3D printed ABS/paraffin hybrid rocket fuels with carbon dots for superior combustion performance

Explorations in Hybrid Rocket Technology: Arc-Track Ignition in 3D-Printed Rockets

A new rocket ignition mechanism developed at Utah State University, arc-track ignition, is very promising, but its underlying physics are poorly understood. An engineering/physics joint team was formed to investigate the process and suggest avenues for improvement of the technology. The objectives of the team evolved over the course of seven months of research. By the nature of this approach, u...

Visualization of Combustion Within a Hybrid Rocket Motor

A visualization facility has been developed at Stanford University in order to study flow in a turbulent combustion boundary layer. The motivation for the facility arises from recent studies of fast burning fuels for hybrid rocket propulsion where droplet lift-off from the melting fuel surface is the dominant mass transfer mechanism. The facility, shown in Figure 1, has been used to image the c...

Inkjet printed fluorescent nanorod layers exhibit superior optical performance over quantum dots.

Semiconductor nanocrystals exhibit unique fluorescence properties which are tunable in size, shape and composition. The high quantum yield and enhanced stability have led to their use in biomedical imaging and flat panel displays. Here, semiconductor nanorod based inkjet inks are presented, overcoming limitations of the commonly reported quantum dots in printing applications. Fluorescent seeded...

Rotating Combustion Chamber for Rocket Apparatus

A 3D-printed, functionally graded soft robot powered by combustion

Roboticists have begun to design biologically inspired robots with soft or partially soft bodies, which have the potential to be more robust and adaptable, and safer for human interaction, as compared to traditional rigid robots. However, key challenges in the design and manufacture of soft robots include the complex fabrication processes and the interfacing of soft and rigid components. We emp...