SOLID PROPELLANT COMPOSITION AND ITS EFFECT ON THE LAUNCH PERFORMANCE OF MODEL ROCKETS
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.21483441Keywords:
model rocketry, solid propellant, potassium nitrate–sugar propellant, tobacco ash, biomassderived catalyst, burn rate, specific impulse.Abstract
This paper analyzes the composition of potassium nitrate–sugar (KNSU/KNSB) solid propellants
widely used in model rocketry and examines catalytic additives that influence their burn rate. Although
conventional catalysts such as iron(III) oxide (Fe₂O₃) are well established, this study considers tobacco ash as
a potentially cost-effective and environmentally beneficial alternative. Tobacco ash is a waste-derived biomass
material containing calcium carbonate (CaCO₃), potassium carbonate (K₂CO₃), and trace amounts of metal
oxides. Propellant samples prepared under laboratory conditions were evaluated through static-thrust tests and
flight simulations. Under the tested laboratory conditions, the tobacco-ash-containing formulations exhibited
higher measured burn-rate, thrust, and specific-impulse values than the control and conventionally catalyzed
formulations. The observed effect may be associated with the influence of carbonate compounds in the ash on
the thermal decomposition behavior of KNO₃ and the kinetics of the exothermic reaction. The findings suggest
that tobacco ash may serve as a promising burn-rate modifier and waste-derived catalyst for model-rocket
propellants.
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