On the effect of energetic material induction in cryogenic propellants under elevated pressure conditions

Abstract

Upper stage propulsion is an intensive area of prominence. Cryogenic propellants for upper stages have revolutionized the space missions however, there are specific aspects which makes the utilization complicated. With significant technological advancement in space propulsion domain, there is a growing need to enhance the performance of upper stages for space missions. Research efforts have contributed significantly to advancement in enhancing the performance of rocket propellants with energetic materials. The work explores the effect of adding energetic materials in cryogenic propellant under elevated pressure conditions. The quest for new energetic materials with high performance, sensitivity, and physical properties is one of the main challenges for the chemical industry. Conventional cryogenic propellant composition of liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen is taken as the base composition under selected operating conditions and simulations are performed using the NASA-CEA program. The work is motivated by the need for efficient and high-performance propellants for space exploration. Result shows significant changes in the performance of propellant composition with addition of high energy materials. The effects are noted in the form of catalysts behaving as energetic inhibitors, activators and neutralizers for the base composition.