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Faculty Mentor Name
Michael Fabian
Format Preference
Poster Presentation with Video
Abstract
The Embry-Riddle Suborbital Reusable Vehicle (SRV) Project is a student-driven initiative to develop a two-stage, unguided, reusable suborbital sounding rocket to gain experience in next-generation launch vehicle development. This research will combine low-cost rocket propulsion and commercial off the shelf flight systems to develop a vehicle that is cheaper to launch than comparable commercial and university developed SRVs in its altitude range. Our research objectives are to develop a reliable, inexpensive recovery system to operate at high altitudes and recover both stages. We will develop a solution to the commonly documented problem with the lack of reliable ignition of black powder ejection charges at high altitudes. We will also test an alternative staging mechanism to traditional piston and pyrotechnic systems, to ensure reliable stage separation at high supersonic speeds. Our research will also develop and test a method for high altitude ignition for an upper stage solid rocket motor. We will analytically determine the size of the upper stage ignition charge based on an empirical relationship between the solid motor propellant grain geometry and ignition energy. Our research will also develop a method to qualify this vehicle to launch from a FAA-licensed launch facility, and achieve standards of reliability, safety, and performance imposed by the FAA-AST, while keeping total cost to a fraction of larger university spaceshot projects.
- POSTER PRESENTATION
- IGNITE AWARD
Embry-Riddle Suborbital Reusable Vehicle Project: Go to Space Cheaper and Often
The Embry-Riddle Suborbital Reusable Vehicle (SRV) Project is a student-driven initiative to develop a two-stage, unguided, reusable suborbital sounding rocket to gain experience in next-generation launch vehicle development. This research will combine low-cost rocket propulsion and commercial off the shelf flight systems to develop a vehicle that is cheaper to launch than comparable commercial and university developed SRVs in its altitude range. Our research objectives are to develop a reliable, inexpensive recovery system to operate at high altitudes and recover both stages. We will develop a solution to the commonly documented problem with the lack of reliable ignition of black powder ejection charges at high altitudes. We will also test an alternative staging mechanism to traditional piston and pyrotechnic systems, to ensure reliable stage separation at high supersonic speeds. Our research will also develop and test a method for high altitude ignition for an upper stage solid rocket motor. We will analytically determine the size of the upper stage ignition charge based on an empirical relationship between the solid motor propellant grain geometry and ignition energy. Our research will also develop a method to qualify this vehicle to launch from a FAA-licensed launch facility, and achieve standards of reliability, safety, and performance imposed by the FAA-AST, while keeping total cost to a fraction of larger university spaceshot projects.
- POSTER PRESENTATION
- IGNITE AWARD