FURI | Fall 2019

End-Burning Vortex Flow Pancake Hybrid Rocket Engine

Hybrid rocket engines offer the following advantages over other rocket propulsion methods; ease of storing oxidizer, throttling capability, and reignition capability. An end-burning vortex flow pancake motor is considered in this research to optimize the solid fuel regression rate, and thus thrust. This design features two fuel slabs of hydroxyl terminated polybutadiene encased in the combustion chamber with tangential injection of the oxidizing liquid nitrous oxide. An experimental apparatus was designed and being constructed to verify fluid simulations and compare the solid fuel regression rate of this configuration to other hybrid rocket engines.