Compact Sensor of Propellant Viscoelastic Properties

Age and environmental exposure can alter mechanical properties of solid rocket propellants, which can cause problems with functioning.  Understanding the mechanical state of the solid rocket motor propellant allows for a better evaluation of the health of the propellant and provide greater fidelity in aging trend evaluations. The Navy has a need for a compact sensor or a suite of sensors that can collect data that can be used to infer the mechanical state of solid rocket motor propellant in a non-destructive manner.   In addition to the sensor(s), an insertion system that can place the sensor at different, sometimes hard to reach locations on the propellant surface of a solid rocket motor system is needed for complete, repeatable, and rapid inspection.    Triton’s proposed inspection device will meet these needs, by measuring the viscoelastic properties of the propellant in a non-destructive manner.   It will have a small size, enabling placement into small cavities and locations several meters into the rocket hollow core.  It will entail a placement system that can quickly position the sensors at many desired inspection locations.  In addition, the method of mounting alleviates the need to hard-mount to any parts on the missile or propellent.  No disassembly of any rocket parts will be required.  All of these features will allow measurements to be taken on substantially more available solid rocket motor assets as opposed to the current limited number of assets assigned to the monitoring program.