Hindawi Publishing Corporation

International Journal of Aerospace Engineering

Volume 2012, Article ID 715706, 2 pages
doi:10.1155/2012/715706

Editorial
Chemical Rocket Propulsion

David Greatrix,1 Ivett Leyva,2 Dario Pastrone,3

Valsalayam Sanal Kumar,4 and Michael Smart5
1 Department of Aerospace Engineering, Ryerson University, Toronto, ON, Canada M5B 2K3
2 AerophysicsBranch, Air Force Research Laboratory, Edwards AFB, CA 93524, USA
3 Dipartimento di Ingegneria Meccanica e Aerospaziale, Politecnico di Torino, 10129 Torino, Italy
4 Department of Aeronautical Engineering, Kumaraguru College of Technology, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu 641006, India
5 School of Mechanical and Mining Engineering, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD 4072, Australia

Correspondence should be addressed to David Greatrix, [email protected]

Received 31 October 2012; Accepted 31 October 2012

Copyright © 2012 David Greatrix et al. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License,
which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

We are pleased to present to you this special issue on chemical for upper stage engines, and long-term storage for cryogens,
rocket propulsion. It is hoped that experts and nonexperts will become some of the engineering issues researchers will
alike will enjoy the discussion of a number of international face. Liquid propulsion will remain a critical component in
research efforts that are taking place across the breadth of launch systems in the foreseeable future. In conjunction, the
this diverse field, as conveyed by the authors of the papers interest in making these systems more reliable, more durable,
appearing herein. The submitted papers certainly reveal and less expensive to develop and acquire for a number of
the wide number of disciplines (chemistry, fluid dynamics, diverse flight mission applications will continue, and the
structures, etc.) that currently play important roles towards engineering challenges associated with these objectives will
ultimately producing effective chemical rocket systems. have to be met.
Recently, an important milestone has been reached in the Solid-propellant rocket motors maintain their impor-
history of chemical rocket propulsion, with the retirement of tance in meeting the propulsion needs for a number of
the Space Shuttle. The end of one era brings the dawn of a flight applications, big and small. While solid rockets have
new era in space transportation, with the anticipation that, had, for a long time now, the reputation as being the
with time, new and better flight vehicles will come on the cost-effective, ready-to-go option, research continues on
scene and flourish in their respective applications. Almost improving all aspects of their performance, including their
surely, those new vehicles will still be propelled in large part safety and friendliness to the surrounding environment.
by chemical rocket systems, systems that have been updated For example, ammonium dinitramide (ADN) appears to
and improved over those of the previous generation through be making inroads as a potential greener replacement for
the efforts of today’s researchers and engineers. ammonium perchlorate (AP) as an effective oxidizer for
Liquid-propellant rocket engines continue as the preem- a number of solid propellants. There is some interest in
inent chemical rocket propulsion system, from millinewton going to higher chamber pressures to increase thrust-related
spacecraft thrusters to meganewton first-stage engines for performance; at higher pressures, one may encounter the
space launch vehicles. Although it is commonly perceived need to more actively inhibit the appearance of combustion
that liquid rocket engines are a mature technology, there are instability symptoms during a given motor’s operation.
still many active research areas. For example, replacing highly Manned suborbital flights powered by hybrid rocket
toxic and expensive-to-handle propellants used in hypergolic engines have recently become reality, mainly due to reasons
systems with greener, less toxic propellants is a current related to low cost and safety. Potential applications of hybrid
challenge. As the thrust demands go up, achieving longer life rockets range from microgravity platforms to launchers and
for monopropellant systems especially remains an objective. landing vehicles, but researchers must face some challenges,
For missions beyond Earth’s orbit, proven relight capability in part due to the peculiar combustion process of hybrid
2 International Journal of Aerospace Engineering

propellants. Different concepts are being studied as a means

to increase grain regression rate, from innovative fuels (e.g.,
paraffin-based solid fuels or solid methane) to innovative
engine architectures (e.g., advanced vortex-hybrid or cas-
caded multistage impinging-jet designs). Other important
issues, which must be dealt with, are mixture ratio shifting,
combustion efficiency, and combustion instability.
Air-breathing rocket engines continue to be a practical
propulsion system candidate for some smaller, longer-range,
and high-speed missile applications. Challenges remain
moving up in scale and scope, for military and civil appli-
cations such as single-stage-to-orbit flight vehicles. Inter-
national computational and experimental research efforts
continue in this regard.
Within the aerospace propulsion community, one com-
monly hears that every significant advance in aerospace
transportation has been made possible by a significant
advance in propulsion technology. One also hears that, as
engineers and scientists, when we are fortunate enough to
make significant progress in our time, we do so with the
realization that we stand on the shoulders of giants. The
giants, of course, are those who paved the way before us,
with their insight, perseverance, and skill. This is certainly
true of the field of chemical rocket propulsion. With this in
mind, one can say, with some confidence, that despite, the
inevitable challenges to come, the future of chemical rocket
propulsion is bright.
David Greatrix
Ivett Leyva
Dario Pastrone
Valsalayam Sanal Kumar
Michael Smart
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