Due to the fact that you must design a rocket around its fuel, there are many reasons we need to test rocket fuel. Given this proposition, we made test rockets to test a small amount of fuel that we made in class. If you don't test a rockets fuel before hand, your rocket that took time and effort to build can easily be destroyed in seconds.
Looking Back
Our first task during the experiment was to make the fuel that we would work with. The way this worked was by taking a chemical reaction we knew would create the desired results and scaling it down to a usable level. This process is called stoichiometry. Stoichiometry helps us convert moles (the way molecules are measured) and convert them into grams. After being converted into grams we can then derive a percentage of material that we need to make the desired chemical reaction happen. The chemical reaction that we wanted to take place in the lab was: SC12H22O11 + 48KNO3 ----> 24k2co3 + 36CO2 +55H2O + 24N2. After making our feud we then created our test rockets. This was a relatively simple process. We began by wrapping a piece of paper around a dowel rod to get the shape of our engine. We then used a tinfoil ball as the nose cap. After we finished this, we poured rocket fuel into the hollow space inside the tube of paper. We compressed the fuel the put another tinfoil cap in. We then drilled a hole through one of the caps so that we had a place to put a wick for ignition. My rocket worked very well as it launched over 50 feet into the air.
Looking Beyond
The way rockets work is through expansion of gasses. When the rocket fuel is burned, I turns from a solid to a gas state. Gas takes up much more space than solids do and for this reason the contents of the rocket become compressed. We then harness this compression by making it flow through an outlet so as to propel the body of the rocket.
Looking Inward
I got very desirable results as my rocket was one of the only rockets that got more than five feet above the ground. I was very proud of this as i did not know whether or not my rocket would be a success. I think what contributed to this was my careful compression of the rocket fuel inside the body of the engine.
Looking Outward
For this lab I worked with Liam yet again. As always we worked well and efficiently together. This resulted in a successful and quickly made project. I would work with Liam again on another project
Looking Forward
If I could do this again I would do two things to make my results more desirable. I would thicken the body of the engine so that it would be able to handle the burn of the rocket fuel. I would also widen the outlet for the gas so that I could get more initial energy from the take off. These two things would improve the already good rocket that I made. To continue this project I could continue on by doing more parts of the rocketry project. Overall I learned a lot about rocket fuel and rocket science by doing this project and it was a valuable learning experience.
Looking Back
Our first task during the experiment was to make the fuel that we would work with. The way this worked was by taking a chemical reaction we knew would create the desired results and scaling it down to a usable level. This process is called stoichiometry. Stoichiometry helps us convert moles (the way molecules are measured) and convert them into grams. After being converted into grams we can then derive a percentage of material that we need to make the desired chemical reaction happen. The chemical reaction that we wanted to take place in the lab was: SC12H22O11 + 48KNO3 ----> 24k2co3 + 36CO2 +55H2O + 24N2. After making our feud we then created our test rockets. This was a relatively simple process. We began by wrapping a piece of paper around a dowel rod to get the shape of our engine. We then used a tinfoil ball as the nose cap. After we finished this, we poured rocket fuel into the hollow space inside the tube of paper. We compressed the fuel the put another tinfoil cap in. We then drilled a hole through one of the caps so that we had a place to put a wick for ignition. My rocket worked very well as it launched over 50 feet into the air.
Looking Beyond
The way rockets work is through expansion of gasses. When the rocket fuel is burned, I turns from a solid to a gas state. Gas takes up much more space than solids do and for this reason the contents of the rocket become compressed. We then harness this compression by making it flow through an outlet so as to propel the body of the rocket.
Looking Inward
I got very desirable results as my rocket was one of the only rockets that got more than five feet above the ground. I was very proud of this as i did not know whether or not my rocket would be a success. I think what contributed to this was my careful compression of the rocket fuel inside the body of the engine.
Looking Outward
For this lab I worked with Liam yet again. As always we worked well and efficiently together. This resulted in a successful and quickly made project. I would work with Liam again on another project
Looking Forward
If I could do this again I would do two things to make my results more desirable. I would thicken the body of the engine so that it would be able to handle the burn of the rocket fuel. I would also widen the outlet for the gas so that I could get more initial energy from the take off. These two things would improve the already good rocket that I made. To continue this project I could continue on by doing more parts of the rocketry project. Overall I learned a lot about rocket fuel and rocket science by doing this project and it was a valuable learning experience.