Welcome to Solid Propulsion! This lecture series is intended to help new members of the subteam learn how to make solid rocket motors from scratch. Track our engineering process from basic physics and designing hardware, to mixing propellant and firing test motors.
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Lecture 1: Theory and Basics of Solid Rocket Propulsion
Introduce yourself to the basic physics behind rockets, the different equations that govern how rockets behave, and the basic components that turn the energy of an explosion into something we can use to launch things into the sky!
Lecture 2: Propellant Formulation
This lecture will showcase the different types of ingredients involved in a solid propellant, and how to design and evaluate a formula to fit the needs of a motor.
Lecture 3: Propellant Production
Learn how to take a bunch of reactive chemicals and mix them into an explosive, rubbery substance in the shape of a cylinder.
Lecture 4: Internal Ballistics
What happens on the inside of a motor as it is burning? How do we control thrust and pressure inside the chamber as the motor burns?
Lecture 5: Hardware Design of Cases and Bolts
By dipping into the shared physics between the propulsion and structures subteams, this lecture exhibits how to design a case that doesn't blow up.
Lecture 6: Hardware Design of Nozzles, Igniters & Closures
This lecture will showcase how we improve the efficiency of thrust with nozzles, how we keep the fire moving in the right direction with closures, and how to light this candle with igniters both in and out of the vehicle.
Lecture 7: Manufacturing Hardware
How do we turn a block of aluminum or a sheet of phenolic into working test and flight hardware? This lecture will show you how along with helpful tips for machining parts faster and avoiding mistakes.
Lecture 8: Static Fires
Every motor we intend to fly and every one propellant we develop must be tested on the ground first, sometimes with explosive results. Learn how to collect useful data from the most exciting part of our job, lighting things on fire!
