Overview

The goal of the Liquid Propulsion subteam is to continually learn more about bi-propellant liquid rocket engines, by designing, manufacturing, and testing our own engine. While the other subteams on Rocket Team support a central rocketry project, Liquid Propulsion instead focuses on design of an independent engine. Currently, the team is ready to hot fire their Helios engine, and is finishing the design of their Romulus engine.

General

Engine Projects

Learning Curriculum

The liquid prop team has developed an on-boarding curriculum to provide new and existing members with an introduction into various important concepts that are necessary to know on the team. These topics include basic engine design, incompressible flow fundamentals, combustion fundamentals, feed system design, as well as more advanced topics. Click the header above to explore the different learning resources.

Research

Through the design of engines, and recent research endeavors, the team has compiled various write-ups and findings relevant to our work. Past findings from previous projects can be found here, along with findings from the research initiative that the sub-team began in October 2020 (which then became Project Romulus!).

Team leads

Project Polaris

Rocket Team's first ever launchable engine!! Polaris's main mission objective is to reach a 30k ft maximum as a second stage. It is planned to use Ethanol and Nitrous Oxide.

Project Romulus

Having been forced off-campus for some time, the team began their Romulus engine project in the Summer of 2020, springing off the research initiative started the Fall prior. Romulus expands on lessons learned from the design of Helios, being a Kerosene-LOX regeneratively cooled engine designed to produce ~450lbf. Romulus' main goals are to:

1. Incorporate active and passive cooling methods, including regenerative cooling.
2. Design a pintle injector to balance thrust and temperature requirements.
3. Continue to expand the team's experience in system design and safe testing.

As of now, the Romulus engine is being manufactured, and other aspects of the feed system are being worked on. To learn more about Project Romulus, click the link above.

Project Helios

In the Fall of 2018, the team began the Helios engine project. Helios is a pressure-fed bi-propellant liquid engine designed to produce ~350lbf, and is fed with diluted Ethanol & LOX by an accompanying test stand. Helios's two main goals are to:

1. Understand basic engine design principles by building a simple engine.
2. Learn how to efficiently and safely test high-pressure engines by building a pressurized feed stand.

As of now, Helios has been successfully assembled, and is nearly ready for its hot fire test. To read more about Project Helios, click the link above.

Project Pyralis

A N2O-Ethanol Aerospike. Project led by Matt Vernacchia, back when this was just the Solid Propulsion Subteam. Actually reached hot fire. Destroyed the Building 31 Blast Chamber at the end of the program.

Project Viper

A methane-oxygen engine, program ran from Fall 2016 to Fall 2018. We spent a lot of money ($25k) but it petered out when Ethan went to FSAE. Rumor has it the ghost of the yellow test stand still lives in Edgerton. Pioneered the use of CNC manufacturing on Rocket Team.

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