Discovery of new molecule can lead to more efficient rocket fuel
Trinitramid - that's the name of the new molecule that may be a component in future rocket fuel. This fuel could be 20-30 percent more efficient in comparison with the best rocket fuels we have today. The discovery was made at the Royal Institute of Technology (KTH) in Sweden.
"A rule of thumb is that for every ten-percent increase in efficiency for rocket fuel, the payload of the rocket can double. What's more, the molecule consists only of nitrogen and oxygen, which would make the rocket fuel environmentally friendly. This is more than can be said of today's solid rocket fuels, which entail the emission of the equivalent of 550 tons of concentrated hydrochloric acid for each launch of the space shuttle" - Tore Brinck, professor of physical chemistry at KTH.
Working with a research team at KTH, he discovered a new molecule in the nitrogen oxide group, which is not something that happens every day. It was while the scientists were studying the breakdown of another compound, using quantum chemistry computations, that they understood that the new molecule could be stable.
New aluminium-water rocket propellant promising for future space missions Researchers are developing a new type of rocket propellant made of a frozen mixture of water and "nanoscale aluminium" powder that is more environmentally friendly than conventional propellants and could be manufactured on the moon, Mars and other water-bearing bodies.
The U.S. Air Force is funding the development of a new rocket fuel that promises to be as powerful as current propellants, but safer and simpler to handle, possibly cheaper and environmentally benign. It's made from a frozen mixture of finely powdered aluminium and water. In August, the Air Force, NASA and scientists from Purdue and Pennsylvania State universities launched a 9-foot rocket 1,300 feet into the air during an initial test flight of the propellant ALICE - so named for its ingredients, aluminium and ice.
NASA, AFOSR Test Environmentally-Friendly Rocket Propellant NASA and the Air Force Office of Scientific Research, or AFOSR, have successfully launched a small rocket using an environmentally-friendly, safe propellant comprised of aluminium powder and water ice, called ALICE.
AFOSR and NASA Launch First-Ever Test Rocket Fuelled by Environmentally-Friendly, Safe Aluminium-Ice Propellant The Air Force Office of Scientific Research (AFOSR) and NASA recently announced the launch of an environmentally-friendly, safe propellant comprised of aluminium powder and water ice (ALICE).
"By funding this collaborative research with NASA, Purdue and The Pennsylvania State University, AFOSR continues to promote basic research breakthroughs for the future of the Air Force" - Dr. Brendan Godfrey, director, AFOSR.