Development of CAMUI hybrid rocket to create a market for small rocket experiments

By introducing various innovative ideas, the difficult-to-develop small hybrid-type rocket is successfully developed. The main purpose is to drastically reduce the cost of rocket experiments and thus, attract potential users such as metrological and microgravity researchers. A key idea is a new fuel grain design to accelerate the gasification rate of solid fuel. The new fuel grain design, designated as CAMUI as an abbreviation of cascaded multistage impinging-jet, is that the gas flow repeatedly collides with the solid fuel surface to accelerate the heat transfer to the fuel. To install a regenerative cooling system using cryogenic liquid oxygen as coolant in a small launcher, the authors devised a valveless supply system (with no valves in the liquid oxygen flow line). Four serial successful launch verification tests by 10kg vehicle equipped with a 50kgf thrust CAMUI motor have shown the feasibility of the motor system. The meteorological observation model of 400kgf class motor is under development and the development of microgravity experiment class of 1.5-2tonf motor will follow subsequently. The authors plan to complete the development of the 400kgf class motor for meteorological observation model by the end of FY2005. (C) 2006 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.