Due to recent interest in zirconium carbides as an ingredient in solid propellants, a variety of tests was run on available ZrC particles. This investigation included controlled heating and combustion tests. The results appear to show that ZrC particles burn in a complex way with solid or liquid accumulating on the surface; a gaseous oxide leaving the surface; and possibly a reaction between the accumulating oxide and the original ZrC. ...
Details of the propellant combustion zone microstructure were studied using the simpler configuration resulting from burning down the interface between contacting oxidizer and fuel slabs. Steady burning profiles and burning rates were determined experimentally for an ammonium perchlorate oxidizer and PMMA fuel. An iterative procedure was used to determine the heat source distribution in the gas phase that would produce the experimentally observed profiles and burning rates. The procedure involved ...
A summary of results of experimental studies of combustion of AP- polymer sandwiches is reported. Most recent results are combined with those of a previous report, and mechanistic interpretations are presented. On the basis of these interpretations, a detailed qualitative model of the combustion zone structure is advanced, and examined for consistency with results of this and other studies. The results are tested by prediction of a singular feature of ...
Investigation of mechanisms of combustion and combustion zone microstructure continued, using ammonium perchlorate-hydro-carbon binder sandwiches and the quench-burning method to obtain high resolution measurements. Binder-thickness deflagration limits were also determined, and work started on measurement of burning rate vs binder thickness. On the basis of results to date, a modified picture of the combustion zone is proposed that differs sharply from the classical model, particularly in those regions of the ...
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