TY - JOUR
T1 - Combustion of HTPB Based Solid Fuels Containing Metals and Metal Hydrides with Nitrous Oxide
AU - Young, Gregory
AU - Risha, Grant A.
AU - Connell, Terrence L.
AU - Yetter, Richard A.
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2019 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim
PY - 2019/6
Y1 - 2019/6
N2 - An experimental investigation of the combustion characteristics of HTPB-based solid fuels containing aluminum and aluminum hydride has been conducted. Aluminum is commonly used as a fuel supplement in solid rocket propellants because of its ability to increase the specific impulse of a propellant. Similarly, aluminum hydride, or alane, is another attractive fuel supplement because it can significantly (∼7–8 %) increase specific impulse even beyond that of aluminum. In this study, the regression rates of a baseline fuel (pure HTPB) were compared with that of fuels containing either aluminum or alane as additives using a counterflow combustion experiment with nitrous oxide (N2O) as the oxidizer. The additives were investigated in concentrations of 10, 20, and 40 % by weight of the fuels. The addition of aluminum at all loadings resullted in a decrease in the regression rate relative to the baseline, whereas the addition of alane resulted in at worst similar regression rates and at best (highest loading) approximately a 20 % increase in regression rate. The decomposition behavior of selected fuels was analyzed using traditional thermal analysis techniques; thermal gravimetric analysis and differential scanning calorimetry.
AB - An experimental investigation of the combustion characteristics of HTPB-based solid fuels containing aluminum and aluminum hydride has been conducted. Aluminum is commonly used as a fuel supplement in solid rocket propellants because of its ability to increase the specific impulse of a propellant. Similarly, aluminum hydride, or alane, is another attractive fuel supplement because it can significantly (∼7–8 %) increase specific impulse even beyond that of aluminum. In this study, the regression rates of a baseline fuel (pure HTPB) were compared with that of fuels containing either aluminum or alane as additives using a counterflow combustion experiment with nitrous oxide (N2O) as the oxidizer. The additives were investigated in concentrations of 10, 20, and 40 % by weight of the fuels. The addition of aluminum at all loadings resullted in a decrease in the regression rate relative to the baseline, whereas the addition of alane resulted in at worst similar regression rates and at best (highest loading) approximately a 20 % increase in regression rate. The decomposition behavior of selected fuels was analyzed using traditional thermal analysis techniques; thermal gravimetric analysis and differential scanning calorimetry.
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U2 - 10.1002/prep.201800380
DO - 10.1002/prep.201800380
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85062862744
VL - 44
SP - 744
EP - 750
JO - Propellants and explosives
JF - Propellants and explosives
SN - 0721-3115
IS - 6
ER -