We began our rocketry work in 2013 with small bipropellant engines and have since been slowly designing and building more complex engines. There have been many challenges throughout this project, both technical and non-technical. Part of these challenges stem from being a group of young scientists and engineers. The complexity of the rocket project allows us an opportunity to work with other students. We often work with others during the summer or other vacation months. During this time, we focus on teaching scientific and engineering concepts to students in a capacity that allows them to contribute to our projects.
We are currently in the development and testing stage for our rocket engines. In the next few months we will be doing a static test of our uncooled V4 engine. During this static test, the engine will be bolted to the test stand with a variety of pressure and temperature sensors attached. This test will allow us to verify our injector geometry and seal. Once we complete a successful test, we will move to manufacturing and testing of our first regenerative cooled engine, in which fuel will flow through channels in the chamber wall to cool the engine.
To launch an open source liquid fueled rocket to an altitude of 5km.
The V4 Mark I is a 50 lbf thrust engine machined from steel. This is an uncooled test engine, which means it can only be fired for a few seconds before it will burn out.
These were by far the most primitive engines that we have built. They were made of steel pipe and brass fittings. Most of these engines were powered with propane and gaseous oxygen. These engines were entirely made to test the feasibility of this project.
Back to Project Home