project-highlight-image

Lowering of solid propellants environmental impact through Al-Mg and AP-PSAN blends

Evaluating the thermal, morphological, and ballistic properties of alternative solid propellant formulations using Aluminum-Magnesium (AlMg) and Ammonium Nitrate (AN) to reduce toxic emissions while maintaining combustion efficiency.
Home
Questions?
hero-image

Mirko

Project Timeline

Feb 2025 - Jun-2025

HighlightS

  • Thermochemical Emission Optimization: Conducted extensive trade studies using NASA-CEA to optimize oxidizer blends, proving that replacing 17 wt% of AP with AN slashes toxic HCl emissions by ~20% while incurring a minimal 1.6% penalty to specific impulse
  • Thermal & Morphological Characterization: Analyzed SEM imagery and DTA/TG curves to validate that AlMg powders drastically improve reactivity
  • Ballistic Performance Enhancement: Evaluated experimental burning rate data across varying pressure regimes using Vieille's law. Integrating AlMg composite fuels successfully restores and enhances the burning rates, achieving up to a 69% increase in burn rate at 10 bar
  • Strategic Green Propulsion Architecture: Validated a viable "green" propellant architecture that synergistically pairs PSAN with mechanically activated AlMg alloys

SKILLS

MATLAB
NASA CEA
DTA & TG Analysis
SEM Analysis
Morphological Characterization

External Links

Project Report

Problem Statement

This report investigates solid propellants where aluminum-magnesium (AlMg) powders and ammonium nitrate (AN) partially replace traditional aluminum and ammonium perchlorate (AP).

The goal is to reduce harmful emissions for a cleaner exhaust products and enhance combustion efficiency through lower ignition temperature.

Thermal, morphological, and ballistic properties of the proposed mixtures are evaluated.

| lowinertia |
Build Your Engineering Portfolio