VARIOUS ROCKET

PROPELLANTS
&
THEIR CHARACTERISTICS

NAME- SWARNAJIT MONDAL

CLASS- XI SEC- SCIENCE
INDEX
S.I. NO. TOPIC NAME
PG.NO.
1. IDENTITY AND TOPIC NAME 1
2. INDEX 2
3. INTRODUCTION 3
4. SOLID ROCKET PROPELLANT 4
5. LIQUID ROCKET PROPELLANT 5
6. HYBRID ROCKET PROPELLANT 6
7. FUEL USE BY SPACEX AND ITS CHARACTERISTICS 7
8. FUEL USE BY NASA AND ITS CHARACTERISTICS 8
9. CONCLUSION 9
10. BIBLIOGRAPHY 10
INTRODUCTION
Rocket propellant is the reaction mass of a rocket. This reaction
mass is ejected at the highest achievable velocity from a rocket
engine to produce thrust. The energy required can either come from
the propellants themselves, as with a chemical rocket, or from an
external source, as with ion engines.
There are two types of propellent- SOLID PROPELLANTS and
LIQUID PROPELLANTS.
Liquid propellant, which was easier to operate, since it makes it
possible to stop and re-start the engine. This is an advantage,
according to experts, for the higher stages of launchers or missiles.
Solid propulsion is more advantageous in lower stages, which require a
stronger thrust.
SOLID ROCKET
PROPELLANT
A solid-propellant rocket or solid rocket is a rocket
with a rocket engine that uses solid propellants
(fuel/oxidizer). The earliest rockets were solid-fuel
rockets powered by gunpowder; they were used in
warfare by the Chinese, Indians, Mongols and
Persians, as early as the 13th century. All rockets
used some form of solid or powdered propellant up
until the 20th century, when liquid-propellant
rockets offered more efficient and controllable
alternatives. Solid rockets are still used today in
military armaments worldwide, model rockets, solid
rocket boosters and on larger applications for their
simplicity and reliability. Since solid-fuel rockets can
remain in storage for a long time without much
propellant degradation and because they almost
always launch reliably, they have been frequently
used in military applications such as missiles. .
Liquid rocket propellant
A liquid-propellant rocket or liquid rocket utilizes
a rocket engine that uses liquid propellants. Liquids
are desirable because they have a reasonably high
density and high specific impulse (Isp). This allows the
volume of the propellant tanks to be relatively low. It
is also possible to use lightweight centrifugal 
turbopumps to pump the rocket propellant from the
tanks into the combustion chamber, which means that
the propellants can be kept under low pressure. This
permits the use of low-mass propellant tanks that do
not need to resist the high pressures needed to store
significant amounts of gases, resulting in a low 
mass ratio for the rocket.
HYBRID ROCKET PROPELLANT
A hybrid-propellant rocket is a rocket with a rocket motor that uses
rocket propellants in two different phases: one solid and the other
either gas or liquid. The hybrid rocket concept can be traced back to
at least the 1930s. Hybrid rockets avoid some of the disadvantages of
solid rockets like the dangers of propellant handling, while also
avoiding some disadvantages of liquid rockets like their mechanical
complexity. Because it is difficult for the fuel and oxidizer to be
mixed intimately (being different states of matter), hybrid rockets
tend to fail more benignly than liquids or solids. Like liquid rocket
engines, hybrid rocket motors can be shut down easily and the thrust
is throttleable. The theoretical specific impulse performance of
hybrids is generally higher than solid motors and lower than liquid
engines. ​ as high as 400 s has been measured in a hybrid rocket using
metalized fuels. Hybrid systems are more complex than solid ones, but
they avoid significant hazards of manufacturing, shipping and handling
solid rocket motors by storing the oxidizer and the fuel separately.
FUELs USE BY SPACEX AND ITS
CHARACTERISTICS
SpaceX’s newest rocket, Starships , uses Methane (CH4) and Liquid
Oxygen (LOX) as fuel. However, the Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy uses
rocket-grade Kerosene (RP-1) and LOX as a propellant. So, why does
SpaceX use Kerosene? SpaceX uses Kerosene in Falcon Rockets
because up until 2007; there were no Methane engines.

SpaceX uses Kerosene in Falcon Rockets because up until 2007; there

were no Methane engines. And Kerosene is cheaper, denser, stable at
room temperature. It’s easy to handle, is not toxic like hypergolic
propellent, easily transportable, and has no leakage issue similar to Liquid
Hydrogen (LH2). It also has a higher energy density and presents a lower
explosion hazard than LH2, and Kerosene rocket engines produce more
thrust per dollar.
Fuels use by nasa and its characteristics
Chemical propellants in common use deliver specific impulse values ranging from about 175 up to about 300 seconds. The most
energetic chemical propellants are theoretically capable of specific impulses up to about 400 seconds.
High values of specific impulse are obtained from high exhaust-gas temperature, and from exhaust gas having very low
(molecular) weight. To be efficient, therefore, a propellant should have a large heat of combustion to yield high temperatures,
and should produce combustion products containing simple, light molecules embodying such elements as hydrogen (the
lightest), carbon, oxygen, fluorine, and the lighter metals (aluminum, beryllium, lithium).
Another important factor is the density of a propellant. A given weight of dense propellant can be carried in a smaller, lighter
tank than the same weight of a low-density propellant. Liquid hydrogen, for example, is energetic and its combustion gases are
light. However, it is a very bulky substance, requiring large tanks. The dead weight of these tanks partly offsets the high specific
impulse of the hydrogen propellant.
Other criteria must also be considered in choosing propellants. Some chemicals that yield excellent specific impulse create
problems in engine operation. Some are not adequate as coolants for the hot thrust-chamber walls. Others exhibit peculiarities in
combustion that render their use difficult or impossible. Some are unstable to varying degrees, and cannot be safely stored or
handled. Such features inhibit their use for rocket propulsion.
Unfortunately, almost any propellant that gives good performance is apt to be a very active chemical; hence, most propellants
are corrosive, flammable, or toxic, and are often all three. One of the most tractable liquid propellants is gasoline. But while it is
comparatively simple to use, gasoline is, of course, highly flammable and must be handled with care. Many propellants are
highly toxic, to a greater degree even than most war gases; some are so corrosive that only a few special substances can be used
to contain them; some may burn spontaneously upon contact with air, or upon contacting any organic substance, or in certain
cases upon contacting most common metals.
Also essential to the choice of a rocket propellant is its availability. In some cases, in order to obtain adequate amounts of a
propellant, an entire new chemical plant must be built. And because some propellants are used in very large quantities, the
CONCLUSIO
N
Any kind of rocket fuel is very
useful in their own specific
way.  There are advantages and
drawbacks.  Liquid fuels are
very interesting, but people
prefer solid fuels because they
are simpler, but still perform
very nicely.  I hope you were
very interested in rocket fuel
now, because it is interesting
in many, many ways.
 BIBLIOGRAPHY
THIS PROJECT IS BEEN DONE WITH THE HELP OF INTERNET AND SELF
KNOWLEDGE. WHILE DOING THIS PROJECT I CAME TO KNOW ABOUT
VARIOUS TYPES PROPELLANTS AND THERE CHARACTERISTICS.

I WILL THANK MY TEACHER FOR GIVING ME THIS PROJECT.

THANK YOU