Safety Technologies for Liquid Hypergolic Propulsion Systems

Hypergolic fuels are the propellant of choice for high performance missile systems. As the demand for them increases, so does the need for assuring the safety of personnel and equipment in their vicinity. These fuels tend to be corrosive, toxic, and present fire hazards if leaks occur. The ultimate objective in this research is to develop a sensor technology which will facilitate safer storage and deployment of liquid hypergolic propulsion systems for missile applications on land, mobile platforms, and naval ships. This effort will develop and demonstrate an automated, continuous hypergolic leak detection system that does not require calibration or routine maintenance for at least four years. The system is designed to detect to a few parts-per-million (ppm) of the common hypergolic fuels and oxidizers, including MMH and N2O4 while excluding ammonia. Extensive testing will be done to validate this capability. The sensor will be readily integrateable with existing components such as missiles systems, fuel processing facilities, and spacecraft. It will also be easily modifiable for use in a wide range of environments such as manufacturing, storage, transport, fuel processing, etc. Relationships with potential partners and customers will be pursued in parallel with the development to ensure practical application.