High Performance, Semi-Solid Monopropellant for Advanced Low Cost Expendable Launch Vehicles

Physical Sciences Inc. proposes to demonstrate and quantify a novel, safe, high density impulse, green storable liquid propellant in a rocket engine. This new propellant formulation can be treated as a monopropellant or as a bipropellant system with predicted specific impulse and density specific impulses exceeding NTO/MMH performance. The liquid propellant will allow for low-cost operability of high performance propulsion systems for high mass fraction launch and upper stage vehicles by reducing logistical operational cost compared to current state-of-the-art carcinogenic and potentially cryogenic systems. In Phase II, the liquid monopropellant efficacy will be quantified under mulitple engine operating environments. The results generated will be utilized to conduct a realistic system level design of the propulsion system, which will be incorporated into the trade study of the XS-1 and ALASA launch vehicles. The results from this activity will serve to define critical refinement of the liquid rocket engine for a prototype demonstration in Phase III.