermal loading and internal pressure effects
Destruction of a solid rocket stage of a launch vehicle can create a thermal radiation hazard for an aborting crew module. This hazard was assessed for the Constellation Program (Cx) crew and launch vehicle concept. For this concept, if an abort was initiated in first stage flight, the Crew Module (CM) will separate and be pulled away from the malfunctioning launch vehicle via a Launch Abort System (LAS). Having aborted the mission, the launch vehicle will likely be destroyed via a Flight Termination System (FTS) in order to prevent it from errantly traversing back over land and posing a risk to the public. The resulting launch vehicle debris field, composed primarily of first stage solid propellant, poses a threat to the CM. The harsh radiative thermal environment, caused by surrounding burning propellant debris, may lead to CM parachute failure. A methodology, detailed herein, has been developed to address this concern and to quantify the risk of first stage propellant debris leading to the thermal demise of the CM parachutes. Utilizing basic thermal radiation principles, a software program was developed to calculate parachute temperature as a function of time for a given abort trajectory and debris piece trajectory set. Two test cases, considered worst case aborts with regard to launch vehicle debris environments, were analyzed using the simulation: an abort declared at Mach 1 and an abort declared at maximum dynamic pressure (Max Q). For both cases, the resulting temperature profiles indicated that thermal limits for the parachutes were not exceeded. However, short duration close encounters by single debris pieces did have a significant effect on parachute temperature. Therefore while these two test cases did not indicate exceedance of thermal limits, in order to quantify the risk of parachute failure due to radiative effects from the abort environment, a more thorough probability-based analysis using the methodology demonstrated herein must be performed.
Static and dynamic combustion phenomena effects on grain structural design for solid propellant rocket engine
Solid propellant rocket exhaust effects and methods of attenuation - project summary
Thrust vector control for solid propellant rocket engines - liquid injection system, hot or cold gas systems, and gimballed nozzle systems
The use of holography, high speed motion pictures, light scattering measurements, and post-fire particle collection/scanning electron microscopic examination to study the combustion of composite solid propellants is discussed. The relative advantages and disadvantages of the different experimental techniques for obtaining two-phase flow characteristics within the combustion environment of a solid propellant grain are evaluated. Combustion bomb studies using high speed motion pictures and post-fire residue analysis were completed for six low metal content propellants. Resolution capabilities and the relationships between post-fire residue and motion picture data are determined. Initial testing using a holocamera together with a 2D windowed motor is also described.
Erosion resistance and failure mechanisms of nozzle materials in small solid-propellant rocket engine