Rocket Propulsion

Solid Rocket Motors

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Rocket Propulsion

Solid Rocket Motors

Background

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 Solid Rocket Motors
• Oldest rocket technology
Fire Arrow launcher from
14th century Huǒ Lóng Jīng
(developed before 1230)

cyber-heritage.co.uk
/rocketrocket/rockets.htm

credit: National Boxer Rocket (1855), two-

Air and Space 1941 demonstration of Jet stage, used for rescue
Museum
Assisted Takeoff (JATO) operations
– powder based propellants (black
powder, amide* powder for JATO)
Solid Motors 3
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*no sulfur and ammonium nitrate added
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Solid Rocket Motors

• Compared to LREs
Advantages Disadvantages
Simple (less system components) Lower Isp
Reliable (few moving parts) Harder to test (no subcomponent tests)
and sensitive to environmental temp.
Reduced storage volume (high ) Hard to actively throttle
Storable (especially compared to Manufacturing defects (e.g., cracks) and
cryogenics) degradation at extreme storage
conditions
Easier to start (vs. pump fed No restarts
LREs)
Easily(?) scalable (to high and Emissions (HCl and chlorinated
low thrust) compounds) and signature (smoke) for
popular propellants

Solid Motors 4
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 Solid Rockets - Major Applications
• High thrust
– boosters
– high acceleration missiles
• Simplicity, storability
– hobbyists, weapons systems
– novel programmable micro-thrusters

Solid Motors 5
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SRM Components/Nomenclature
• Basic parts of a solid rocket Payload
motor (SRM)
– casing Igniter
– insulation
– propellant (grain) Insulation Casing

– port/bore (not for end

Propellant
burning)
Port
– igniter
– payload
– nozzle

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 SRM Launch Booster Example
Titan IV

From Humble

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SRM In-Space Example

STAR (apogee kick motor): Inertial Upper Stage (IUS):

CTS, GMS, BS, GPS, GOES used in Titan, Space
satellites from Sutton, Rocket Propulsion Shuttle launchesFrom Sutton
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 Solid Propellants
• Two basic types
• Homogeneous
– reactants (fuel, oxidizer) mixed at
molecular level
– e.g., double-base propellants
• Heterogeneous
– fuel and oxidizer are “macroscopically”
separated
– e.g., composite propellants

Solid Motors 9
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Double-Base Propellants
• Typically combination of explosive liquid and self-
burning powder
– e.g., nitroglycerine and nitrocellulose (gun cotton,
flash paper)
– powder absorbs liquid explosive, molecularly mixed
– other additives (opacifier, stabilizers, burn-rate
modifiers, flash suppressors)
• Can be extruded or cast
• Used in early modern rockets, e.g. at JPL
– replaced gun/black powder
– used in WWII JATOs and early Sidewinder
– weapons systems
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 Composite Propellants (CP)
• “Oxidizer” particles
Coarse Ox
held together in non- Particle
energetic polymer
binder (fuel)
Fine Ox
• Manufacture Particles
– grind oxidizer Binder
crystals into powder, add other solids
(e.g., catalysts)
– mix liquid binder with liquid curing agents,
crosslinkers, plasticizers, stabilizers, bonding
agents
– mix solids and liquids, cast and cure

Solid Motors 11
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Cleaved Composite Propellant Sample

Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) image
• 10m and 400m
10 m ammonium perchlorate
(AP) particles
– self-burning oxidizer
• HTPB binder
– polymer (like a
synthetic rubber)
– fuel
• 92% solids
– relatively high solids
loading
Fine AP Coarse AP
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 Rocket Propulsion

Solid Rocket Motors

Regression Rate and

Internal Ballistics

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Mass “Production” Rate

• Propellant converted to gas due to heat
feedback from flame at rate given by
  r s Ab
(IV.26) m flame
m q
• (Surface) Regression Rate r Burning
x
r  dx dt sometimes rb Area, Ab r
s
– standard model (Burning Rate “Law”
or St. Robert’s “Law”)
(IV.27) r  apo
n
with a=f (Tsolid ,…)
– also, r  c  bpon etc.

Solid Motors 14
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 Solid Propellant Burning Rate

r  apon  ln r  ln a  n ln p From Sutton

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Motor Internal Ballistics

• What governs motor internal conditions?
• Examine mass conservation

   u  nˆ dA
dmCV
0
dt
mstore
m exit
d
oVo   m exit  m b
Vo
0
CV
m b
dt
d o dV r s Ab
Vo  o o Assuming:
dt dt 1) uniform gas prop’s. in CV
 1 2) TPG, CPG
2  1
 2 
 o  Ab r 
po
1 dpo    At 3) To=constant (e.g., Tad)

RTo dt RTo   1 4) po, Ab, r given at time t

mstore,V
mstore,p mstore,p+mstore,V = mb mexit
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 Internal Ballistics (con’t)
• Solve for rate of pressure change
 1

(IV.28) Vo dpo  rA      p A   2   1
 
RTo    1 
b s o o t
RTo dt
• For steady burning  1 / c*
 0  po  r b  s   o c* (IV.29)
dpo A
dt At
~s in many cases
– using standard burning rate law
po  apon
Ab
At

 s  o c*  po  aK  s  o c* 1
1 n (IV.30)
Ab At  K
For steady burning (if a , n , To ,  , and 1
1 n
At constant) then Ab must be constant po ~ K
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Motor Stability
• Recall mass conservation (for fixed To)
m store , p  m b  m store ,V  m exit m exit  c* po At  po
 m incr  m exit m incr  Ab  s   o r  pon
• For stable operation (po= const), need mstore,p= 0
• So when are we stable?
m incr n  1
m exit
– only if n  1 m exit  m incr
m
– normally use  po  m incr n  1
0.3<n<0.7 m exit  m incr
operating  po 
point

po
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 Combustion Limits
• If n or po too low m
– do not get stable combustion
– after ignition, propellant
soon stops burning (r0) t

• At too high po
– possibility of erratic, unpredictable burning
– e.g., po > 5000 psi)

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Pressure Histories
• Motor designer can adjust pressure profile
(“history”) of a solid motor by arranging how burning
area changes with time (grain geometry)
• Thrust given by   po At c
– so thrust history of motor essentially follows
motor’s pressure history
• Characterize pressure/thrust histories as generally
– progressive: increase with time
– neutral: constant with time
– regressive: decrease with time
– combinations
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 Grain Geometries and Thrust History

or “boost sustain”

From Hill and Peterson

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More Solid Motor Grain Geometries

From Sutton

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 SSRB (Space Shuttle Rocket Booster)
• Largest SRM flown and first designed for
reuse
– diameter = 12.17 ft, length = 149.16 ft
• Sea Level Thrust: 3,300,000 lb
• Weight: 1,300,000 lb (inert: 192,000 lb)
• Provide ~ 71% of thrust at lift-off and ascent
• Propellant composition (mass fractions)
– AP: 69.6%, Al: 16%,
Fe2O3 (catalyst): 0.4%,
HTPB (binder): 12.04%
epoxy (curing agent): 1.96%
• Four segments
– 11 point star (neutral) in forward segment
– double truncated cone (regressive) in 3 aft
segments

http://spaceflightnow.com/2015/03/11/worlds-largest-solid-rocket-motor-fired-in-utah/

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Rocket Propulsion

Solid Rocket Motors

Design Issues and Example

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 SRM Design
Dt
• Typical Requirements
– thrust, (t) D
– burn time, tb
or total impulse, Itot
• Design Variables L
– propellant composition ( c*, a, n)
– grain design • Other constraints/issues
– motor geometry: D, L ‒ high volume loading
fraction (Vpropellant /Vchamber)
– nozzle geometry: , Dt ‒ low residual propellant
• Unsteady variables mass
– po(t), m(t), … ‒ structural integrity
‒ limit erosive burning
‒ limit max operating press.
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Design of an End-Burning Motor

• Start with end burning motor Dt
– easiest to analyze
– constant thrust
Db po m b
– used in some small motors
and gas generators
• Requirements
– tb=100 s, vac=500 kN (105 lbf) lweb
• Constraints
– po=4 MPa (assume uniform)
– nozzle: c=1.85 (~30-50)
– propellant: c*=1500 m/s, =1.2, MW=24, s=1800 kg/m3,
r=0.40 [po(MPa)]0.3 cm/s
• Design Variables
– Dt, Db, lweb (assume axisymmetric-cylindrical geometry)

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 End-Burning Motor Example
• Nozzle throat size, Dt Dt
from 
(IV.12) At 
po c Db po m b
5 10 N 5

 4 106 N m 2 1.85  lweb
 0.0676m2

At   Dt2 4  Dt  29cm~ 1 ft 

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End-Burning Motor Example

• Motor length, lweb Dt
dx
r
dt steady burning Db po m b
 web

tb lweb
 web  rtb  0.44 cm s 100s 
0.3

 0.61 cm s 100 s 

 web  61cm
  web Dt  2
Dt  29cm

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 End-Burning Motor Example
Dt
• Motor diameter,Db
– recall for steady-burn Db po m b

from
(IV.29)
Ab
po  r  s  o c* lweb
At
Ab po po
K 
At r  s   o c *
r s c*
4 106 N m 2
  243
 
0.0061m s 1800 kg m3 1500 m s

 Db  24329cm  4.57m  Db  web  7.5!!!!

Huge end-burning motors to produce high thrust
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Internal Burning Motor Design

wt
Dt
• Burn time associated with
web thickness, wt
Dp Ab(t)
• Length impacts burn area,
Ab(t) = L  S(t) perimeter
• For given initial grain L
geometry, need to know Dp (t) port diameter
how S evolves with time
– integration of burning S(t2)
surface location due to
regression acting normal
to surface S(t1)

Solid Motors 30
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