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pressing/ramming ammonium perchlorate, Al rockets?


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Posted
So I was thinking is there a way to avoid using a binder in ammonium perchlorate, Al rockets; by pressing or possibly ramming the fuel the same way one would with black powder or whistle rockets. Would this create a strong fuel grain? What would be the safety concerns here?
Posted
Adding 2 or 3 percent of oil is enough for binding the fuel.
Posted
Dont ram the fuel thats for sure press it if your going to try
Posted
I do believe the HTBP or other binder generally acts as a rather substantial fuel source. You may have to adjust the AP:Al ratio, or add a secondary fuel source to get it to function properly.
Posted

So I was thinking is there a way to avoid using a binder in ammonium perchlorate, Al rockets; by pressing or possibly ramming the fuel the same way one would with black powder or whistle rockets. Would this create a strong fuel grain? What would be the safety concerns here?

 

I have never been able to press a good grain without a binder and in fact cast I cast most using PBAN and at the end of my time with HP, we were using epoxy, mix and pour into the mold, vacuum bubbles out and cure. Of course, we were looking for a flat low-power burn as we were not shooting to 10,000' but rather 3-5,000' for most of the rockets.

 

We used the finocyl (star shaped spindle) to tune in for a faster burn or went to the bates core (round spindle) for a slower take off and slightly longer burn.

 

My biggest concern would be CATO when the grain cracks.

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