For their senior rocket project, the students designed a solid rocket propellant that would accelerate the rocket to 100 feet per second without being unstable. They tested over a dozen mixtures using various catalysts and ultimately selected an iron oxide catalyst based on multi-scale testing results. The propellant was packed into tubes, cut into grains after setting, weighed, and paired in motors to keep mass equal for testing, which measured pressure values from a sensor using a DATAQ sampler and custom mounting rigs.

1. ROCKET PROPELLANT
SENIOR PROJECT

2. DESIGN CRITERIA
For the competition we wanted a
propellant that was powerful enough to
reach a velocity 100 feet per second
before leaving the launch tower. But not
so powerful that it is unstable.
We were looking for a propellant that had
a stable max pressure behavior to
improve chances of success.

3. MIXED PROPELLANT
For our rocket we chose to use a solid
rocket propellant as it was the easiest to
formulate
We mixed at least a dozen different
mixtures using various catalysts.
Results of extensive multi-scale tests led
us to use an iron oxide catalyst.

4. MAKING GRAINS
The formula is packed into tubes to set,
after it sets the formula is cut into grains
and holes are drilled using a centering jig.
Each grain is weighed and matched with
other grains to keep the mass equal for all
motor tests of that batch.

5. TESTING APPARATUS
We used a DATAQ data sampler to be able to
graph pressure values from a pressure
sensor attached to the top of the engine.
We used a custom mounting rig to secure
the engine in place.
The rig we used was different for the full
scale test.