R-Candy w/ Sucrose, No Karo

[BlastFromThePast]

What Sucrose/KNO3 comp do you use for making R-candy propellant? And what's the smallest length you can go to with said compositon without running into a thrust-weight issue with a 3/8" ID tube?

[psyco_1322]

R-Candy is usually usually the name given to the recrystallized sugar and karo fuel. Some people do use just melted KNO3/sugar, and call it r-candy, but that's not really what r-candy is, that's "smoke mix". There are dry mixes you can ram, which might be a better idea for such a small motor. You can make them about 2" long with a 1/8" nozzle/core and they will fly. Not certain they will lift much for a header though.

[BlastFromThePast]

Dry compositions of what nature, KNO3 based?

[leedrill]

i use to run 65 / 35 and 60/ 40 in my old motors but ramming kno3 and icing suger it seems to be hard to consolidate compared to bp id have to do really small increments to not get catos

[BlastFromThePast]

And you'd make those end burners or core burners?

[leedrill]

core burner but small core i had taken nicropulses tooling design and upsized it a little

[jaysgoh]

i dont know why eveytime when i cook chemical with stove or pans , sure got accident happends . last time i cooking r candy with stove - low heat . i pass the break test . after that i pour all the fuel to a tube . i wonder that my fuel is melting . i did pass the drying and the break test its break hardly . but inside the tube are still wetty . once i burn it got no thrust . more like thick smoke bomb . my nozzle diameter are same as nichropulse

[leedrill]

when doing a snap test on recrystallised mix you must make sure the sample isn't too cold if its at below room temp it must actually snap you can do the snap test when the sample is a little warm once you have cooked it a couple of time you get the feel for it ive come to realise to me any way that recrystallised r candy is only easy to work with on little bottle rockets or bigger bates grains if you are using sizes like discussed just use powders or you must catalyse the mix which is finicky to still get it to work theres no need making such a mess when you could just mill a suger mix and save time and effort but as i said to me same as all rockets always easier with a press

[jaysgoh]

well , i wnat to use dry powder method , i using powdered sugar and normal kno3 , like sugar particle but smaller , not ball mill or grind . i hope its work . diameter is 0.3-5cm

[Oinikis]

i used 2/1 KNO3/Sugar mix, melted it, called it rcandy and it worked really well, in nozzless rocket. i let it cool, crush it into powder and then ram, when rammed good, it is basicly the same. the cooking just makes it denser and mixes it. i do not know how it works with nozzles, most of the test went cato, but now i realied, my plug comp was shit. however i more like to use dry mix, than melted one, becouse cooking it is teriffying to me.

[Mumbles]

Perhaps try not cooking chemicals or compositions on the stove? I know it sounds like crazy talk, but it just might work.

 

Seriously, you should probably have a dedicated hotplate or heating device which you can use outdoors to mitigate the danger and hazards from making R-candy.

[BlastFromThePast]

i used 2/1 KNO3/Sugar mix, melted it, called it rcandy and it worked really well, in nozzless rocket. i let it cool, crush it into powder and then ram, when rammed good, it is basicly the same. the cooking just makes it denser and mixes it. i do not know how it works with nozzles, most of the test went cato, but now i realied, my plug comp was shit. however i more like to use dry mix, than melted one, becouse cooking it is teriffying to me.

 

When you say you melted it, i'm assuming that you only heat it enough to get the sugar to melt, and then you add in the KNO3, however from my experience with doing that procedure, you end up with a very sticky caramel like substance that is very hygroscopic...What is the consistency of your mixture after its been heated and is cooling down right before you grind it up into powder again?

[Oinikis]

it like caramel, then it's solid, and mumbles, yes geting stove for that would be best, but i don't think i'll use r-candy. i use 6/3/1 or non cooked sugar/kno3 fuel, depending on what i want, or have.

[LTUPyro]

For dry fuel I use 65/35 Kno3/Sugar +1% Red iron oxide (Fe203). Just make sure it's mixed very well, I recommend to screen it few times. Here is video of my hand rammed rocket with same 65/35 fuel http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=plkD2CTpAZQ Edited March 14, 2013 by LTUPyro

[psyco_1322]

Here is the fuel I use to ram sugar rockets, it burns very cleanly:

KNO3 - 66

Sugar - 24

Sulfur - 10

 

Optionally you could add a catalyst if you need to. I think people often over look the fact that powdered sugar has corn starch added as an anti cake. It doesn't quite burn as well as if you powdered regular table sugar. I would also suspect it might cause issues with ramming, as the fuel might not want to stick together.

[jaysgoh]

i wonder , i did a burn test at the floor , its stain with white dot , black colour and abit sticky on the floor . maybe my kno3 is too big particle...

[leedrill]

some of the sugar mixes ive milled almost burn as hot as some of my meal powder if you press it you'll get it just as dense as r candy and you can buy icing sugar without anti cake on it if its in a good sealed bag in the store and is clumped in the bag you know its pretty pure but will usually say somewhere on the pack but just like bp its surprising how much solid it produces as to a gases to solid ratio hence so much smoke from both. good recrystallised mixes dont leave much residue but you must have the different types of sugars to keep it pliable when warm and as to not get cracks if you over cook it you cant make good r candy with one type of sugar if you can get your hands on hfcs its produced by breaking down sugars with enzymes so you are left with 2 types of sugar in one but sucrose glucose and fructose all together make a mix that can be easily handled {wont stick as much when properly cooked } there is a lot of work involved to get it right but is simple to do and as mumbles said dont do it indoors it might be a slow deflagration but your asking for trouble if you do