Bottle Rocket Project

By:
Pearutch Kuvinichkul 5861098

Suppapong Iemkongaek 5861156

Surawut Sartpant 5861157

Weerapoom Pongruengkiat 5861182

Section: 1103

Presented to: Mr.Gopinath Subramanian

 Objective

The purpose of this experiment is to be able to aim and

reach the target with optimal accuracy through using wide
range of knowledge, calculation and comprehension of the
various principles of Physics we have covered this year
including Linear Motion, Projectile, Impulse and Momentum,
Energy which we will put into practice rather than having sole
theoretical backgrounds as well as the reaction of Chemicals
that can be used as fuel to propel and launch the rocket.
Besides the in-class content of Physics, there are various
methods of calculation and measurement involved in this
project such as assemble parts, aerodynamic design,
measuring chemical proportion and degree angle of the base.
Assemble materials:

-PVC pipes
-Pipecutter
-Litre water bottle
-4 L elbow connectors
-3 triple-ways connectors -1 Reducing socket -Rubber cork
-Half-cut pingpong ball -PVC glue
-Tea bag

Chemical Substances:
-Baking Soda ( g.)
-5% distilled Vinegar ( Oz)
 Introduction & Background

This report covers all the progress and processes of this

experiment. From planning to assembling and practicing on
ground. The ultimate purpose is to make use of all the content
we learnt in class and set up this project practically. All skills
and knowledges we acquired in class were involved in the
processes. Comprehension in measures and scales,
calculation, chemical uses, aerodynamics, basic scientific laws
and properties of the objects was instrumental as we discussed
about the physics concepts below. Not only the discussion and
explanation of our project are included in the report, analysis of
errors and recommendations are also mentioned here in order
to learn from mistake and show improvement on the next
projects. We would like to contribute a gratefulness to our
advisor, Mr.Gopinath Subramanian, who advised us as a part of
our success.
 Discussion of Physics Concepts

Measurements

It is integral part of Physics like any other scientific

subject. In the rocket experiment we use velocity, length, and
accretion and also other casual measurement like mass and
volume. Quantitative information on physical conditions,
properties, or relations essential for coordination of activities
and understanding of the nature of things in daily life, science
and engineering. Time, distance, mass, temperature, force,
power, and all other physical quantities, as well as the
properties of matter, materials, and devices, must be measured
in terms which have the same meaning for everyone. We have
two main unit of measurement which is Metric system, and
International System of Units (SI).

Newtons laws of motion

1st law: An object at rest stays at rest and an object in motion

nless
stays in motion with the same speed and magnitude u
acted on by an unbalanced force.

From this statement, it is important to take into account the

Newtons 1st law of motion while testing the bottle rocket
xternal forces exerting on the
because in reality, there are e
rocket preventing it from staying in its original place or motion.
Spanning 20 metres from the launcher to the dropped point,
there were forces and factors contributing to the motion and its
path. To name a few, the gravity was the force that acted on
the rocket in downwards direction which also depended on the
mass of the rocket. Another factor is the presence of air
resistance, it exerted frictional force on the rockets surface
decelerating its speed. To minimise the effects of these
external forces, we installed wings that helped overcoming the
air resistance and improved its stability. We also made use of
the lightest materials we could find and ballasting the rockets
head making it drop its head down instead of other parts.
Without the factors mentioned above, inertia would have been
in practice and the target would not have been reached.

2nd law: The acceleration of an object produced by the net

force exerting on it is directly proportional to the magnitude but
inverse to the mass.

Due to this statement, we had to make careful plan on our

rocket design. As this concepts states that the relationship
between momentum and mass is inverse, therefore, the rocket
should be as light as possible in order to minimise the effects of
gravitational force due to its weight along with air resistance
and fly as free and accurate onto the bullseye. The lighter the
rocket is, the easier and faster it propels as it would have taken
less force and work to push the rubber cork.

3rd law: In every motion, there is a pair of forces acting on

between two objects. The size of the forces on the first object is
equal to the size of the force on another object. The direction of
the force on the first object is opposite to the direction of the
force on the second object. Therefore, in every pair of forces,
there are equal and opposite forces.
This concept is important when we look at how the bottle
pushed itself. As the gas in the bottle from the chemical
reaction accumulated and pushed the rubber cork, it made a
powerful impact on our launcher and flew away rapidly. As a
result of the presence of the opposite force, the rocket could
propel itself by exerting an action force on the launcher pad in
which the launcher exerted reaction force back to the bottle
rocket pushing it with great deal of power within seconds of
blast.

Linear motion (Freefall)

Free-falling is one of the consequences of gravity force on

Earth. It is when an object is falling under the influence of
Gravity. It should be emphasised that complete free-fall can
only happen under sole influence of gravity. This means that it
does not directly apply for our bottle rocket experiment nor
does it apply to any natural scenario as there is prone to be the
presence of air resistance in reality. A specific term called
acceleration of gravity measures the rate of acceleration when
an object is falling by stating that A free- falling object has an
acceleration of 9.8 m/s/s downwards.
 Projectile

Projectile is when an object is launched and moves across

the air under the influence of the property of Gravity. Gravity
ownwards force pulling it vertically at
acts on the rocket as a d
9.8 m/s/s. As a result, in the angle-launched rocket, the path of
the rocket is a curve heading downwards until it reached the
ground. Without gravity force and air resistance in nature, the
prospect of the rockets path would be in a straight line upwards
relative to the degree due to inertia. In order for the bottle
rocket to drop at the bullseye marked on the floor, we set the
degree angle that corresponded to the power and speed of the
rocket determined
by the chemicals when it was being launched.

Impulse and momentum

Impulse=change in Momentum
Any force that acts on a moving object (in motion) in which it

changes the velocity is considered an impulse.

This only occurred when the rocket hit the ground which is

collision. Therefore, it did not affect this experiment directly.

 Discussion of design
Mass of rocket: 75.2 g.
Angle of propulsion: 40 degree Length of rocket: 42 cm

Procedures:

1) Plan the rockets model using graphic design program

called Open Rocket with realistic simulation.

Decide which composition to use in assembling the rocket

i.e. types of fins, types of head, body shape and its weight.

2) Gather materials and tools that are used in assembly

parts. Try assembling it up using as lightest materials we
 could find it in order to lessen the influence of gravitational
force.

3) After finishing the first design of the rocket, we assembled

the launcher using PVC pipes. For the first design, we saw that
it is not practical in that the bottle did not fit to launcher
s shown in the picture.
according to our first trial of launching a
 4) As a modification, we added the head of the rocket by
sticking a half-cut piece of a pingpong ball to comply with the
principle of aerodynamics, otherwise, it would leave a hole on
the rockets head and suck in the air making it slow and
wobble.

5) Made change in the launcher. Instead of using single-bar

launcher, we added another bar to hold the rockets body still
and straight with a pad for the rubber cork to push on and eject
itself.

6) After both the rocket and launcher had been completed, the
rest of the modifications were mainly fixing due to many trials of
launching.
 Final Rocket

Description of design

To design the rocket, we tried to find the sources and information

from the internet then we found one of the rocket simulator program

called Open Rocket which can be used to design rockets shape, engine

power, material, weight and aerodynamics. In the program, we can set

the distance, wind direction and height which we can try to simulate the

rocket before doing trial. We have known from the simulator that putting
4 fins into the rocket would make the rocket fly in the straightway as it let

the wind in front flow through them with less resistance. So our rocket

was made from 1 litre bottle with 4 fins using plastic are board and

half-cut Ping-Pong ball to increase aerodynamics. In the bottom of the

rocket, we use rubber cork to plug as the lid of the bottle because it can

make the experiment to be best when we put the baking soda and the

vinegar into the rocket. After finishing with the rocket, we start to explore

the way to make the launcher fit to our rocket. Firstly we make the base

of the launcher from PVC pipe and then we put one more PVC pipe in 40

degree angle to be the rocket launcher but after doing the experiment

We find that using 2 PVC pipe to make the rocket launcher may be more

stable so, we fix it and try to launch the rocket again. Finally, we find that

using 2 PVC pipe is the best solution for our rocket launcher and it can fit

to our rocket.
======================================================================

Errors & Recommendation

As the process went, our group encountered few mistakes and

struggles that deterred the success of this project. Starting with the

rocket, we initially designed the head by leaving it open and filled the

space with gravels and stones with an intention to put weigh on the head

so it would fall down with head down. Nonetheless, the fact that we left

the head open did not comply with the principle of aerodynamic as we

saw in our first trial in that the air flown in the hole when the rocket was

flying causing air resistance to slow down the rocket and destabilise its

direction and accuracy. We later on added a half-cut ping pong ball on

the head to improve the aerodynamics in that the air would flow

smoothly through the curved surface, moreover, we injected hot glue into

the head of the rocket as a weight instead of using gravels.

Our launcher was also changed several times. We through we would

stand the bottle on the tip of the pipe by pressing it in the pipes hole and

it would eject itself when there is enough air pressure. In practical, the

rocket could not stand on its own because the weight of the body and

head was too much and it was prone to fall down before even

accumulating enough gas. Even if we cut a line and insert a slice of

metal to lock the rocket in place, it was not practical to pull it out so that it

would eject because there should not have been any interference from

us otherwise we may have become an unwanted variable.

The next error is our lid. The first lid that we used was a sealing type

which we noticed that it got loosened after being used too often. This led

to the timing and power problems. The bottle

leaked almost every time we closed the lid. We then attached into a pipe

hole so that it would be more tightened but still it did not work due to
leakage. Eventually, we changed into a new lid which is a rubber cork

that plugs in the hole unlike the previous ones where they only seal the

hole. This one was tighter and it prevented leakage effectively.

The last modification was the propellant. At first, we used napkins as a

bag for Sodium bicarbonate. We realised that it was prone to leaking and

tearing and it reacted too fast so we put Sodium bicarbonate into tea

bags instead as it was able to dissolve in vinegar with appropriate timing

and easy to be held on. A small rope attached to the teabag was also

useful in keeping the teabag sink under the vinegar so that the Sodium

bicarbonate would react completely.

 Data Analysis
As the result has been out, we see that another problem was that

our chemical use was not proportional. In fact, we were not certain with

the amount of chemical required to propel exactly 20 metres because it

also depended heavily on the wind direction and power. The amount of

Sodium bicarbonate was highly fluctuating because the scenario was

smoking of unpredictable i.e. we filled 19 g of sodium bicarbonate into

120 ml of vinegar and the rocket flew for 16 metres. In the 2nd try, we

filled 22 g of sodium bicarbonate into 140 ml of vinegar and it flew only

15 metres. From this situation, it clear shown that the most volatile factor

is the wind not the amount of chemical usage. Also another big factor

that we saw is our distance keep decreasing and the cause of that

problem is from the cap that we use. The cap that we used is the rubber

cap and after some time of the pressure keep pushing it it keep

expanding and keep reducing the distance of our group because the cap

can held on to only small amount, however we keep increasing the

chemical the range will be the same from the cap that cant held on to

kept a higher pressure.

OUR TEST RUN
 References
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