Claims
- 1. An oxidizer package for a propellant system for a motor in a rocket, the oxidizer package comprising:an oxidizer material disposed in a matrix, the oxidizer material being contained in ampoules within the matrix; and an ignition system therefor, wherein the matrix comprises a material selected from the group consisting of an ancillary compound, a mixture of an oxidizer and an ancillary compound, and a pyrotechnic material, the ancillary compound undergoing exothermic decomposition substantially without consumption of oxygen from the oxidizer material.
- 2. The package of claim 1 in which the oxidizer material is a liquid, a solid or a semi-solid material.
- 3. The package of claim 1 in which the ampoules further contain carriers or perfonrmance enhancing compounds selected from the group consisting of a fluoropolymer, a fluoroelastomer, an energetic polymer, a non-energetic polymer, an energetic metal, a crystalline explosive, polymerized peroxide, a metal hydride and a double-base propellant.
- 4. The package of claim 1 in which the ampoules are in the form of at least one of spheres, capsules, pellets, rods and tubes.
- 5. The package of claim 1 in which the ampoules comprise a shell formed from at least one of coated aluminum, pyroalloying metal foil, a laminate or sheet of aluminum, a laminate or sheet of magnesium, an energetic polymer, a non-energetic polymer, nitrocellulose and a double-base propellant.
- 6. The package of claim 4 in which the ampoules comprise a shell formed from at least one of coated aluminum, pyroalloying metal foil, a laminate or sheet of aluminum, a laminate or sheet of magnesium, an energetic polymer, a non-energetic polymer, nitrocellulose and a double-base propellant.
- 7. The package of claim 5 in which the coated aluminum is selected from the group consisting of polymer-coated aluminum, aluminum coated with a mixture of polymer and magnesium, and aluminum coated with a fluoroelastomer and magnesium.
- 8. The package of claim 6 in which the coated aluminum is selected from the group consisting of polymer-coated aluminum, aluminum coated with a mixture of polymer and magnesium, and aluminum coated with a fluoroelastomer and magnesium.
- 9. The package of claim 1 in which the packages are stackable in a column.
- 10. The package of claim 1 in which the matrix is the ancillary compound.
- 11. The package of claim 10 in which the ancillary compound is selected from the group consisting of HTPB, PBAN, epoxy, thermoplastic polymer, GAP, BAMO/AMMO and BAMO/NMMO.
- 12. The package of claim 1 in which the matrix is polyethylene/vinyl acetate (EVA), optionally cross-linked.
- 13. The package of claim 1 in which the oxidizer is selected from ammonium perthlorate, ammonium nitrate, ammonium dinitramide, hydroxylammonium nitrate, hydroxylammonium perchlorate, hydrazinium nitroformate, nitronium perchlorate, nitric acid, hydrogen peroxide and nitrocellulose/nitroglycerine.
- 14. The package of claim 1 in which the matrix comprises 90-94% oxidizer, 2.5 -4.5% ancillary compounds, 0.5-1.0% burn rate modifiers, 0.5-1.0% energetic metals, 0.2-0.5% process-modifiers and 0.2-0.4% curative agents.
- 15. The package of claim 1 in which there is more than one initiator.
- 16. The package of claim 15 in which there are 2 to 4 initiators.
- 17. The package of claim 4 in which the ampoules comprise a shell formed from the pyrotechnic material.
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
This application claims the benefit of U.S. provisional application Serial No. 60/132,795, filed May 6, 1999, entitled “PROPELLANT SYSTEM FOR HYBRID ROCKETS”, and U.S. provisional application Serial No. 60/161,771, filed Oct. 27, 1999, entitled “OXIDIZER PACKAGE FOR PROPELLANT SYSTEM FOR ROCKETS”.
US Referenced Citations (13)
Foreign Referenced Citations (1)
Number |
Date |
Country |
2243245 |
Jul 1997 |
CA |
Non-Patent Literature Citations (1)
Entry |
State and Prospects of Solid Propellant Rocket Development, AIAA 92-3872 AIAA/SAE/ASME/ASEE 28th Joint Propulsion Conference and Exhibit, Jul. 6-8, 1992, Nashville, TN. |
Provisional Applications (2)
|
Number |
Date |
Country |
|
60/161771 |
Oct 1999 |
US |
|
60/132795 |
May 1999 |
US |