ROCKET PROPELLANTS

1
Dr.Rakesh P

1
Professor, College of Engineering, Trivandrum
Contents

1.0 Liquid Propellants . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

1.0.0 Energy Content . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
1.0.1 Earth-storable and space-storable propellant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
1.0.2 Hypergolic and Non-hypergolic propellants . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
1.1 Liquid Propellant Rocket Engines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
1.2 Cooling of Thrust chambers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
1.3 Monopropellant Rocket Engines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

2 Experimental Details 9
2.0 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
2.1 Experimental Arrangements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
2.1.0 Injector Details . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

2
1.0. LIQUID PROPELLANTS 3

ropellant is the chemical mixture burned to produce thrust in rockets and consists of a fuel and an

P oxidizer. A fuel is a substance that burns when combined with oxygen producing gas for propulsion. An
oxidizer is an agent that releases oxygen for combination with a fuel. The ratio of oxidizer to fuel is called
the mixture ratio. Propellants are classified according to their state - liquid, solid, or hybrid. The gauge for
rating the efficiency of rocket propellants is specific impulse, stated in seconds. Specific impulse indicates how
many pounds (or kilograms) of thrust are obtained by the consumption of one pound (or kilogram) of propellant
in one second. Specific impulse is characteristic of the type of propellant, however, its exact value will vary to
some extent with the operating conditions and design of the rocket engine.

1.0 Liquid Propellants

In a liquid propellant rocket, the fuel and oxidizer are stored in separate tanks, and are fed through a system
of pipes, valves, and turbopumps to a combustion chamber where they are combined and burned to produce
thrust. Liquid propellant engines are more complex than their solid propellant counterparts, however, they
offer several advantages. By controlling the flow of propellant to the combustion chamber, the engine can be
throttled, stopped, or restarted.
A good liquid propellant is one with a high specific impulse or, stated another way, one with a high speed
of exhaust gas ejection. This implies a high combustion temperature and exhaust gases with small molecular
weights. However, there is another important factor that must be taken into consideration: the density of the
propellant. Using low-density propellants means that larger storage tanks will be required, thus increasing the
mass of the launch vehicle. Storage temperature is also important. A propellant with a low storage temperature,
i.e. a cryogenic, will require thermal insulation, thus further increasing the mass of the launcher. The toxicity
of the propellant is likewise important. Safety hazards exist when handling, transporting, and storing highly
toxic compounds. Also, some propellants are very corrosive; however, materials that are resistant to certain
propellants have been identified for use in rocket construction.

Liquid Propellants

Energy content Storability hypergolicity

Low-energy Propellant
Earth storable Hypergolic
Medium-energy propellant
Space storable Non-Hypergolic
High-energy propellant
4 CONTENTS

1.0.0 Energy Content

Liquid propellants are categorised as per their specific impulse into

a Low-energy propellant

b Medium-energy propellant

c High-energy propellant

1.0.0.0 Low-energy propellant

The low energy propellants are those which give Isp at sea level conditions less than 3000Ns/kg.
eg. Liquid oxygen and alchohol
Liquid oxygen and kerosene (RP)
Nitric acid with aniline, xylidine or hydrazine
N2 O4 with hydrazine, mono-methyl hydrazine (MMH) and Unsymmetrical dimethyl hydrazine(UDMH)

Both aniline and xylidine result in the formation of lot of soot since they are aromatic component. The
energy release is low since the heat of formation of the compounds are large and negative. The oxygen content
in HNO3 is enhanced by dissolving 15% NO2 in it. the mixture is known as Red fuming nitric acid. if the
incorporation of NO2 is about 0.5% it is known as White fuming nitric acid. HNO3 is corrosive, The addition of
small amount of HF inhibits the corrosion, the resulting mixture is known as Inhibited Red fuming nitric acid.
Fuel N2 H4 has possitive heat of formation and it dissociates in the presence of a catalyst to liberate heat.
It is therefore, used as a single propellant without the need of an oxidizer and is therefore, called a monopro-
pellant.Similarly, the oxidizer H2 O2 liberates heat upon decomposition and can be used as a monopropellant.
Hydrazine combines readily with HNO3 and N2 O4 giving high heat release rate than aniline and xylidine.MMH
and UDMH are hydrazine based fuels in which the hydrogen atom is replaced by one and two methyl groups
respectively. MMH gives more stable comnbustion than hydrazine and its handling is easy. A fuel which is a
mixture of 50 percent N2 H4 and 50 percent UDMH is known as Aerozene 50(Az50).
The fuel kersosene has also been extensively used with LO2 . Kerosene is predominantly paraffin based and
is chemical structure is approximated by C12 H26 . kersone consist of straight chain compounds and aromatic
compounds. Pure kerosene is called aviation kerosene. Kerosene blended with aviation gasoline is known as
jet mix product and is used for aircraft propulsion. In the case of kerosene used for rocket propulsion, the
kerosene should not form coke. Kerosene used for rocket propulsion is known as Rocket propellant (RP). The
synthetic kerosene is called Sintin which gives higher Is p. The combination of kerosene and LO2 is referred to
as semi-cryogenic propellant.

1.0.0.1 Medium-energy propellant

The use of N2 H4 , UDMH and Az50 with LO2 gives a sea level Isp between 3000 and 3500NS/kg. The use of
kersosenw with liquid fluorine also provides Isp in the same range. But fluorine is seldom used because of its
toxicity and reactivity.

1.0.0.2 High-energy propellant

High energy propellants have sea level Isp greater than 4000NS/Kg. Two propellant combination ofLH2 and
LO2 or LF falls in this category. But LF is seldom used because of its reactivity.These combinations are known
as cryogenic propellants.

1.0.1 Earth-storable and space-storable propellant

The low energy propellants which does not require special conditions of storage on the ground are said to
be earth-storable propellants.Space storability demand strictures on freezing point and boiling point. Space
storability requires lower freezing point and higher boiling point.The use of mixed oxides of nitrogen, NO and
N2 O4 known as MON allows storability under space conditions.

1.0.2 Hypergolic and Non-hypergolic propellants

Hypergolic propellants are fuels and oxidizers which ignite spontaneously on contact with each other and
require no ignition source. The easy start and restart capability of hypergolics make them ideal for spacecraft
maneuvering systems. Also, since hypergolics remain liquid at normal temperatures, they do not pose the
storage problems of cryogenic propellants. Hypergolics are highly toxic and must be handled with extreme care.
1.1. LIQUID PROPELLANT ROCKET ENGINES 5

Hypergolic fuels commonly include hydrazine, monomethyl hydrazine (MMH) and unsymmetrical dimethyl
hydrazine (UDMH). The oxidizer is typically nitrogen tetroxide (N2O4) or nitric acid (HNO3). UDMH is used
in many Russian, European, and Chinese rockets while MMH is used in the orbital maneuvering system (OMS)
and reaction control system (RCS) of the Space Shuttle orbiter. The Titan family of launch vehicles and the
second stage of the Delta use a fuel called Aerozine 50, a mixture of 50% UDMH and 50% hydrazine.

1.1 Liquid Propellant Rocket Engines

Liquid bipropellant rocket engines can be categorized according to their power cycles, that is, how power is
derived to feed propellants to the main combustion chamber. Described below are some of the more common
types.

(a) Blow-down mode (b) Cold gas pressurization

(c) Gas generator cycle (d) Staged combustion cycle

(e) Expander cycle (f) Bleed cycle (g) Combustion tap-off

cycle

Figure 1.1: Liquid Engine Cycles ?? Blow down mode, ?? Cold Gas Pressurization, ?? Gas generator cycle, ??
Staged combustion cycle ??Expander cycle,??Bleed cycle, ?? Combustion tap-off cycle

Liquid propellant rocket engine cycles can be classifies as pressure-fed system and pump fed system. For
small thrust rockets operating at small values of chamber pressures, a simple blow down or regulated gas pressure
6 CONTENTS

cold gas system is adequate. As the chamber pressure, and hence thrust increases a pump-fed system becomes
desirable.
Gas-generator cycle: The gas-generator cycle, also called open cycle, taps off a small amount of fuel
and oxidizer from the main flow (typically 2 to 7 percent) to feed a burner called a gas generator. The hot
gas from this generator passes through a turbine to generate power for the pumps that send propellants to
the combustion chamber. The hot gas is then either dumped overboard or sent into the main nozzle or an
auxillary nozzle downstream. Increasing the flow of propellants into the gas generator increases the speed of
the turbine, which increases the flow of propellants into the main combustion chamber, and hence, the amount
of thrust produced. The gas generator must burn propellants at a less-than-optimal mixture ratio to keep
the temperature low for the turbine blades. Thus, the cycle is appropriate for moderate power requirements
but not high-power systems, which would have to divert a large portion of the main flow to the less efficient
gas-generator flow.As in most rocket engines, some of the propellant in a gas generator cycle is used to cool the
nozzle and combustion chamber, increasing efficiency and allowing higher engine temperature.
Staged combustion cycle: In a staged combustion cycle, also called closed cycle, the propellants are
burned in stages. Like the gas-generator cycle, this cycle also has a burner, called a preburner, to generate gas
for a turbine. The preburner taps off and burns a small amount of one propellant and a large amount of the
other, producing an oxidizer-rich or fuel-rich hot gas mixture that is mostly unburned vaporized propellant.
This hot gas is then passed through the turbine, injected into the main chamber, and burned again with the
remaining propellants. The advantage over the gas-generator cycle is that all of the propellants are burned
at the optimal mixture ratio in the main chamber and no flow is dumped overboard. The staged combustion
cycle is often used for high-power applications. The higher the chamber pressure, the smaller and lighter the
engine can be to produce the same thrust. Development cost for this cycle is higher because the high pressures
complicate the development process. Further disadvantages are harsh turbine conditions, high temperature
piping required to carry hot gases, and a very complicated feedback and control design.
Expander cycle: The expander cycle is similar to the staged combustion cycle but has no preburner. Heat
in the cooling jacket of the main combustion chamber serves to vaporize the fuel. The fuel vapor is then passed
through the turbine and injected into the main chamber to burn with the oxidizer. This cycle works with fuels
such as hydrogen or methane, which have a low boiling point and can be vaporized easily. As with the staged
combustion cycle, all of the propellants are burned at the optimal mixture ratio in the main chamber, and
typically no flow is dumped overboard; however, the heat transfer to the fuel limits the power available to the
turbine, making this cycle appropriate for small to midsize engines. A variation of the system is the open, or
bleed, expander cycle, which uses only a portion of the fuel to drive the turbine. In this variation, the turbine
exhaust is dumped overboard to ambient pressure to increase the turbine pressure ratio and power output. This
can achieve higher chamber pressures than the closed expander cycle although at lower efficiency because of the
overboard flow.
Bleed cycle: Exhaust from the turbine can be admitted in the divergent portion of the nozzle to generate
additional thrust in the main thrust chamber instead of exhausting it through auxillary nozzle. This paractice
is known as gas generator with bleed.
Combustion tap-off cycle: Combustion gases could be taken from main combustion chamber for driving
the turbine. This scheme is spoken of as combustion tap-off cycle. The use of fuel rich mixture near the zone of
injection in the thrust chamber is preffered. however, it is difficult to have the reproducible property of fuel rich
gases and preference would be given to bleed the hot gases from the boundary layer in the supersonic portion
of the nozzle.

1.2 Cooling of Thrust chambers

The heat created during combustion in a rocket engine is contained within the exhaust gases. Most of this
heat is expelled along with the gas that contains it; however, heat is transferred to the thrust chamber walls in
quantities sufficient to require attention.
Thrust chamber designs are generally categorized or identified by the hot gas wall cooling method or the
configuration of the coolant passages, where the coolant pressure inside may be as high as 500 atmospheres.
The high combustion temperatures (2,500 to 3,600o K) and the high heat transfer rates (up to 16 kJ/cm2-s)
encountered in a combustion chamber present a formidable challenge to the designer. To meet this challenge,
several chamber cooling techniques have been utilized successfully. Selection of the optimum cooling method
for a thrust chamber depends on many considerations, such as type of propellant, chamber pressure, available
coolant pressure, combustion chamber configuration, and combustion chamber material.
Regenerative cooling is the most widely used method of cooling a thrust chamber and is accomplished
by flowing high-velocity coolant over the back side of the chamber hot gas wall to convectively cool the hot gas
liner. The coolant with the heat input from cooling the liner is then discharged into the injector and utilized
as a propellant.
1.3. MONOPROPELLANT ROCKET ENGINES 7

Earlier thrust chamber designs, such as the V-

2 and Redstone, had low chamber pressure, low
heat flux and low coolant pressure requirements,
which could be satisfied by a simplified “double wall
chamber” design with regenerative and film cooling.
For subsequent rocket engine applications, however,
chamber pressures were increased and the cooling re-
quirements became more difficult to satisfy. It became
necessary to design new coolant configurations that
were more efficient structurally and had improved
heat transfer characteristics.
This led to the design of “tubular wall” thrust
chambers, by far the most widely used design ap-
proach for the vast majority of large rocket engine
applications. These chamber designs have been suc-
cessfully used for the Thor, Jupiter, Atlas, H-1, J-2,
F-1, RS-27 and several other Air Force and NASA
rocket engine applications. The primary advantage of
the design is its light weight and the large experience
base that has accrued. But as chamber pressures and
hot gas wall heat fluxes have continued to increase
(¿100 atm), still more effective methods have been
needed.
One solution has been “channel wall” thrust cham- Figure 1.2: Regenerative Cooling
bers, so named because the hot gas wall cooling is ac-
complished by flowing coolant through rectangular channels, which are machined or formed into a hot gas liner
fabricated from a high-conductivity material, such as copper or a copper alloy. A prime example of a channel
wall combustion chamber is the SSME, which operates at 204 atmospheres nominal chamber pressure at 3,600
K for a duration of 520 seconds. Heat transfer and structural characteristics are excellent.
Dump cooling which is similar to regenerative cooling because the coolant flows through small passages
over the back side of the thrust chamber wall. The difference, however, is that after cooling the thrust chamber,
the coolant is discharged overboard through openings at the aft end of the divergent nozzle. This method has
limited application because of the performance loss resulting from dumping the coolant overboard. To date,
dump cooling has not been used in an actual application.
Film cooling provides protection from excessive heat by introducing a thin film of coolant or propellant
through orifices around the injector periphery or through manifolded orifices in the chamber wall near the
injector or chamber throat region. This method is typically used in high heat flux regions and in combination
with regenerative cooling.
Transpiration cooling provides coolant (either gaseous or liquid propellant) through a porous chamber
wall at a rate sufficient to maintain the chamber hot gas wall to the desired temperature. The technique is
really a special case of film cooling.
With ablative cooling, combustion gas-side wall material is sacrificed by melting, vaporization and chem-
ical changes to dissipate heat. As a result, relatively cool gases flow over the wall surface, thus lowering the
boundary-layer temperature and assisting the cooling process.
With radiation cooling, heat is radiated from the outer surface of the combustion chamber or nozzle
extension wall. Radiation cooling is typically used for small thrust chambers with a high-temperature wall
material (refractory) and in low-heat flux regions, such as a nozzle extension.
Heat Sink Chamber: .Temparature increase of the thrust chamber would be small during the transient
heating, provided that the thermal capacity of the chamber is large and the duration of heating is short. Heavy
chambers made of high thermal conductivity materials, such as copper are used for short duration test that
are done on ground to evaluate the performance of thrust chamber. The chambers are known as heat sink
chambers.

1.3 Monopropellant Rocket Engines

In case of monopropellant rocket engine, a single liquid propellant is used, in which monopropellant gets decom-
posed with the help of a suitable catalyst into hot gases that are expanded in the nozzle to produce requisite
thrust. The great advantage of this system is the elimination of the oxidizer system altogether, making it a
very simple system. However, their applications are restricted to low-thrust and low-duration flight conditions
dur- ing each firing. A schematic of a typical monopropellant rocket engine is shown in Figure ??, in which
8 CONTENTS

liquid propellant is injected into a catalyst bed and decomposes into high-pressure and high-temperature gas.
These hot gases are expanded in the convergent–divergent nozzle to produce requisite thrust. Generally, mono-
propellant is a slightly unstable chemi cal that decomposes easily exothermally to produce hot gas. Some of the
monopropellants used in rocket engines are hydrazine (N2 H4 ), hydrogen peroxide (H2 O2 ), hydroxylammonium
nitrate (HAN), and propylene gly- col denitrate (PGDN). Among all the monopropellants, hydrazine (N2 H4 )is
considered to have desirable properties as it has higher specific impulse and lower density. Although it was
quite cumbersome to ignite it, with the advent of a better catalyst such as iridium pallet, it is possible to ignite
it easily. In the presence of iridium catalyst, hydrazine can be decomposed first into ammonia and nitrogen, as
given in the following:

3N2 H4 4NH3 + N2 -336.48kJ (1.1)

Figure 1.3: Schematic of a Monopropellant Rocket

Note that this reaction is exothermic in nature. As a result, the ammonia gets dissociated further into
nitrogen and hydrogen, as given in the following:

NH3 2N2 + 6H2 +184.4kJ (1.2)

As this reaction is endothermic in nature, the temperature of gases

decreases with increase in degree of ammonia dissociation. Interestingly, the molecular mass of product
gases decreases with increase in ammonia dissociation. Note that the extent of ammonia dissociation depends
on the residence time of hydrazine remaining contact with catalyst, size and con- figuration of catalyst bed.
The used catalyst has ensured almost spontane- ous restart capability of the hydrazine monopropellant along
with relative stability, clean exhaust, and low flame temperature, which has made it the most preferred among
all other monopropellants.
Chapter 2

Experimental Details

Contents
2.0 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
2.1 Experimental Arrangements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
2.1.0 Injector Details . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

2.0 Introduction
The function of any atomizer is not merely to break the liquid down into small drops but also to discharge
these drops into the surrounding gaseous medium in the form of a uniform spray. This function of discharging
the drops can be quantified by measuring the external spray characteristics. These are identified generally as
penetration, cone angle, liquid mass distribution in the cross section, and the drop size. Among these, the
main features of interest in the present study are the spray patterns, cone angle, liquid mass distribution and
the spray drop size. The spray pattern is very important as it is a precursor to other spray characteristics
which will be discussed later. The distribution of spray mass decides the local mixture ratio which in turn
decides the combustion characteristics. The experimental facility and diagnostic tools have to cater to all these
requirements.
The drop size measurement, in particular needs to be emphasized. The measurement of particle size and
its distribution at any location downstream of the point of generation of spray in an atomizer has been a
subject of interest for many researchers. The need for experimentation in the area of particle sizing, has gained
momentum over the years, especially due to its wide industrial applications. Diverse processes employing
sprays in applications such as combustion, agriculture, powder metallurgy, medicine, clean rooms, meteorology
and plasma spraying are examples of systems for which information of particle size and distribution may be
necessary. In the case of atomizers used in engines, the initial size and distribution of particles are the main
factors in determining the overall combustion efficiency and the emission of pollutants and particulates. Current
theoretical predictions of fuel spray combustion require experimentally measured initial distributions of droplet
sizes and velocities. The advent of droplet size measurement by light scattering provides an opportunity to
correlate combustor performance with the Sauter mean diameter (SMD) of droplets. As the spray characteristics
are sensitive to the operating conditions, one has choose the correct range of parameters and the facility has to
be suitably built.

2.1 Experimental Arrangements

2.1.0 Injector Details
Figure ?? shows the details of the injector used for studying the gas-on-liquid impingement atomization. It
consists of an injector body and an injector. The injector is modular in design so that injectors of different
diameters can be inserted into the injector body. The tip of the injector is grooved so as to enable gas flow
measurement. The end portion of the injector body is internally threaded so that different injectors of different
diameters can be threaded into the injector body. The injector is smoothly converged so as to avoid pressure
loss.The schematic representation of the cross section of the injector is shown in Fig. ??.
Figure ?? shows the injector along with the injector body fixed on the injector assembly. The injector
assembly has got two injector plates along with a central rectangular strip for holding the central injector body
in the triplet configuration. The central rectangular strip can be moved up or down for adjusting impingement

9
10 CHAPTER 2. EXPERIMENTAL DETAILS

Table 2.1: Vignetting distances allowed between the range lens and the spray outer boundary

Range lens (focal length, mm) Size range, micron Vignetting distance, mm
1000 4–2000 290
300 1.2–600 84
100 0.5–180 24

distance. The two injector plates are provided with arc slots above which an arc strip graduated in degrees is
attached. This arc strip can be used for adjusting the impinging angle of the side injectors.
2.1. EXPERIMENTAL ARRANGEMENTS 11

The Tsiolkovsky rocket equation, classical rocket equation, or ideal rocket equation is the fundamental
equation related to all types of rockets.it relates the incremental velocity achieved by the rocket to the propellant
mass ratio for a particular exhaust velocity. it has many applications related to rockets and explains the need
for a multistage rocket

Introduction
The Tsiolkovsky rocket equation, classical rocket equation, or ideal rocket equation is a mathematical equation
that describes the motion of vehicles that follow the basic principle of a rocket: a device that can apply
acceleration to itself using thrust by expelling part of its mass with high velocity can thereby move due to the
conservation of momentum.
The equation relates the delta-v (the maximum change of velocity of the rocket if no other external forces
act) to the effective exhaust velocity and the initial and final mass of a rocket, or other reaction engine.

Figure 2.1: Schematic of a Rocket

For any such maneuver (or journey involving a sequence of such maneuvers)
mo
∆V = Ve ln
mf
mo
= Isp g0 ln (2.1)
mf

where

• ∆V – the maximum change of velocity of the vehicle (with no external forces acting).

• m0 is the initial total mass, including propellant, also known as wet mass.

• mf is the final total mass without propellant, also known as dry mass.

• ve = Isp g0 is the effective exhaust velocity, where:

– Isp is the specific impulse in dimension of time.

– g0 is standard gravity.
12 CHAPTER 2. EXPERIMENTAL DETAILS

History

The equation is named after Russian scientist Konstantin Tsiolkovsky independently derived it and published
it in his 1903 work. The equation had been derived earlier by the British mathematician William Moore in
1810, and later published in a separate book in 1813.The minister William Leitch, who was a capable scientist,
also independently derived the fundamentals of rocketry in 1861.
While the derivation of the rocket equation is a straightforward calculus exercise, Tsiolkovsky is honored as
being the first to apply it to the question of whether rockets could achieve speeds necessary for space travel.
Robert Goddard in America independently developed the equation in 1912 when he began his research to
improve rocket engines for possible space flight. Hermann Oberth in Europe independently derived the equation
about 1920 as he studied the feasibility of space travel.

Derivation

The Momentum of the rocket at time t is MV. After ∆ t seconds the momentum of the rocket increases to M-δ
m, as the mass efflux from the rocket in time ∆ t is δ m. Due to this efflux the velocity of the rocket increased
to V+∆ V.
Newton’s second law of motion relates external forces to the change in linear momentum of the whole system
(including rocket and exhaust) as follows:

X P2 − P1
Fi = lim (2.2)
∆t→0 ∆t

where P1 is the momentum of the rocket at time t and P2 at time t + ∆t

P1 = M V
P2 = (M − δm)(V + δV ) + δm(V + δV − Vj )

P
If there are no external forces then Fi = 0 (conservation of linear momentum) and P1 = P2

M V = M V + M δV − mδV − δmδV + δmV + δmδV − δmVj

 
δm
δV = Vj
M

The mass of the rocket at any instant in time τ is given by M − m. τ .The mass δm emitted from the rocket
in time ∆t is given by−m. δτ . The negative sign is provided since there is a decrease in mass of the rocket.

−m. δτ
 
δV = Vj (2.3)
M − m. τ

Integrating equtaion[ ??] from time t=0 when mass of the rocket is Mi and velocity of the rocket is V1 to
time t=τf when mass of the rocket is Mf and velocity of the rocket is V2 , assuming the exit velocity Vj constant
during the period.
2.1. EXPERIMENTAL ARRANGEMENTS 13

V2 τf
−m. δτ
Z Z  
eq : block2 δV = Vj
V1 0 M − m. τ
τ
V2 − V1 = −Vj ln [(M − m. τ )]0f

Mf
∆V = −Vj ln
Mi
Mi
∆V = Vj ln (2.4)
Mf
F
Isp = .
m g0

F = m. Vj

Vj = Isp g0

Mi
∆V = Isp g0 ln (2.5)
Mf
The above equation ?? is known as rocket equation. The equation suggest that a high value of efflux velocity
VJ and a higher value of the intial to final mass of the rocket are conducive to provide higher velocity increment
to the rocket.Equation ?? is applicable for any mode of propulsion and any material or medium used for the
propellant.
From equation ??

Mi ∆V
eq : block3 = e Vj (2.6)
Mf

Mi ∆V
− 1 = e Vj − 1 (2.7)
Mf

Mi − Mf ∆V
= e Vj − 1 (2.8)
Mf

Mp − ∆V
= 1 − e Vj (2.9)
Mi

− ∆V
γ =1−e V j (2.10)

where γ is the propellant mass fraction.

[terminal=pdf] set format ’set grid set size 1,1 set xrange [0:4] set ytics 0,10,40 set xtics 0,1,4 set yrange[0:40]
set xlabel ”/Symbol DV /Vj ”setylabel”Mi /Mf ”
set style line 1 lt 2 lw 2 pt 3 ps 0.5 linecolor rgb ”blue“ set key box linestyle 1 plot exp(x) with linespoints ls 1
title ’Rocket Equation’

Figure 2.2: Plot of Rocket Equation

In the case of sequentially thrusting rocket stages, the equation applies for each stage, where for each stage
the initial mass in the equation is the total mass of the rocket after discarding the previous stage, and the final
mass in the equation is the total mass of the rocket just before discarding the stage concerned. For each stage
the specific impulse may be different.
For example, if 80% of the mass of a rocket is the fuel of the first stage, and 10% is the dry mass of the first
stage, and 10% is the remaining rocket, then

100
∆V =VJ ln 100−80
=1.61Vj

With three similar, subsequently smaller stages with the same Vj for each stage, we have
14 CHAPTER 2. EXPERIMENTAL DETAILS

∆V = 4.83VJ

Assume an exhaust velocity of 4,500m s−1 and a ∆V of 9,700 m s−1 (Earth to LEO, including ∆V to
overcome gravity and aerodynamic drag).

• Single-stage-to-orbit rocket: 1-e9.7/4.5 =0.884, therefore 88.4% of the initial total mass has to be propellant.
The remaining 11.6% is for the engines, the tank, and the payload.
• Two-stage-to-orbit: suppose that the first stage should provide a ∆V of 5,000 m s−1 ; 1 e5.0/4.5 = 0.671,
therefore 67.1% of the initial total mass has to be propellant to the first stage. The remaining mass is
32.9%. After disposing of the first stage, a mass remains equal to this 32.9%, minus the mass of the tank
and engines of the first stage. Assume that this is 8% of the initial total mass, then 24.9% remains. The
second stage should provide a ∆V of 4,700m s−1 1-e−4.7/4.5 = 0.648, therefore 64.8% of the remaining mass
has to be propellant, which is 16.2% of the original total mass, and 8.7% remains for the tank and engines
of the second stage, the payload, and in the case of a space shuttle, also the orbiter. Thus together 16.7%
of the original launch mass is available for all engines, the tanks, and payload.

Bx
A

Applicabilty of Rocket equation

The rocket equation captures the essentials of rocket flight physics in a single short equation. It also holds
true for rocket-like reaction vehicles whenever the effective exhaust velocity is constant, and can be summed
or integrated when the effective exhaust velocity varies. The rocket equation only accounts for the reaction
force from the rocket engine; it does not include other forces that may act on a rocket, such as aerodynamic
or gravitational forces. As such, when using it to calculate the propellant requirement for launch from (or
powered descent to) a planet with an atmosphere, the effects of these forces must be included in the delta-V
requirement (see Examples below). In what has been called ”the tyranny of the rocket equation”, there is a
limit to the amount of payload that the rocket can carry, as higher amounts of propellant increment the overall
weight, and thus also increase the fuel consumption. The equation does not apply to non-rocket systems such
as aerobraking, gun launches, space elevators, launch loops, tether propulsion or light sails.
The rocket equation can be applied to orbital maneuvers in order to determine how much propellant is
needed to change to a particular new orbit, or to find the new orbit as the result of a particular propellant
burn. When applying to orbital maneuvers, one assumes an impulsive maneuver, in which the propellant is
discharged and delta-v applied instantaneously. This assumption is relatively accurate for short-duration burns
such as for mid-course corrections and orbital insertion maneuvers. As the burn duration increases, the result
is less accurate due to the effect of gravity on the vehicle over the duration of the maneuver. For low-thrust,
long duration propulsion, such as electric propulsion, more complicated analysis based on the propagation of
the spacecraft’s state vector and the integration of thrust are used to predict orbital motion.

Conclusion
The Rocket equation has been derived and analysed in detail. The applicability of the equation in various cases
have been discussed. The importance of the equation in multistaging was highlighted.
Bibliography

[1] D. T. Harrje and F. H. Reardon. Liquid propellant rocket combustion instability. (nasa sp-194). NASA
Special Publication, 194, 1972.

15