[burt-all] Re: Update
- From: Jonah Zimmerman <zimmo@xxxxxx>
- To: burt-all@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Fri, 22 Sep 2006 16:20:41 -0400
Nick,
I'm sorry to hear that Linde wasn't able to give us more help. They
were a great resource when we were figuring out the surprisingly complex
fittings and connections that we needed, but I guess this sort of thing
is just outside of their knowledge base.
I'll have to disagree with you, however, on the point of going back
to solid fuel and putting the hybrid engine aside. The central focus of
the rocket team since the last launch of the rocket has been integrating
the hybrid with the aerospike, and I don't think there's enough reason
for us to change that mission. Hybrid propulsion is much much more
complicated than a traditional solid-fuel propulsion system, but we
should not let the roadblocks and obstacles that we encounter deter us.
A very large amount of work has been done towards this end over the past
few years, and to suddenly decide to switch our direction I believe
would be premature.
The only thing standing in the way of a static test at this moment
is the solenoid valve, and this problem could be resolved in the near
future if we decide to purchase one from Norton (the place we got our
current one from). It may not be the most cost-efficient solution, but
it would be the fastest, and would allow us to start testing soon.
It would also be unwise to forget about Greg's rocket, which (Greg,
you can correct me here) is currently being designed as a
solid-propulsion rocket with a traditional valve, and could later be
integrated with an aerospike. I don't know the exact time frame of the
small rocket, but it should doubtless be much shorter than that of the
larger rocket.
I could go on in this manner for pages, but we all know how much
Seth loves these endless chains of emails, so I propose that we delay
further discussion on this topic until the monday night meeting. I know
that Nick won't be able to make it, but it sounds like Eddie is on the
same page and he should be able to argue in Nick's place.
See you all monday
-Jonah
Nicholas Doucette wrote:
Hey everyone,
Here's the scoop: Eddie and I went over to Linde Gas today with
the solenoid to get some help with our situation. The guy there said
he has never seen one that size nor does he know where we can get one.
They only deal with smaller solenoids and flow systems. On our way
back Eddie and I talked at length about what the next step should be
as we progress towards a static test. We concluded the most reasonable
and practical path to take is to completely ignore a Hybrid system for
the time being. In our proposal and in our goals for this year we
stated we want to test a Hybrid-Aerospike rocket engine. Our best bet
right now is to ignore the hybrid and focus on a solid aerospike
engine. This way we can test the efficiency of an aerospike nozzle to
that of a conventional nozzle at low altitudes (high atm. pressure).
Once we have data that shows this relationship AND a working aerospike
engine, we can then integrate the hybrid system into the rocket. Going
along this path will allow us to achieve more in the next semester or
two. We can make our own solid engine (or buy one) and the machining
of the aerospike would not take nearly as along as the plumbing system
for a static test never mind the actual launching of a hybrid rocket.
Eddie will fill you in some more at Monday's meeting about what we
think would be a good path to take right now (I have lab that night).
Send some thoughts about this option and any other options.
- Nick (sorry for the long ass email)
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