Safer solid propellant for cubesats

Los Alamos National Laboratory has a radical new solid propellent for cubesats. Unlike a traditional composite propellant, which mechanically mixes a fuel and an oxidizer into a high explosive, the new propellant ignites an energetic fuel - really a low explosive. Then hydrogen and nitrogen gases from the burning fuel flow through the solid oxidizer component of the system, which gasifies, mixes with the fuel gases and unleashes significant thrust.

Both components of this binary system, the energetic fuel and the oxidizer, are immune to detonation, a huge advantage over other rocket fuels. Even the shock from the detonation of a material like C-4 in direct contact with the motor would not cause the propellant itself to detonate. Also, because the system uses solid materials, it cannot leak, has no pressurized gases and has no moving parts like a liquid system.

Besides being able to power CubeSats and thus greatly increase their utility and flexibility, the propellant offers safe propulsion for many other applications that typically utilize solid rocket motors, even model rockets.

Safer solid fuel for cubesats