AE2230-II: Propulsion & Power

Rocket Propulsion

Dr. A. Cervone – Ir. B.T.C. Zandbergen

(Edited and Compiled by R. Klein and M. Fernandez Jimenez)

February 2017
Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology
Lecture Notes AE2230-II
Rocket Propulsion

Preface
The "rocket propulsion" part of TU-Delft’s Propulsion and Power course (AE2230-II) is
about the theory, technology and performance of rocket and spacecraft propulsion systems.
Some earlier courses can be of interest for this part, in particular:
 Aerospace Design & Systems Engineering Elements I, part on spacecraft design and sizing
 Physics I, part on thermodynamics
The level of detail of this course allows for a more in depth sizing of rocket propulsion
systems, taking into account physical and technological aspects not taught by previous
courses. Some typical high level learning objectives are given in the block below.

Specific Learning Objectives (At the end of this course, the student is able to…)
 Understand the basic principles of thrust producing mechanisms for rockets and space
vehicles.
 Perform basic sizing of thrust generation systems suitable for rockets and space
vehicles.
 List/describe/explain:
 the main thrust generation options available;
 the components that make up the propulsion system and their function;
 the current limits to thrust generation.
 Apply control volume analysis and integral momentum equations to estimate the
produced thrust.
 Develop a system model from a schematic system description.
 Select the appropriate propulsion system from basic types depending on system
requirements.
 Asses effect of changes in design/operating parameters on system performance.

Thanks to Raphael Klein for editing, modifying and correcting the old reader, and to Maria
Fernandez Jimenez for her transcripts of the video lectures.

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Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology
Lecture Notes AE2230-II
Rocket Propulsion

Nomenclature

Abbreviation Description
ESA European Space Agency
EU European Union
IRT Ideal Rocket Theory
LEO Low Earth Orbit
LH2 Liquid Hydrogen
LOX Liquid Oxygen
LRE Liquid Rocket Engine
MMH Mono/Methyl Hydrazine
NTO Nitrogen Tetroxide
RP-1 Rocket Propellant-1
rpm Revolutions per Minute
SL Sea Level
SRM Solid Rocket Motor
SSME Space Shuttle Main Engine
UDMH Unsymmetrical Di/Methyl Hydrazine

Symbol Description SI Units

(Latin)
a Speed of sound m/s
Regression rate constant m/(s∙Pan)
A Area m2
Ab Burning surface solid propellant grain m2
Ae Nozzle exit area m2
A* Nozzle throat area m2
c* Characteristic velocity m/s
cp Constant pressure specific heat J/(K∙kg)
cv Constant volume specific heat J/(K∙kg)
CF Thrust coefficient -
F Force N
FT Thrust N
g Gravitational acceleration m/s2
h Enthalpy J/kg
HV Heating value J/kg
HD Heat of decomposition J/mol, or J/kg
I Momentum Ns
Isp (Gravimetric) specific impulse s
I Volumetric specific impulse kg∙s/m3
m Mass flow rate kg/s
M Mass kg
Mach number -
P Propellant mass kg
W Molecular mass g/mol
n Regression rate exponent -
O/F Mixture ratio -
p Pressure Pa
pa Ambient pressure Pa

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Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology
Lecture Notes AE2230-II
Rocket Propulsion

pC Chamber pressure Pa
pe Nozzle exhaust pressure Pa
P Power W
Pjet Jet power W
PT Thrust power W
r Regression rate m/s
t Time s
tb Burn time s
T Temperature K
TC Chamber temperature K
T0 Initial propellant temperature K
v Velocity m/s
ve Jet velocity m/s
veq Equivalent (or effective) jet velocity m/s
v0 Flight velocity m/s
(Greek)
p Pressure increase Pa
v Velocity change m/s
 Nozzle expansion ratio -
 Specific heat ratio -
 Vandenkerckhove function -
 Efficiency -
C Cycle efficiency -
P Propulsive efficiency -
 Propellant mass density kg/m3

Important Constants
Definition Symbol Value
Earth’s gravitational acceleration at sea level g0 9.81 m/s2
Universal gas constant RA 8314 J/(K∙kmol)

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Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology
Lecture Notes AE2230-II
Rocket Propulsion

Contents
PREFACE .............................................................................................................................................. II
NOMENCLATURE ................................................................................................................................ III
CONTENTS ...........................................................................................................................................V
1 – INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................................................ 1
1.1 How does a rocket work? ........................................................................................................ 1
1.2 Rocket propulsion features and applications .......................................................................... 1
1.3 Functions and components of rocket systems .......................................................................... 3
1.4 Rocket engines classification ................................................................................................... 4
2 - FUNDAMENTALS....................................................................................................................... 7
2.1 The working principle of rockets: exchange of momentum ..................................................... 7
2.2 The rocket equation ................................................................................................................. 9
2.3 The thrust equation................................................................................................................ 12
2.4 Total impulse and specific impulse ........................................................................................ 15
2.5 Thrust power and propulsive efficiency................................................................................. 18
3 – THE IDEAL ROCKET THEORY .............................................................................................. 20
3.1 Ideal Rocket Theory: assumptions......................................................................................... 20
3.2 Ideal Rocket Theory: building blocks .................................................................................... 22
3.3 Why a convergent-divergent nozzle? ..................................................................................... 25
3.4 Nozzle temperature and velocity equations ........................................................................... 26
3.5 Mach number relationships ................................................................................................... 28
3.6 Mass flow rate equation ........................................................................................................ 29
3.7 Expansion ratio equation ...................................................................................................... 30
3.8 Nozzle thrust .......................................................................................................................... 32
3.9 Characteristic velocity and thrust coefficient ........................................................................ 33
3.10 Ideal Rocket Theory: summary ............................................................................................ 36
4 – COLD GAS ROCKETS ............................................................................................................. 38
4.1 General characteristics ......................................................................................................... 38
4.2 Cold gas propulsion systems ................................................................................................. 38
4.3 Cold gas propellants ............................................................................................................. 39
4.4 Blow-down systems ............................................................................................................... 40
5 – LIQUID PROPELLANT ROCKETS ......................................................................................... 42
5.1 Mono-propellant rockets ....................................................................................................... 42
5.2 Components of a mono-propellant system............................................................................. 42
5.3 Mono-propellant fluids .......................................................................................................... 43
5.4 Mono-propellant chamber temperature ................................................................................ 44
5.5 Bi-propellant rockets ............................................................................................................. 44
5.6 Pressure-fed and pump-fed bi-propellant systems ................................................................ 45
5.7 Bi-propellant fluids ............................................................................................................... 48
5.8 Bi-propellant chamber temperature ...................................................................................... 49
5.9 Molar-averaged fluid properties ........................................................................................... 50
6 – SOLID PROPELLANT ROCKETS ........................................................................................... 52
6.1 General characteristics ......................................................................................................... 52
6.2 Components of a solid propellant rocket ............................................................................... 52
6.3 Regression rate and chamber pressure ................................................................................. 53
6.4 Influence of the grain geometry ............................................................................................. 54
6.5 Hybrid propellant rockets ..................................................................................................... 55
7 – SUMMARY PROBLEMS .......................................................................................................... 57
7.1 Rocketdyne F1 Engine ........................................................................................................... 57
7.2 Space Shuttle propulsion system ........................................................................................... 59
REFERENCES ................................................................................................................................. 62

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Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology
Lecture Notes AE2230-II
Rocket Propulsion

1 – Introduction
Aircraft engines and rocket engines are based on two different types of propulsion, with some
similarities but also several big differences. In a nutshell, the most important difference is
that, even if they are both based on accelerating a working fluid, in an aircraft engine the fluid
to be accelerated comes from outside the vehicle, while in a rocket the fluid to be accelerated
is carried on board of the rocket. Actually, in larger rockets and in most of the space
launchers, the mass of the accelerated fluid (usually called propellant), can be up to 80% of
the total rocket mass at launch.

1.1 How does a rocket work?

Generally speaking, we talk about “propulsion” when the momentum of a body (or, in other
words, the product of the body mass times its velocity) is changed by means of a force acting
on it. The word propulsion originates from two Latin words: pro, which means “before” or
“forwards”, and pellere, which means “to drive”. Thus, “propulsion” means “to drive
forwards”.
A rocket, as schematically shown in Figure 1, works by
expelling very large quantities of propellant at very high
velocity, in a direction opposite to the direction of rocket
motion. As a consequence of the action-reaction principle (3rd
Newton’s law), if a mass of propellant is accelerated and
expelled in a given direction, the propellant in turn accelerates
the rocket in the exactly opposite direction.
More in detail, what happens is that the energy of a fluid, the
propellant in this case, is increased (usually by means of a
combustion process) and then converted into kinetic energy to
generate the propulsive force. This principle works in exactly
the same way for aircraft engines and for rocket ones: in the case
of aircraft engines, where the accelerated fluid is mostly
external, we talk of direct reaction systems (if the kinetic energy
is directly used to produce thrust) or indirect reaction systems (if
the kinetic energy is first converted into mechanical energy, as it
happens for example in turboshaft or turboprop engines); in Figure 1: The principle
rocket engines, where the accelerated fluid is stored internally, of rocket propulsion.
we talk of pure reaction systems.

1.2 Rocket propulsion features and applications

If we compare a rocket engine to a typical turbojet engine (see the indicative data shown in
Table 1), we notice that rocket engines usually have much higher Thrust-to-Weight ratio, in
the order of 15 times higher, and thrust density, in the order of 3 times higher. Rocket
engines, differently to aircraft engines, can also achieve flight velocities higher than the
velocity at which the propellant is expelled, and can be operated at very high altitudes or even
outside the atmosphere, since they already carry on board the propellant to be accelerated.
Thus, as a combination of all these aspects, we can conclude that rocket propulsion is ideal
for achieving high accelerations over short time durations.
Another interesting characteristic of rocket engines is that the thrust they provide is nearly1
independent on the ambient conditions (altitude and temperature) and the flight velocity.
On the other hand, the main drawback of rocket engines is that they usually have a much
higher propellant consumption than typical turbojet engines, in the order of 10 times higher.

1
Note that “nearly independent” does not mean completely independent: a weak dependence on
altitude and flight velocity might still be present, as it will be shown in the following chapters.

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Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology
Lecture Notes AE2230-II
Rocket Propulsion

This happens mainly because both the oxidizer and the fuel have to be carried on board, while
in aircraft engines only the fuel has to be carried on board.

Table 1: Comparison between rocket engines and turbojet engines (adapted from [1]).
Feature Rocket engine or rocket Turbojet engine
motor
T/W, typical 75:1 5:1
Specific fuel/propellant 0,8-1,4 kg/(Nhr) 0,05-0,15 kg/(Nhr)
consumption
Thrust density 375000 N/m2 125000 N/m2
Thrust versus altitude Nearly constant Decreases with
increasing altitude
Thrust versus flight velocity Nearly constant Decreases with
increasing flight velocity
Thrust versus air temperature Constant Decreases with
increasing air
temperature
Flight velocity versus exhaust Unrelated; flight velocity Flight velocity always
velocity can be greater less than exhaust
velocity
Altitude limitation None; suited to space 14-17 km
travel
Adapted from: Rocket Propulsion Elements

Although rocket engines are sometimes used in military applications to propel ballistic
missiles and anti-tank weapons, their main applications are related to space vehicles.
The most typical example are space launchers, which require high flight velocities (in the
order of 7 km/s or higher), but also operate at high altitudes with high thrust levels to
overcome the Earth’s gravity. As an example, the European Ariane 5 launcher is capable of
bringing a payload of about 40 tons into LEO (Low Earth Orbit). The total launcher mass at
lift-off is about 746 tons, of which 642 tons is propellant. The main stage is powered by a
single rocket engine (the Vulcain engine), which produces a vacuum thrust of 1145 kN and
has a nominal burn time of 590 s, and two large booster rockets providing a lift-off thrust of
5500 kN for a burn time of 130 s. Similar to launchers are the applications in ascent and
lander vehicles, from/to the surface of the Moon or other celestial bodies.
In spacecraft applications, rocket engines are used for tasks such as orbit transfer, acquisition,
repositioning, de-orbiting or plane changes, station-keeping, wheel momentum dumping, but
also (in pairs of two) for attitude control. Figure 2 shows some features of the rocket
propulsion system on a specific spacecraft, including engines to provide spin, axial and radial
control.

Figure 2: Ulysses rocket system (courtesy ESA).

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Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology
Lecture Notes AE2230-II
Rocket Propulsion

Other less common but still important applications of rocket engines are sounding rockets,
amateur rockets, ejection seats, rocket-assisted take off on some heavy military transport
aircraft, special race cars, propulsion belts. Table 2 provides an overview of a number of
primary and secondary rocket propulsion applications, with some of their typical
characteristics and requirements.

Table 2: Characteristics of some rocket propulsion applications (adapted from [1]).

1.3 Functions and components of rocket systems

Looking at the propulsion system as a whole, we can identify five main functions that need to
be performed by its components, as schematically shown in Figure 3 (where the blue arrows
indicate fluid flow, and the red ones indicate energy flow). First of all, it shall provide the
fluid (propellant) that will be expelled. Then, it is necessary to store the propellant, under
appropriate pressure and temperature conditions, in the propellant tank(s). To operate the
system, it is obviously also required to feed and distribute the propellant from the tanks to the
place where it is accelerated, through several fluidic components such as pipes, valves,
regulators, filters, pumps. Finally, we need to accelerate the propellant to generate thrust,
which is done in the part of the propulsion system commonly called “thruster”. In addition,
another fundamental function is to provide the required power to all system components.

Figure 3: Functions and components of a typical rocket system.

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Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology
Lecture Notes AE2230-II
Rocket Propulsion

Various types of components are used to accomplish these different functions. Starting from
the propellant storage function, Figure 4 shows some specific types of tanks, from smaller
ones (left hand side) to the very large liquid propellant tank used for the Space Shuttle, shown
on the right hand side. The central figure also shows that, inside the tank, additional features
can sometimes be present to handle the propellant, for example when it is required to
correctly direct the propellant towards the exhaust and avoid the formation of large bubbles of
gas during flight, especially when the vehicle operates in micro-gravity or in space.

Figure 4: Examples of tanks used for rocket propulsion applications.

Other components of the system include the propellants and the pressurant gas (when
needed), as well as all propellant handling devices, such as:
 pressure regulators, to make sure that the pressure at which the propellant is used in the
thrusters is at the right level (often different to the pressure in the tanks);
 filters, to avoid that potentially dangerous solid particles, that could be present in the
propellant, reach the thrusters and thus procure big damage to the propulsion system;
 pressure transducers, to measure the pressure at different points of the feed system;
 flow regulators, to ensure the right level of propellant mass flow rate, either actively (for
example by means of proportional valves) or passively (for example by means of a
calibrated nozzle);
 gas generators, sometimes used to generate the gas which pressurizes the propellant in the
tank, a function that in larger engines can also be accomplished by turbopumps;
 a wide range of valves, used for different purposes: we might have fill/drain valves, to fill
the tanks with propellant or to drain it if necessary, check valves, a particular type of valve
letting the propellant flow only in one direction but not in the opposite one, pyrotechnic
valves, opened only once by means of a pyrotechnic device and then always staying open,
thrust valves, the last ones to be opened to make the propellant flow into the thruster where
it is accelerated, usually built with particularly good accuracy and very fast response time.

1.4 Rocket engines classification

A commonly used way to classify rocket engines is based on the propellant acceleration
method. Different options are possible, in particular:
 thermal expansion (thus, by means of pressure forces), when propellant enthalpy is
increased by means of an energy source and then converted into kinetic energy in a nozzle;
 electrostatic forces, when thrust is generated by accelerating positively charged propellant
ions by means of an electric field;
 electromagnetic forces, where the propellant is a plasma, accelerated by a Lorentz force
induced by crossed electric and magnetic fields.

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Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology
Lecture Notes AE2230-II
Rocket Propulsion

Rocket engines can also be classified based on the type of energy source used, which can
simply be propellant pressurization (in the so-called cold gas rockets) but also, more
commonly, chemical, nuclear, solar or electric energy.
A typical way to compare and classify different types of propulsion is to put them in a chart
like the one shown in Figure 5, where their performance range is identified in terms of thrust
(on the horizontal axis) and specific impulse2 (on the vertical axis).
The propulsion systems that will be discussed more in detail in this course (coloured boxes in
the figure) are cold gas rockets, characterized by very low specific impulse and low-moderate
thrust levels, and several different types of rockets using chemical energy, such as liquid
mono-propellant rockets (characterized by slightly higher thrust and specific impulse levels
than cold gas ones), solid propellant rockets (comparable specific impulse to mono-
propellant rockets, but significantly higher thrust), and liquid bi-propellant rockets (higher
specific impulse than solid propellant rockets, while still staying at a very high thrust level).
Other propulsion options, not studied in detail by this course, belong to the field of electric
propulsion (either electrostatic, electromagnetic or electro-thermal), typically characterized
by very good specific impulse but low thrust levels, rarely in excess of a few Newton. More
advanced concepts, such as nuclear, solar or even antimatter and laser propulsion, usually
offer an intermediate specific impulse between chemical and electric propulsion, but higher
thrust levels than those achievable with electric propulsion.

Figure 5: Classification of rocket engines in terms of thrust and specific impulse.

Let’s now try to associate the most common types of propulsion to some of the applications
that have been previously discussed, recalling that higher thrust means higher acceleration,
while higher specific impulse means lower propellant mass consumption and thus, as a
consequence, longer possible thrust durations for a given amount of available propellant.
Starting from launchers and missiles, where (see Figure 6) typical requirements ask for high
acceleration and relatively short operational time, we need in this case a propulsion system
providing high thrust levels, but not necessarily very high specific impulse. Therefore, for

2
These performance parameters will be discussed and explained more in detail in the next chapter. For
now, we just mention (in a simplified way) that higher thrust means higher acceleration, while higher
specific impulse means lower propellant mass consumption.

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Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology
Lecture Notes AE2230-II
Rocket Propulsion

these applications, solid or liquid bi-propellant rockets are chosen, since they are the options
providing the highest amount of thrust.
In amateur rockets or ascent and lander vehicles, requirements are typically based on
moderate-high acceleration and, again, relatively short operational time. Therefore, in this
case, together with solid and liquid bi-propellant rockets, other options characterized by
slightly lower thrust levels (such as liquid mono-propellant systems) can also be considered.
For orbit insertion and transfer, the main driving requirement is typically asking for moderate
to long, or in some cases even very long, operational time. Therefore, systems with medium
to high specific impulse are chosen, ranging from solid and liquid bi-propellant rockets to, in
many cases, even electric propulsion.
In orbit maintenance and attitude control of satellites, the acceleration provided by the
propulsion system shall not be too high, to allow for precise positioning and pointing of the
spacecraft. This means that any kind of propulsion system allowing for moderate and low
thrust levels can be used; this can be, depending on the specific requirements for the given
spacecraft, electric propulsion, cold gas systems, liquid mono-propellant rockets but even
smaller types of liquid bi-propellant rockets.
Finally, for a more exotic application such as propulsion belts, the acceleration shall not be
too high (to avoid physical issues to the person using the belt) and, usually, short operational
times are required. Therefore, in this case, a propulsion system with intermediate performance
characteristics in terms of both specific impulse and thrust is typically chosen; looking at the
chart in Figure 5, this can usually be a liquid mono-propellant rocket.

Figure 6: Possible applications of different types of rocket engines.

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Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology
Lecture Notes AE2230-II
Rocket Propulsion

2 - Fundamentals
In this chapter, we will look more in detail at the physics behind the working principles of
rocket propulsion. Two fundamental equations will be derived: the rocket equation and the
thrust equation. Finally, some other important propulsion performance parameters will be
defined and discussed, including the specific impulse.

2.1 The working principle of rockets: exchange of momentum

In physics, the momentum I of a body is a vector quantity simply defined as the mass M of
the body times its (vectorial) absolute velocity v:
I  M v (1)
The momentum of a body, as known from physics (Newton’s 1st law), can be changed only by
a force acting on that body. We can also define the momentum of a system of N bodies,
simply as the (vectorial) sum of the momentum of all bodies of that system:
N N
I system   I i   M i  vi (2)
i 1 i 1

Also in the case of a system of more bodies, when there are no external forces acting on the
system (meaning that there is only exchange of internal forces between the system bodies),
there cannot be any change in the total momentum and it will remain constant.
Let’s see how this works with a very simple example, see Figure 7. The figure shows a
system made of two bodies that, in this case, are two skaters.

Figure 7: Momentum exchange in a system of two bodies (skaters).

Assume that, initially, the system is at rest, so the skaters are not moving (left hand side of
Figure 7). This means the total momentum of the system is initially zero, because the velocity
of the two bodies (skaters) is zero. Additionally, if we assume that both friction between
skaters and ground and air drag forces are negligible, no external forces act on this system:
the only forces are internal to the system, exchanged between the two skaters. This means that
the total momentum of the system shall always remain equal to zero. Assume now that the
first skater pushes the second one (right hand side of Figure 7): they will start moving in
opposite directions, the first one going left with velocity v1 , the second one going right with
velocity v2.

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Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology
Lecture Notes AE2230-II
Rocket Propulsion

Since the total momentum of the system shall always be zero and the velocities of the two
skaters are in opposite directions, assuming that their masses are respectively M1 and M2, we
can write:
M2
I system  M1  v1  M 2  v2  0  v1  v2
M1
This means, among other things, that the skater with higher mass will have lower velocity.
Why is this example relevant to rocket propulsion? Because a rocket works with exactly the
same principle. Assume that the first skater is the rocket and the second skater is the
propellant: the more propellant mass M2 is expelled and the higher the expulsion velocity v2
of this propellant mass, the higher the final velocity v1 of the rocket will be.

Two dwarfs are on a skateboard, initially at rest. The mass of each dwarf is M1 = 5 kg and
the skateboard mass is M2 = 2 kg. The dwarfs jump off the skateboard with horizontal
velocity (relative to the skateboard) v1 = 1 m/s. We can neglect friction and air drag forces.
(1) What is the final skateboard velocity if the dwarfs jump off together, at the same time?
(2) How does the final skateboard velocity change if the dwarfs jump off separately, one
after each other?
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
If the dwarfs jump off together, we can apply exactly the same equation as in the case of
the two skaters (the first body of the system is the skateboard, the second body are the two
dwarfs jumping off together). The final skateboard velocity v2 is:
2M1 10 kg
M 2  v2  2M1  v1  v2  v1   1 m/s  5 m/s
M2 2 kg
To answer question (2), we need to consider the jumps of the two dwarfs separately. When
the first dwarf jumps off, the two bodies of the system are the first dwarf (mass M1) and the
skateboard with the second dwarf on it (mass M2+M1). The skateboard velocity v2_a is:
M1 5
I in  I fin  0   M 2  M1   v2 _ a  M1  v1  v2 _ a  v1  m/s
M 2  M1 7

When the second dwarf jumps off, we have now to perform the same calculations with a
new two-body system, in which the first body is the skateboard alone, the second body is
the dwarf jumping off. The initial momentum of the system is not zero anymore, since the
skateboard is initially moving at velocity v2_a . Furthermore, when the dwarf jumps off, its
absolute velocity needs to be considered (equal to v1-v2_a ), not the relative velocity v1 with
which it jumps off the skateboard. The final skateboard velocity v2_fin is then:
 25 
I in  I fin   M 2  M1   v2 _ a  M 2  v2 _ fin  M1   v1  v2 _ a   v2 _ fin   5   m/s  5 m/s
 14 

This result, which could in principle be extended (with slightly longer calculations) to the
generic case of N dwarfs, shows that the maximum skateboard velocity is obtained when
the dwarfs jumps off all together, and we always get a lower velocity when they jump off
separately.

When we look at the result of the previous exercise, we can once again find an analogy to
rocket propulsion. If we assume that the skateboard is our “rocket” and the dwarfs are its
“propellant”, we can conclude that, in order to achieve higher rocket (= skateboard) velocity,
we need to expel all the propellant (= dwarfs) as fast as possible, ideally (for maximum
velocity) instantaneously at a time. Thus, it clearly appears that not only the amount of
expelled propellant and its exhaust velocity are important, but also the rate at which the
propellant is expelled. We will better analyse these aspects in the following sections, where
the most important equations for characterizing the performance of a rocket will be derived.

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Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology
Lecture Notes AE2230-II
Rocket Propulsion

2.2 The rocket equation

Assume that a certain rocket of mass M is flying with given velocity v at a time t. The total
momentum I of this rocket in the direction of flight, at the time t, is then simply given by its
mass times its velocity:
I  M v
In the following calculations, we will assume that there are no external forces acting on the
rocket (such as: no gravity force, no atmospheric drag or other pressure forces, etc.).
When a small amount of time dt has passed (see Figure 8), a small quantity of propellant dMP
has been expelled, with a jet velocity ve relative to the rocket. This means that at the time t+dt
the rocket has now a smaller mass, M-dMP, and flies at velocity v+dv, given the velocity
increase dv produced by the expelled propellant.

Figure 8: Schematic of a rocket flying in the horizontal direction.

Another assumption we are making here is that the jet velocity is parallel to the flight
velocity (horizontal direction in the case of Figure 8), meaning that the propellant is expelled
in a direction that is parallel and opposite to the flight direction.
Under these assumptions, we can now write the total momentum I+dI of the system (rocket +
expelled propellant) in the direction of flight, at the time t+dt, in the following way:

Note that, when writing the momentum of the expelled propellant, we need to consider its
absolute velocity, not the relative velocity with respect to the rocket (recall the previous
exercise with the two dwarfs on a skateboard). This is the reason why, in the above equation,
we are not simply using the relative jet velocity ve , but the absolute jet velocity ve-v .
With a few simple calculations, it is now possible to write in a more compact way the
momentum change dI:
I  dI   M  dM P  v  dv   dM P  ve  v  
 Mv  M  dv  dM P  v  dM P  dv  dM P  v  dM P  ve
Which, recalling that the initial total momentum at the time t was simply M∙v, leads to the
following expression:

The term dMP∙dv, in the above expression, is a lower-order term given by the product of two
small quantities and thus, in a first order approximation, can be neglected compared to the
other ones. Now, since we have assumed that no external forces act on this system, the total
momentum of the system cannot change, therefore the variation of total momentum dI shall
be zero:
dI  0  M  dv  dM P  ve  0  M  dv  dM P  ve

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Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology
Lecture Notes AE2230-II
Rocket Propulsion

The next step is variables separation, by putting all the velocity variables on the left side of
the equation and all the mass variables on the right side. Also note, looking at Figure 8, that
the propellant mass variation dMP is equal and opposite to the rocket mass variation dM:
dv dM P dM
M  dv  dM P  ve   
ve M M
Finally we can integrate the above expression, making the additional assumption that the jet
velocity ve is constant with time:

1 dM 1 M   M in 
ve  dv   
M
 v  ln  in
ve M   v  ve  ln  
 M in  M P 
 fin 
Where Min is the initial mass of the rocket and Mfin is its final mass, which is simply equal to
the initial mass Min minus the expelled propellant mass MP.
We have now derived what is commonly called the rocket equation or, alternatively,
Tsiolkovsky equation (from the name of the scientist who first applied it to the study of the
motion of a rocket, in the first years of XX century):
 M in 
v  ve  ln   (3)
 M in  M P 
This equation gives the total velocity change of a rocket of given initial mass Min when a
propellant mass MP is expelled by the rocket with jet velocity ve , provided that all the
simplifying assumptions that have been made to derive the equation are valid. In summary,
these assumptions are:
1. No gravity forces;
2. No atmospheric drag;
3. No other external forces acting on the rocket;
4. The jet velocity ve is constant with time;
5. The jet velocity ve is parallel and opposite to the flight velocity.
If at least one of the above assumptions is not true, the value calculated by the rocket equation
is not the actual velocity change of the rocket. However the v calculated by the rocket
equation can still be used, even in this case, as a good indicator of the total energy provided
by the propulsion system.
As a sample case when the assumptions made to derive the rocket equation are not valid
anymore, we can mention a launcher that takes off from the surface of the Earth or another
celestial body; in this case, the first two assumptions in the above list are not valid anymore,
because there is certainly a gravity force acting on the rocket and, in most cases, atmospheric
drag too. The fourth assumption in the list (constant jet velocity with time) is not valid when
the operational conditions of the rocket vary during the period considered, which (as we will
see in the following chapters) actually happens in some particular types of rockets. The fifth
assumption, finally, is not valid when the rocket axis is not parallel to the flight direction, as it
usually happens in most launcher trajectories.
One particular example, in which it is still possible to derive a relatively simple equation for
the actual velocity change of the rocket, is the case when a gravity force of constant
gravitational acceleration g is present, but all the other assumptions made to derive the rocket
equation are still valid. In this case, it is possible to show that the actual velocity change of
the rocket is given by:
 M in 
v  ve  ln    g  tb (4)
 M in  M P 

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Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology
Lecture Notes AE2230-II
Rocket Propulsion

Where tb is the burn time (total amount of time during which the propellant is expelled). The
difference between the velocity change calculated by equation (4) and the one calculated by
the rocket equation is given by the term g∙tb, usually called gravity loss because it is a
measure of how much rocket velocity is lost, with respect to the ideal case, due to the
presence of gravity.

A small rocket ascends from Moon’s surface: thus, no atmosphere is present, and the only
external force is Moon’s gravity (g = 1.62 m/s2, assumed constant).
The rocket flights in vertical direction and the propellant is expelled vertically at constant
jet velocity ve = 1000 m/s. The initial rocket mass is Min = 100 kg, of which 70 kg are
propellant. After a burn time tb = 100 s, all the propellant has been expelled.
What is the v calculated by the rocket equation, and what is the actual velocity change of
the rocket?
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
From the rocket equation:

 M in  m  100 kg  m  100  m
v  ve  ln    1000  ln    1000  ln    1204
 M in  M P  s  100 kg - 70 kg  s  30  s
While the actual velocity change of the rocket is, from equation (4):

 M in  m m m
vactual  ve  ln    g  tb  1204  1.62 2  100 s  1042
 M in  M P  s s s

The difference between these two values is 162 m/s, which is therefore the gravity loss:
this v is needed to overcome the gravity force, and is therefore not used to accelerate the
rocket.

The rocket equation shows us, once again, that to achieve higher flight velocity using rocket
propulsion it is preferable to expel the propellant at the highest possible jet velocity, as clearly
illustrated by the sample case shown in Figure 9.

2000
1800
Launch mass [kg]

1600
1400
1200
1000
800
600
400
0 5 10 15 20
Exhaust velocity [km/s]

Figure 9: Initial launch mass Min calculated by the rocket equation, as a function of the
exhaust velocity ve, for a rocket of required final mass Mfin = 400 kg and v = 5000 m/s.

The jet velocity ve is, however, strongly dependant on the type of propulsion used by the
rocket and its specific acceleration mechanism, as it has briefly been mentioned in the
previous chapter and will be better explained in the following ones.

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Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology
Lecture Notes AE2230-II
Rocket Propulsion

2.3 The thrust equation

We are now ready to derive another important equation, which can be used to characterize the
thrust force provided by the rocket propulsion system. Also in this case (see Figure 10), we
start from a rocket with mass M, flying horizontally with velocity v at a given time t.
We have already found that, at a time t+dt, the total momentum change dI is:
dI  M  dv  dM P  ve
Dividing all the terms in this expression by dt, we obtain an equation for the time derivative
of the total momentum of the system:
dI dv dM P
 M   ve  (5)
dt dt dt
Recall, from basic mechanics, that this time derivative shall be equal to the external force
acting on the system (Newton’s 2nd law). In order to characterize the external forces acting on
this particular system, we divide them into two categories: the pressure forces FP, caused by
the force exerted by the fluid surrounding the system, and all other external forces Fother
caused by other effects (such as, for example, the gravity force):
dI dv dM P
 M   ve   FP  Fother (6)
dt dt dt
It is particularly important to take a closer look at the pressure forces. To characterize these
forces, we use a “control volume” delimited by the external surface of the rocket, as shown in
Figure 10.

Figure 10: Pressure forces acting on a rocket flying in the horizontal direction.

On the area Ae where the propellant is expelled, the pressure acting on the rocket is exactly
the pressure pe at which the propellant is expelled, which we assume to be uniform over the
whole surface. On the remaining rocket surface, we have to consider the pressure po of the
fluid surrounding the rocket, for instance air in case the rocket is flying inside Earth’s
atmosphere. This pressure is not necessarily uniform everywhere around the rocket, so the
total force it exerts is calculated by integrating it over the whole remaining external area of
the rocket (indicated as Ao in this case). The total pressure force is therefore:
FP  p
Ao
o dAo  pe  Ae (7)

To write our equations in a more useful way, we recall from fundamental physics that, when
we have a uniform pressure acting on a closed volume, its integral over the surface enclosing
that volume shall be zero. If we now assume that this uniform pressure is the ambient pressure
pa (or, in other words, the pressure of unperturbed atmosphere far enough from the rocket,
where the perturbation given by the rocket is not present anymore), we can simply write that
the integral of this pressure over the surface of the same control volume used for the previous
calculation is zero:

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Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology
Lecture Notes AE2230-II
Rocket Propulsion

p
Ao
a dAo  pa  Ae  0 (8)

Note that equation (8) has no real physical meaning and does not reflect the situation of the
surface around the rocket, where the pressure is not uniform and severely perturbed by the
rocket motion; it is therefore just a mathematical ideal expression, that will be used here in
order to simplify the final equation. This aspect becomes more clear if we combine equations
(7) and (8) in the following way:
FP  0  p
Ao
o dAo  pe  Ae   pa dAo  pa  Ae
Ao

 FP  p
Ao
o  pa  dAo   pe  pa   Ae

The first term on the right hand side of this expression, the integral over Ao of po-pa, can be
easily recognized as the general definition of aerodynamic drag Fdrag, since it gives an
indication of the force exerted over the rocket surface, in the direction of flight, due to the
presence of a perturbed pressure field with respect to the unperturbed ambient pressure. Thus,
we can finally write the expression for the pressure forces in the following way:

p
Ao
o  pa  dAo  Fdrag  FP  Fdrag   pe  pa   Ae

Using this expression in the previously derived equation (6), we obtain:

dI dv dM P
 M   ve   FP  Fother  Fdrag  Fother   pe  pa   Ae
dt dt dt
And, with a few further mathematical steps:
dv dM P
M  Fdrag  Fother  ve    pe  pa   Ae  Fdrag  Fother  m  ve   pe  pa   Ae
dt dt
in which we have defined the propellant mass flow rate m as the time derivative of the
propellant mass or, in other words, the rate at which the propellant is expelled by the rocket:
dM P
m (9)
dt
The final equation we have found, in analogy with Newton’s 2nd law, gives an expression for
the rocket mass multiplied by its acceleration dv/dt, equal to the sum of all the forces acting to
the rocket in the horizontal direction. In particular, the ones among these forces which would
not be present in case no operational propulsion system is included in the rocket can be
defined as the “rocket thrust” itself:

This allows us to finally write an expression for the rocket thrust FT :

FT  m  ve   pe  pa   Ae (10)
Equation (10) shows that rocket thrust is made of two equally important components. The
first term on the right hand side of the equation, given by the propellant mass flow rate times
the jet velocity, is usually called momentum term and directly follows from the action-
reaction principle: the more propellant is expelled by the rocket, and the higher is the velocity

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Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology
Lecture Notes AE2230-II
Rocket Propulsion

at which it is expelled, the more force will be exerted by the propellant to the rocket. The
second term on the right hand side of equation (10) is usually called pressure term, generated
by the difference between the pressure at which the propellant is expelled and the pressure of
the external environment. Note that the pressure term can be either equal to zero, negative, or
positive, depending on whether the propellant exhaust pressure pe is the same, higher or lower
than the ambient pressure pa.
It should also be noticed that the thrust calculated by equation (10) is an external force for the
rocket itself (since it is exerted by the expelled propellant on the rocket), but it is an internal
force for the system made by the rocket and the expelled propellant.
Looking at equation (10), we can also see that there is no explicit dependence of the thrust on
the flight velocity. Conversely, there is a clear dependence on the altitude at which the rocket
is flying, through the term pa present in the equation. As a consequence, the thrust increases
with the altitude, since an increase in altitude is directly associated to a decrease in ambient
pressure (see Figure 11).

Figure 11: Ambient pressure variation with altitude (standard atmosphere values).

This is the reason why, when we indicate the thrust of a given propulsion system, we also
need to specify at which altitude it is referred. Most typical cases are the sea level thrust,
corresponding to an ambient pressure pa = 101325 Pa, and the vacuum thrust, corresponding
to an ambient pressure pa = 0. An example is shown in Figure 12 for the SSME (Space Shuttle
Main Engine), where it is evident that, indeed, there is a significant change in rocket thrust at
altitudes from 0 to about 30 km, above which the thrust stays approximately constant.

Figure 12: Space Shuttle Main Engine thrust as a function of altitude.

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Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology
Lecture Notes AE2230-II
Rocket Propulsion

A rocket engine delivers a thrust equal to 5 kN when the ambient pressure is 105 Pa, and a
thrust of 5.5 kN when the ambient pressure is 5∙104 Pa. How much is the vacuum thrust of
this engine (i.e., the thrust it delivers when the ambient pressure is zero)?
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Assuming that the propellant mass flow rate and the jet velocity do not vary with altitude,
as it usually happens in most propulsion systems of practical interest, the difference
between the thrust levels FT1 and FT2 at the two given altitudes is:
FT  m  ve   pe  pa   Ae  FT 2  FT 1   pa1  pa 2   Ae

Thus, the nozzle exit area is:

FT 2  FT 1 5500  5000 500
Ae   5   102 m2
pa1  pa 2 10  5 10 4
5 10 4

And the vacuum thrust is:

FTvac  m  ve  pe  Ae  FT 1  pa1  Ae  5000  105 102  6000 N

In order to write the rocket thrust in a more compact way, just as the product of a mass flow
rate times a velocity, it is possible to define a fictitious performance parameter usually called
equivalent jet velocity veq (or, sometimes, effective jet velocity), which includes both the
momentum and the pressure term present in the thrust equation:

veq 
FT  p  pa   Ae  F  mv
 ve  e (11)
T eq
m m
The equivalent jet velocity is a pure mathematical entity, which does not have any real
physical meaning. It is exactly equal to the jet velocity when the pressure term in the thrust
equation is identically zero or, in other terms, the propellant exit pressure is exactly equal to
the ambient pressure. It is possible to show that, taking into account the effects of the pressure
term in the thrust equation, the rocket equation should be written using the equivalent jet
velocity instead of the “pure” jet velocity. For this reason, equation (3) should be replaced by
the following, more correct one:
 M in 
v  veq  ln   (12)
 M in  M P 

2.4 Total impulse and specific impulse

In rocket propulsion, it is not only important how much force acts on the rocket or the
spacecraft, but also for how long it acts on it. A force acting for a longer time means that a
larger momentum change is obtained. To take this into account, the total impulse Itot of a
rocket is defined as the integral of the thrust force over time, from the initial time at which the
propulsion system starts to work until the time tb (burn time) when it stops operating:
tb

I tot   FT  dt (13)
0

In particular, when thrust is constant over time, the total impulse is simply equal to:
Itot  FT  tb (14)
We can also consider the case when the equivalent jet velocity is constant over time. In this
case, recalling from equation (11) that thrust is simply mass flow rate times equivalent jet
velocity, it is possible to write:

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Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology
Lecture Notes AE2230-II
Rocket Propulsion

tb tb
dM P
I tot   mveq  dt  veq   dt  veq  M P (15)
0 0
dt

A rocket engine delivers during a burn a total impulse Itot = 104 Ns. Assuming that the
engine is characterized by an equivalent jet velocity (constant during the burn) of 2500
m/s, how much propellant has been expelled during this burn?
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
From equation (15), since the equivalent jet velocity is assumed constant:
I 104
I tot  veq  M P  M P  tot   4 kg
veq 2500

Based on these considerations, we can now define the gravimetric specific impulse, or simply
specific impulse Isp of a rocket, as a quantity proportional to the total impulse divided by the
total mass of propellant used to generate that total impulse:
tb

1 0
FT  dt
I sp   (16)
g 0 tb
 m  dt
0

Note that the term g0 in equation (16) is always the gravitational acceleration on Earth at sea
level (equal to 9.81 m/s2), and is therefore a constant, whatever is the environment and the
gravity level into which the rocket or spacecraft is operating.
In case the equivalent jet velocity is constant over time, equation (16) can be significantly
simplified and becomes:
tb tb

1  mveq  dt veq  m  dt veq

I sp   0 tb   t0b 
g0 g0 g0
 m  dt
0
 m  dt
0

Which gives the following, very commonly used simplified expression for the specific
impulse:
veq
I sp  (17)
g0

valid in all cases when we can consider the equivalent jet velocity as a constant over the
whole burn time tb.
The specific impulse is probably the most important figure of merit for rocket performance.
From the definition shown in equation (16), we can note that higher specific impulse means
that a larger momentum change (or total impulse) can be generated with the same amount of
propellant or, in other words, the same momentum change can be obtained with a smaller
amount of propellant. The specific impulse is therefore directly associated to the propellant
mass consumption of the rocket.
Since, from equation (17), the specific impulse is proportional to the equivalent jet velocity
and the same applies to the v and the rocket thrust, see equations (11) and (12), higher
specific impulse means, in principle, higher thrust and higher v. All these considerations,
taken together, show very clearly why the specific impulse is such an important performance
parameter for rocket propulsion.
As we have already seen for the thrust and the equivalent jet velocity, the specific impulse is a
function of altitude too, increasing when altitude increases. This means that, as for the thrust,

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Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology
Lecture Notes AE2230-II
Rocket Propulsion

when we indicate the specific impulse of a given propulsion system we always need to
specify the altitude to which it is referred.
But for which reason is the constant g0 included in the definition of specific impulse, equation
(16)? This is mainly due to historical reasons and, more specifically, to the fact that without
this constant the unit for the specific impulse would be a velocity and, thus, it might be
expressed in several different units (m/s, inches/s, feet/s, etc.) depending on the unit
convention used. By including g0, the specific impulse has the unit of a time and, therefore, is
more universally expressed in seconds.

Two rocket engines A and B are characterized by the following values of the mass flow
rate and jet velocity:
Rocket A: mass flow rate = 100 kg/s, jet velocity = 3000 m/s
Rocket B: mass flow rate = 200 kg/s, jet velocity = 1500 m/s
Assuming that the two rockets are working at a nozzle exit pressure equal to the ambient
pressure and their jet velocity is constant over time, which rocket provides more thrust?
Which one has higher specific impulse?
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Under the given assumptions, the rocket thrust and specific impulse are simply given by:
FT  m  ve
ve
I sp 
g0
This leads to the same thrust for the two rockets, equal in both cases to 300 kN,
Conversely, the specific impulse is equal to 306 s for the first rocket and 153 s for the
second one. Rocket A has therefore higher specific impulse.

It is also possible to define a volumetric specific impulse I, exactly in the same way as the
gravimetric specific impulse but considering, in this case, the propellant volume instead of its
mass:
tb

1 0
FT  dt
I   (18)
g 0 tb m
  dt
0

where  is the mass density of the propellant. Higher volumetric specific impulse means that
a given momentum change can be obtained using a smaller volume of propellant and, thus,
the volumetric specific impulse is an important figure of merit to define the size of a rocket.

A rocket is characterized by a specific impulse of 200 s and equivalent jet velocity of 1962
m/s on Earth at sea level (g = 9.81 m/s2). What is the specific impulse of the same rocket:
(1) On the surface of a planet with gravity = 50% of Earth’s gravity at sea level?
(2) In an ideal case where no gravity is present (g = 0)?
Assume, for simplicity, that the equivalent jet velocity of the rocket (constant over time)
remains the same in all the cases considered in this problem.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Under the given assumptions, the specific impulse is given by equivalent jet velocity
divided by g0, which is a constant and is always equal to 9.81 m/s2. Thus, the specific
impulse of the rocket will always be the same (200 s), under any gravity conditions.

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Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology
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Rocket Propulsion

2.5 Thrust power and propulsive efficiency

Several different parameters can be found in literature to define the efficiency of a rocket
propulsion system. We introduce here the most important ones among these parameters,
starting by defining the jet power Pjet , a measure of the available amount of power in the jet
of propellant expelled by the rocket:
1 1
Pjet  FT  veq  m  veq 2 (19)
2 2
Looking at equation (19), you can probably notice an obvious analogy between the jet power
and the kinetic energy of the jet of exhausted propellant. The jet power can then be compared
to the total power Psource provided by the energy source used by the propulsion system, leading
to the definition of cycle efficiency C :
Pjet
C  (20)
Psource
The cycle efficiency is important because it is a measure of how much power provided by the
energy source is actually converted into kinetic energy of the propellant jet. Typical values of
this parameter are, in conventional rocket propulsion systems, in the order of 70%.
We can also define the thrust power PT , which is a measure of the amount of power
effectively used to propel the rocket, and depends on the thrust and the flight velocity v0:
PT  FT  v0  m  veq  v0 (21)

Finally we can consider another power parameter, the absolute jet power Pjet_abs , which is a
measure of the amount of jet power not effectively used for generating thrust and, thus, lost in
the expelled propellant. The absolute jet power is basically the same as the jet power, using
however the absolute jet velocity instead of the jet velocity relative to the rocket:

Pjet _ abs  m  veq  v0 

1 2
(22)
2
This allows for defining another efficiency parameter, the propulsive efficiency P , which
measures how much jet power is effectively used to propel the rocket:
PT
P  (23)
PT  Pjet _ abs

By using the definitions of thrust power and absolute jet power given in equations (21) and
(22), it is possible to write in a more interesting form the propulsive efficiency expression:
v
2 0
PT m  veq  v0 2veq  v0 veq
P    2  (24)
PT  Pjet _ abs m  veq  v0  m  veq  v0 
1 2 veq  v0
2
v 
2

1  0 
2 v
 eq 
Equation (24) shows very clearly that the propulsive efficiency is a function of the ratio of
rocket flight velocity to equivalent jet velocity. If we plot this function and compare it to what
typically happens in air-breathing engines (see Figure 13), we note that there is a maximum
for the propulsive efficiency, equal to exactly 100%, when the equivalent jet velocity is equal
to the flight velocity. Furthermore, differently to what happens in air-breathing engines,
rocket propulsion can also work when the flight velocity is higher that the equivalent jet
velocity.

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Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology
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Rocket Propulsion

Figure 13: Propulsive efficiency of rocket and air-breathing jet engines [2].

Finally, we can combine the two efficiencies defined so far in order to obtain the overall
energy efficiency of the rocket:
  P C (25)

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Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology
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Rocket Propulsion

3 – The Ideal Rocket Theory

In the previous chapter, we have derived the basic performance equations for rocket
propulsion. The most important ones among these equations, defining the thrust, equivalent
jet velocity, v and specific impulse, are shown in Table 3.

Table 3: Fundamental rocket propulsion performance equations.

FT  m  ve   pe  pa   Ae veq 
FT
 ve  e
 p  pa   Ae
m m
 M in  veq
v  veq  ln   I sp 
 M in  M P  g0

Let’s now take a closer look at the variables in these equations, and the exact role played by
the physical quantities they represent:
 The pressure pa depends on the ambient conditions (atmospheric pressure of the
environment in which the rocket is operating);
 The nozzle exit area Ae and the masses Min and MP depend on the design of the rocket (or
spacecraft) and on the nozzle geometry;
 The jet velocity ve , the nozzle exit pressure pe and the mass flow rate m depend on the
way how the propellant is heated and accelerated in the rocket.
The objective of this chapter is to evaluate the three quantities listed in the last bullet point
above (jet velocity, nozzle exit pressure, mass flow rate) by means of a set of simplified
equations describing the flow in a rocket nozzle. In order to do it we will use the so-called
Ideal Rocket Theory (IRT), starting from a simplified rocket geometry and a set of physical
assumptions, illustrated in the next section.

3.1 Ideal Rocket Theory: assumptions

In rockets based on the thermodynamic expansion of a propellant, a high-pressure (and, in
most cases, also high-temperature) gas is generated in a chamber and expanded in a nozzle,
to turn its thermal energy into kinetic energy.
For deriving the Ideal Rocket Theory equations, we usually schematize the rocket geometry
into a very simplified one, as shown in Figure 14. In the (combustion) chamber, the propellant
is in the gaseous state at high pressure, (usually) high temperature and low speed. Note that
the word “combustion” has been put within brackets because, in some types of rockets (as we
will better see in the next chapters), no combustion takes actually place and the propellant
temperature in the chamber is low. Then, in the convergent-divergent nozzle, the propellant is
accelerated without providing any additional energy to it, meaning that the only process
which takes place in this part of the rocket is a conversion from thermal to kinetic energy, in
order to accelerate the propellant and produce the thrust force.
Three sections of the convergent-divergent nozzle are of particular interest:
 The nozzle inlet (for which we will use here the subscript “C”), where the propellant is
still assumed at the same thermodynamic conditions (pressure, temperature, velocity) as in
the chamber;
 The nozzle throat (for which we will use the superscript “*”), which is simply the
smallest area of the nozzle at the intersection between its convergent and divergent parts;
 The nozzle exit (for which we will use the subscript “e”), where the propellant is expelled.

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Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology
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Rocket Propulsion

Figure 14: Ideal rocket geometry.

An important parameter to characterize the nozzle geometry, which will be widely used in the
following, is the expansion ratio , simply defined as the ratio of nozzle exit area to nozzle
throat area:
Ae
 (26)
A*
As previously mentioned, the Ideal Rocket Theory is also based on a set of physical
assumptions, necessary to simplify the physics of the nozzle flow at a sufficient level to
derive meaningful equations for the parameters which characterize it. These assumptions can
be summarized as follows:
1. The propellant in the chamber and in the nozzle is a perfect gas.
2. The propellant in the chamber and in the nozzle is also a calorically ideal gas, meaning
that its specific heats are not dependent on temperature.
3. The propellant is homogeneous and has uniform chemical properties in every point of the
chamber and the nozzle.
4. The flow in the nozzle is steady, meaning that all the quantities that characterize it are not
dependent on time.
5. The flow in the nozzle is isentropic: no external energy is provided and, in the same way,
no energy is lost by the propellant.
6. The flow in the nozzle is one-dimensional, meaning that all quantities vary only along the
nozzle axis and do not vary in the other two directions.
7. The flow velocity in the nozzle is purely axial: everywhere in the nozzle, the velocity is
parallel to the nozzle axis.
8. No external forces act on the propellant flowing in the nozzle; in particular, there is no
friction between the propellant and the nozzle walls.
9. The propellant in the chamber has negligible velocity, allowing in all equations to assume
the chamber velocity vC equal to zero.

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Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology
Lecture Notes AE2230-II
Rocket Propulsion

This long list of assumptions clearly indicates that the final equations we are going to derive
in this chapter describe in an extremely simplified way the actual flow in a rocket nozzle.
They can certainly be used for an initial characterization of the rocket performance, but in
defining its real performance an important role will also be played by all the aspects neglected
as a consequence of the above assumptions.

3.2 Ideal Rocket Theory: building blocks

The first set of building blocks for the Ideal Rocket Theory is represented by the so-called
conservation equations, which can be referred to the mass, momentum and energy of the
propellant in the nozzle. In order to derive these equations we will consider a very small
portion of the nozzle, characterized by a much shorter length in the axial direction than the
nozzle total length, as schematized in a very simplified way in Figure 15 (note that the
geometric features are shown in an exaggeratedly enlarged way in the figure, for better
illustrating them). If the inlet of this small nozzle section is characterized by given values of
velocity v, pressure p, area A, density , enthalpy h and temperature T, the variations of these
quantities at the nozzle outlet, indicated by dv, dp, dA, d, dh, dT, can all be assumed to be
very small quantities.

Figure 15: Schematic representation of a small portion of rocket nozzle.

To derive the mass conservation equation, we can observe that the propellant mass flow rate
in any section of the nozzle can be written as the product of gas density, times its velocity,
times the frontal area of the nozzle section through which it is flowing. Since no additional
mass of propellant is injected in the nozzle or extracted from it, no mass flow rate variations
are possible and, thus, the mass flow rate variation through our small portion of nozzle shall
also be zero:
d    v  A  0 (27)
This equation can also be integrated, in order to write it in a form that applies to the entire
nozzle and not only to the small portion we have considered here:
  v  A  m  constant (28)
For what concerns the momentum conservation equation, we start by recalling that the
propellant momentum per unit time is the product of its mass flow rate times its velocity.
Now, since one of our initial assumptions is that no external forces act on the propellant at
any place in the nozzle, the only remaining forces that can cause momentum variations are the
pressure forces. In other terms, we can write that the variation of momentum in our small

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Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology
Lecture Notes AE2230-II
Rocket Propulsion

portion of nozzle is balanced by the difference between the pressure forces acting on its inlet
and outlet sections:
d  m  v   p  A   p  dp   A  m  dv   A  dp

Which, recalling equation (28), can also be written as:

m    v  A  m  dv    v  A  dv   A  dp
Which allows to derive the final form of the momentum conservation equation as:
dp    v  dv  0 (29)
or, in its integral form (in the case of constant density):
1
p   v 2  constant (30)
2
Note, in particular, the very close similarity of equation (30) to the well-known Bernoulli’s
law often used to characterize the flow of fluids.
Also note that we have started the derivation of the momentum conservation equation by
writing the pressure force on the outlet of our small portion of nozzle as (p+dp)∙A, instead of
the more obvious (p+dp)∙(A+dA). To understand the reasons behind this choice, we need to
consider that pressure forces act on all the sides on the nozzle, therefore also on the lateral
ones (see Figure 16). These lateral faces are characterized by a pressure p acting on an area
dA/sin(), thus the total pressure force is (p∙dA)/sin() and its component in the axial
direction is simply p∙dA. The total pressure force acting on this portion of nozzle in the axial
direction is therefore:
p  A  p  dA   p  dp    A  dA  p  A   p  dp   A

where we have neglected the term dp∙dA since it is a lower-order term given by the product of
two small quantities and, thus, negligible compared to the other ones.

Figure 16: Pressure forces acting on a small portion of rocket nozzle.

Finally, for what concerns the energy conservation equation, we recall from our initial
assumptions that the propellant does not exchange any energy with the external environment.
This means that there cannot be any variations in the total enthalpy, defined as the enthalpy
plus the kinetic energy per unit mass:
 1 
d  h  v2   0
 2 
By slightly elaborating this expression, we obtain the energy conservation equation:
dh  v  dv  0 (31)
or, in its integral form:

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Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology
Lecture Notes AE2230-II
Rocket Propulsion

1
h  v 2  constant (32)
2
Another set of Ideal Rocket Theory building blocks is given by the ideal gas equations.
Since we have assumed that the gas in the nozzle can be considered a perfect gas, it is
possible to characterize it by means of the following equation of state:
RA
p T (33)
MW
where MW is the molecular mass of the gas and RA is the universal gas constant, equal to 8314
J/(K∙kmol). We will also extensively use the specific heat relationships for an ideal gas, which
relate the constant pressure specific heat cp and the constant volume specific heat cv ,through
the universal gas constant and the molecular mass. An important role in these equations is
played by the specific heat ratio  , which is simply defined as the ratio of constant pressure
to constant volume specific heat.
RA
 c p  cv (34)
MW

cp
 (35)
cv

 RA
cp   (36)
  1 MW
In addition, the enthalpy for an ideal gas is simply the product of its constant pressure specific
heat times its temperature:
h  cp  T (37)

which, since we have assumed that the gas is calorically ideal and, thus, its constant pressure
specific heat is constant with temperature, can also be written as:
dh  c p  dT (38)

Another one of our initial assumptions was that the flow in the nozzle is isentropic. For an
ideal gas, this leads to the following relationships between its pressure, density and
temperature:
p
 constant (39)

  
 
 1 
pT  constant (40)
We can also recall the definition of Mach number M, that is simply the ratio of the gas
velocity to its speed of sound at the given flow conditions:
v
M (41)
a
where the speed of sound a is defined as:
 dp 
a2    (42)
 d  Constant entropy
It is possible to show that, for an ideal gas, this leads to the following equation for the speed
of sound:

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Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology
Lecture Notes AE2230-II
Rocket Propulsion

RA p
a2    T    (43)
MW 
Figure 17 shows, in summary, all the equations that we have introduced as building blocks for
the Ideal Rocket Theory.

Figure 17: Summary of the Ideal Rocket Theory building blocks.

3.3 Why a convergent-divergent nozzle?

A first question, that can be easily answered by using the Ideal Rocket Theory building blocks
derived in the previous section, is why rocket propulsion systems use a convergent-divergent
nozzle instead of, just as an example, a fully convergent or fully divergent one. The reason is
that, as we will see in the following, only this particular shape allows for accelerating the flow
to supersonic conditions or, in other words, to Mach numbers higher than one.
Starting from the mass conservation equation in its differential form, equation (27), we can
obtain a more useful expression by differentiating it and dividing it by the constant mass flow
rate (given, as we have already seen, by density times velocity times area):
  v  dA v  A  d    A  dv dA d  dv
d    v  A  0    0   0
 v A  v A  v A A  v
Now, using the momentum conservation in differential form, equation (29), and the general
definition of speed of sound, equation (42):
dp d d
dp    v  dv  0       v  dv
v  dv  dp

 dp  d v 2 dv dv dA d  dv dA dv dv
a2     v  dv   2  M 2     M2  0
 d  Const. entropy dp a v v A  v A v v

which leads to the following final equation:

  M 2  1
dA dv
(44)
A v

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Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology
Lecture Notes AE2230-II
Rocket Propulsion

This equation gives a relationship between the variation of nozzle frontal area, the Mach
number and the variation of velocity, and is valid everywhere in the nozzle. Applying it to all
possible situations in the convergent or the divergent part of the nozzle, we obtain the
overview shown in Figure 18.

Figure 18: Velocity variations in the convergent and divergent sections of a nozzle.

In the convergent part of the nozzle the frontal area decreases and, thus, the term dA is
negative. This means that we can have a velocity increase only if the Mach number is lower
than one or, which is the same, only if the flow in the convergent is subsonic. We have an
exactly opposite situation in the divergent, where the frontal area increases and, thus, dA is
positive: in this case, we can have a velocity increase only if the Mach number is higher than
one and, thus, only if the flow in the divergent is supersonic.
In order to accelerate the flow in the entire nozzle, we need to achieve a situation in which the
term dv is always positive. As a consequence, recalling that our assumed chamber conditions
correspond to a velocity (and, thus, Mach number) equal to zero, the flow at the convergent
inlet is certainly subsonic; therefore, it is accelerated along the convergent part of the nozzle.
If this acceleration leads to a Mach number at the throat exactly equal to one, the flow will
continue to be accelerated also in the divergent and a Mach number higher than one will be
achieved at the nozzle exit. On the other hand, if the Mach number at the throat is not yet
equal to one, the flow at the divergent inlet will still be subsonic and, thus, the velocity will
decrease along the divergent and a Mach number higher than one will never be achieved.
This means that, in order to have a properly operational rocket in which the flow continues to
be accelerated from the combustion chamber to the nozzle exit, the nozzle needs to be
designed in such a way that a Mach number exactly equal to one is achieved at the throat (or,
in other words, the nozzle is characterized by a sonic throat).

3.4 Nozzle temperature and velocity equations

We can now start to derive in detail all the relevant nozzle flow equations. In order to do it,
however, it is necessary to make two additional assumptions:
 We assume to already know the thermodynamic conditions of the propellant in the
chamber, in particular its pressure and temperature pC and TC ;
 We also assume to know the propellant composition and characteristics in the chamber, in
particular its molecular mass, constant pressure specific heat and specific heat ratio which,
as a consequence of one of the initial Ideal Rocket Theory assumptions, stay constant in
the entire propellant flow along the nozzle.
This situation is schematically shown in Figure 19, which will be used as a basis to
understand the derivation of all equations shown in the following.

26
Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology
Lecture Notes AE2230-II
Rocket Propulsion

Figure 19: Nozzle geometry and chamber conditions used for the derivation of the
nozzle flow equations.

For our derivations we start from the energy conservation, equation (32), combined with the
enthalpy expression for an ideal gas, equation (37):
1 1
h  v 2  constant  c pT  v 2  constant
2 2
Since the total enthalpy shall be constant in every section of the nozzle, we can equate its
value at the nozzle inlet (combustion chamber) with the value at a generic nozzle section
where the flow is characterized by temperature T and velocity v. Recalling that the flow
velocity at the nozzle inlet (combustion chamber) is assumed to be zero, this leads to:
1
c pTC  0  c pT  v 2  v  2c p  TC  T  (45)
2
This expression, together with equation (36) for the constant pressure specific heat and
equation (40) for the isentropic flow, allows to find a useful expression for the flow velocity v
in a generic nozzle section:

 RA 2 RA 2 RA  T 
cp   v    TC  T     TC  1  
  1 MW   1 MW   1 MW  TC 
 1
  
 
 1  T  p  
pT  constant    (46)
TC  pC 

 1
 
2 RA   p  

v   TC  1  
  pC  
(47)
  1 MW
 

In particular, if we write equation (47) at the nozzle exit section, we obtain an equation for the
jet velocity:
 1
 
2 RA   p  

ve    TC  1  
  pC  
e
(48)
  1 MW
 

The jet velocity is therefore a function of the specific heat ratio, the molecular mass, the
chamber temperature and the ratio of chamber pressure to nozzle exit pressure, often also
called “nozzle pressure ratio”. In particular, equation (48) shows that to obtain higher jet
velocity (which, recall, plays a fundamental role in the thrust, specific impulse and v
equations), we can either:

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Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology
Lecture Notes AE2230-II
Rocket Propulsion

 Increase the chamber temperature;

 Use a propellant with lower molecular mass;
 Increase the nozzle pressure ratio.
In particular, with given chamber conditions (or, in other words, given chamber temperature,
chamber pressure, specific heat ratio and molecular mass of the gas flowing in the nozzle), the
maximum attainable jet velocity or “limit velocity”, ve_lim , is obtained with ideally infinite
nozzle pressure ratio (or zero nozzle exit pressure):
2 RA
ve _ lim   T (49)
  1 MW C

A rocket engine is characterized by a specific impulse Isp = 300 s, referred to an ambient

pressure exactly equal to the nozzle exit pressure, pe = pa. The nozzle pressure ratio pc /pe
is equal to 1000, the molecular mass and the specific heat ratio of the gas in the nozzle are
MW = 20 g/mol and  = 1.2.
Assuming that the jet velocity ve is constant over time, what is the combustion chamber
temperature of this rocket?
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
From the thrust and specific impulse equations, with the given assumptions:
v m
FT  m  ve   pe  pa   Ae  m  ve  I sp  e  ve  g 0  I sp  9.81 300  2943
g0 s
Which gives for the combustion chamber temperature, from equation (48):
 1
 
2 RA   
 TC  1   e  
p
ve  
  1 MW   pC  
 
ve 2 29432
 TC   1
  2539 K
   1.21

2 RA   pe    2  1.2 8314  1  
 1  
1.2
  1  
  1 M W   pC   1.2  1 20   1000  
   

3.5 Mach number relationships

We now go back to equation (45) which, as you may remember, was derived from the energy
conservation equation, and arrange it in a slightly different way:
1 T v2
c pTC  c pT  v 2  C  1 
2 T 2c pT

Using again equation (36) for the constant pressure specific heat and equation (43) for the
speed of sound, it is possible to write this equation as:
 RA 1 R a2 T   1 v2  1 2
cp    c pT    A T   C  1  2  1 M
  1 MW  1 MW  1 T 2 a 2
From which, using equation (40) for the isentropic flow:
 
  
 
 1 
p  T   1    1   1
pT  constant  C   C   1  M2 
p T   2 

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Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology
Lecture Notes AE2230-II
Rocket Propulsion

In this way, we have derived two useful equations that allow for calculating the pressure and
temperature at any generic section of the nozzle, as functions of the chamber pressure and
temperature, the specific heat ratio and the Mach number M at that nozzle section:
TC  1 2
1 M (50)
T 2

pC    1   1
 1  M2  (51)
p  2 
In particular, when written at the nozzle throat (where the flow is sonic and the Mach number
is exactly equal to one), these equations become:
TC  1 1  
*
1  (52)
T 2 2

pC  1     1
  (53)
p*  2 
Equations (52) and (53) show that, for given chamber pressure and chamber temperature, the
pressure and temperature at the nozzle throat depend only on the specific heat ratio of the gas
flowing in the nozzle.

3.6 Mass flow rate equation

Going now back to the definition of mass flow rate, equation (28), and combining it with
equation (47) for the flow velocity, we can write:
 1  1
  2  
m  2 RA   p  
 R 2      p  

   v  C     TC  1    C   TC     1 
  pC   
A

A C   1 M W MW   1  C    pC  
   

Using the isentropic flow equation (39) and the equation of state of an ideal gas, equation
(33), we obtain:
1
p   p 

 constant   
 C  pC 

RA pC
pC  C TC  C 
MW R A
TC
MW

 1
2
 
m pC 2  p     p  

      1 
  pC  
(54)
A RA   1  pC 
 TC  
MW

Remember, now, that the mass flow rate is constant along the whole nozzle. This means that
the mass flow rate calculated by means of this equation shall be the same at any nozzle
section and, in particular, at the nozzle throat with p=p* and A=A*.
From equation (54) for a sonic throat:

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Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology
Lecture Notes AE2230-II
Rocket Propulsion

 
pC  1     1 p*  1   1
     
p*  2  pC  2 
And, using this expression in the previous equation for the mass flow rate, written at the
nozzle throat:
 1
2
  2
2  1   1   1    
1
m pC 2  p*     p *
 
 pC
     1        
  pC     1  2  
1
A* RA   1  pC  RA 
  2  
 TC    TC
MW MW

which can be written in a more compact way as follows:

pC  A*
m     (55)
RA
 TC
MW

1 
 1   1
        (56)
 2 
where  is a function of the specific heat ratio, often called Vandenkerckhove function,
very widely used in the theory of rocket propulsion.
Equation (55) shows that, for given nozzle inlet conditions (specific heat ratio, molecular
mass, chamber temperature and chamber pressure) and given nozzle throat area, there is only
one possible value of mass flow rate that makes sonic throat conditions possible. When this
mass flow rate value is achieved we say that we are in presence of a chocked flow, because
the mass flow rate is “fixed” and cannot be increased anymore.

3.7 Expansion ratio equation

We have found so far two of the three equations we were looking for, one for the jet velocity
and one for the mass flow rate. The last parameter for which we need an equation is the
nozzle exit pressure, which will be shown in this section to be directly related to the nozzle
geometry.
Starting from equations (54) and (55) derived in the previous section for the mass flow rate,
and remembering that the mass flow rate is constant along the whole nozzle, we can eliminate
it in these equations by dividing the first one by the second one. This allows to write the
following expression for the ratio of the area of a generic nozzle section to the nozzle throat
area:
A   
 (57)
A*  2  1

2  p     p   
   1  
  1  pC    pC  
 
Equation (57) shows that, for given chamber pressure, specific heat ratio of the flow in the
nozzle and nozzle throat area, the pressure p at any generic nozzle section is directly related to
the frontal area A of that nozzle section. However, for any value of the frontal area A, it is
possible to show that the equation gives two possible solutions for the pressure p, one
corresponding to subsonic conditions (in the convergent part of the nozzle) and one to
supersonic conditions (in the divergent part).
In particular, if equation (57) is written at the nozzle exit where the frontal area is equal to Ae,
we obtain the following equation for the nozzle expansion ratio 

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Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology
Lecture Notes AE2230-II
Rocket Propulsion

Ae   
  (58)
A* 
2  1

2  pe     pe   
   1  
  1  pC    pC  
 

Equation (58) provides, for a given value of specific heat ratio , a direct relationship between
the nozzle expansion ratio and the nozzle pressure ratio. However, it is unfortunately an
implicit equation for the nozzle pressure ratio, meaning that it is not possible to find a closed-
form solution for it as a function of the nozzle expansion ratio; in this case, the equation needs
to be solved either graphically or numerically.
Figure 20 shows the results obtained from equation (58), in terms of nozzle expansion ratio as
a function of pressure ratio for some given values of specific heat ratio. It is possible to note,
in particular, a generally weak dependence of the results on the specific heat ratio, with the
three curves in the plot very close to each other. We also notice that higher expansion ratio
leads, as it could be expected, to higher pressure ratio which, in turn, means lower nozzle exit
pressure for a given value of chamber pressure. Thus, for given initial chamber pressure, the
higher the nozzle expansion ratio, the lower the pressure that will be achieved at the nozzle
exit.

Figure 20: Nozzle expansion ratio as a function of pressure ratio, for different values of
specific heat ratio.

Depending on how the nozzle exit pressure compares to the ambient pressure, three different
situations are possible for the flow expansion in a supersonic nozzle, see Figure 21:
 When the nozzle exit pressure is lower than the ambient pressure (case 1 in Figure 21), the
flow in the nozzle has expanded more than necessary and we thus call it an over-
expanded nozzle.

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Rocket Propulsion

 When the nozzle exit pressure is exactly the same as the ambient pressure (case 2) we have
an adapted nozzle, because its shape is perfectly adapted to the altitude and, thus, the
ambient pressure at which the rocket is flying.
 When the nozzle exit pressure is higher than the ambient pressure (case 3), the flow in the
nozzle has not expanded enough and we call it an under-expanded nozzle.

Figure 21: Different types of nozzle flow expansion.

In case the nozzle is over-expanded or under-expanded, the flow pressure usually adapts to
the external pressure through a set of shock waves outside the nozzle, as schematically shown
in Figure 21.

A rocket nozzle is characterized by chamber pressure pC = 20 bar and specific heat ratio 
= 1.3. The nozzle expansion ratio is = 10. What are the expansion conditions of this
nozzle at sea level (pa = 1 bar) and in vacuum (pa = 0)?
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
For a nozzle expansion ratio of 10 and a specific heat ratio of 1.3, we can graphically find
from Figure 20 that the nozzle pressure ratio is equal to 100. Thus:
pC p 20 bar
 100  pe  C   0.2 bar
pe 100 100
This means that the nozzle is over-expanded at sea level (0.2 bar < 1 bar), and under-
expanded in vacuum (0.2 bar > 0 bar).

3.8 Nozzle thrust

We can now combine all the equations found in the previous sections, in particular equation
(48) for the jet velocity, equation (55) for the mass flow rate and equation (58) for the nozzle
expansion ratio, to derive a complete expression for the rocket thrust starting from the
fundamental thrust equation (10):
FT  m  ve   pe  pa   Ae 

 1
 
2   p  
   p  p  A*     
FT  pC  A      
*
 1  e
 (59)
  1   pC   e a
2
  1

  2  pe     pe   
   1   
  1  pC    pC  
 

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Rocket Propulsion

Using equation (59) it is possible to show that, for given values of chamber pressure, ambient
pressure, specific heat ratio and nozzle throat area, the thrust is maximum when the nozzle is
adapted, so when the exit pressure is exactly equal to the ambient pressure.
Thus, in summary, putting together all the information we have found on the thrust produced
by a rocket, we can conclude that:
 For fixed nozzle geometry and variable ambient pressure, thrust is maximum in vacuum
(zero ambient pressure), see equation (10).
 At fixed ambient pressure (or, in other words, fixed altitude), thrust is maximum for the
particular nozzle geometry that leads to an adapted nozzle (nozzle exit pressure equal to
the ambient pressure), see equation (59).

A rocket engine is characterized by vacuum thrust FTvac = 180 kN , nozzle throat area A* =
0.1 m2, nozzle expansion ratio Ae /A* = 50, chamber pressure pc = 106 Pa.
Assuming that the nozzle expansion ratio and the specific heat ratio  stay constant, how
much vacuum thrust will be obtained if the throat area is increased to A* = 0.2 m2 and the
chamber pressure becomes pc = 2∙106 Pa?
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
From the vacuum thrust equation:

 1
 
pC  A* 2 RA   p  

FTvac  m  ve  pe  Ae         TC  1   e
   pe  Ae
RA   1 M   C 
p
 TC W
 
MW

 1
 
FTvac 2   p  
  pe  Ae
       1  e

pC  A *
  1   pC   pC A*
 
Note that the term on the right hand side of the above expression stays constant under the
given conditions, because the nozzle pressure ratio remains the same when the nozzle
expansion ratio and the specific heat ratio don’t change, see equation (58). Thus:

FTvac1 FTvac 2 pC 2  A2* 2 106  0.2

  F  F   180   720 kN
pC1  A1* pC 2  A2* pC1  A1* 106  0.1
Tvac 2 Tvac1

3.9 Characteristic velocity and thrust coefficient

In this section we will define and discuss two additional rocket performance parameters, the
characteristic velocity and the thrust coefficient. The characteristic velocity c* is defined as
follows:
pC  A*
c*  (60)
m
The thrust coefficient CF , in turn, is defined as:
FT
CF  (61)
pC  A*
Combining equations (60) and (61), it is possible to simply write the rocket thrust as:
FT  m  c * CF (62)

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Rocket Propulsion

For the characteristic velocity, using the mass flow rate equation (55), it is also possible to
write it as:
pC  A* pC  A* 1 RA
m       c*     TC (63)
RA m    MW
 TC
MW

Equation (63) shows that the characteristic velocity is only a function of the combustion
chamber conditions (chamber temperature, specific heat ratio, molecular mass) and does not
depend on the nozzle geometry. Therefore, the characteristic velocity is a very important
parameter to measure the performance of the propellant used by the rocket: in particular,
higher characteristic velocity generally means higher specific impulse and, thus, a more
performant propellant.
For the thrust coefficient, using the rocket thrust equation (59), it is possible to write:
 1
 
FT 2   pe     pe pa    
CF     
   1       (64)
pC  A*   1   pC    pC pC  2
  1

  2  pe     pe   
   1  
  1  pC    pC  
 
Equation (64) shows that, although the thrust coefficient is also a function of the specific heat
ratio and the ratio of ambient pressure to chamber pressure, it is mainly dependent on the
nozzle geometry through the nozzle pressure ratio. Thus, the thrust coefficient is a very good
measure of the nozzle geometry effects on the thrust.
The plot in Figure 22 gives a very good idea of the way how the thrust coefficient varies as a
function of several parameters. Note that the plot is obtained for a fixed specific heat ratio
value, equal to 1.3. It clearly shows that, for a given value of the ambient pressure to chamber
pressure ratio, the thrust coefficient has a maximum exactly corresponding to the case of an
adapted nozzle (red curve in the plot). It can also be observed that typical values of the thrust
coefficient are in the range of 1.2 to 1.9.

Figure 22: Thrust coefficient as a function of the nozzle expansion ratio, for fixed
specific heat ratio and different values of the ambient/chamber pressure ratio.

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Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology
Lecture Notes AE2230-II
Rocket Propulsion

From the above considerations, it should now be clear why the characteristic velocity and the
thrust coefficient are important parameters in defining the performance of a rocket engine.
Looking at the way how we have expressed the rocket thrust in equation (62), it is evident
that it allows to separate the contributions of the propellant (taken into account by the
characteristic velocity) and the nozzle geometry (taken into account by the thrust coefficient).

The LR91 rocket motor (2nd stage of the Titan 23G launcher) is characterized by a
chamber pressure pC = 5.6 MPa, mass flow rate = 132.9 kg/s, throat area A* = 0.041 m2,
nozzle expansion ratio  = 49, adapted nozzle thrust (when pa = pe ) of 401491 N.
Calculate the characteristic velocity and the thrust coefficient at adapted nozzle conditions.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Characteristic velocity:

pC  A* 5.6 106 Pa  0.041 m 2 m

c*    1727.6
m kg s
132.9
s
Thrust coefficient:

FT _ AdaptedNozzle 401491 N
CF _ AdaptedNozzle    1.75
pC  A *
5.6  106 Pa  0.041 m2

For a rocket engine it is known that the vacuum thrust is equal to 106 N and the vacuum
thrust coefficient is CF_vac = 1.8. It is also known that the molecular mass of the gas in the
nozzle is Mw = 20.8 g/mol, the specific heat ratio of the gas in the nozzle is  = 1.3, and the
mass flow rate is 310 kg/s.
What is the combustion chamber temperature of this engine?
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
For the Vandenkerckhove function, from equation (56):
1 11.3
 1   1  1  1.3 11.3
         1.3     0.66726
 2   2 
Then, from the definition of thrust coefficient, equation (61):

FT FT _ vac 106
CF   p  A*
   5.55  105 N
pC  A* C
CF _ vac 1.8
And from the expression for the mass flow rate, equation (55):
2
pC  A* M  p  A* 
m       TC  W  C     
RA
 TC
RA  m 
MW
2
20.8  5.55  105 
   0.66726  3577 K
8314  310 

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Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology
Lecture Notes AE2230-II
Rocket Propulsion

3.10 Ideal Rocket Theory: summary

You may remember that the objective set at the beginning of this chapter for the Ideal Rocket
Theory was to find equations for the jet velocity, the mass flow rate and the nozzle exit
pressure. These equations have now been found, as summarized in Table 4.

Table 4: Fundamental Ideal Rocket Theory equations.

  1
 pC  A*
2 RA  
p  m    
ve    TC  1   e   RA
  1 MW   pC    TC
  MW
Ae   
 
A* 2
  1

2  pe     p  

   1 
  pC  
e
  1  pC 
 

Looking more in detail at the equations in Table 4, it can be observed that they all depend on
the same parameters. Two of these parameters, the nozzle throat area A* and the nozzle exit
area Ae , are functions of the nozzle geometry. The other parameters are the specific heat ratio
, the molecular mass MW, the chamber temperature TC and the chamber pressure pC , which
depend on:
 The type of propellant used by the rocket (liquid mono-propellant, liquid bi-propellant,
solid, hybrid, etc.);
 The type of rocket considered (cold gas, chemical rocket, electro-thermal etc.).
In the next chapters some specific examples of rockets and propellants will be discussed,
looking in particular at how chamber conditions and propellant characteristics can be
calculated for these different types of rockets.
Recalling the classification of rocket engines already introduced in chapter 1, it is now
possible to discuss this classification more in detail starting from the additional information
we have found on the rocket thrust and specific impulse. In particular, we have found that the
specific impulse is proportional to the equivalent jet velocity, while the thrust is proportional
to the mass flow rate and the equivalent jet velocity. This means, see Figure 23, that even if
the equivalent jet velocity is high, the thrust is not necessarily high too, because it is still
possible that the mass flow rate is very small. A very good example is electrical propulsion
(blue area in Figure 23), typically characterized by high specific impulse but very low thrust
levels. The opposite applies to chemical propulsion (green area in Figure 23), characterized
by lower specific impulse (and, thus, lower equivalent jet velocity) but the possibility to
achieve very high thrust levels, since the mass flow rate can be very high in these rockets.

Two rockets (rocket A and rocket B) have the same specific impulse.
The mass flow rate of rocket A is 10 times higher than mass flow rate of rocket B.
What is the relationship between the thrust FTA of rocket A and FTB of rocket B?
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Since the two rockets have the same specific impulse, they also have the same equivalent
jet velocity. Thus, for the thrust:

FT  m  veq

mA  10mB  FTA  10FTB

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Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology
Lecture Notes AE2230-II
Rocket Propulsion

Figure 23: Classification of rocket engines in terms of thrust, specific impulse,

equivalent jet velocity and mass flow rate.

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Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology
Lecture Notes AE2230-II
Rocket Propulsion

4 – Cold Gas rockets

In a cold gas rocket (Figure 24) there is no combustion, the propellant is not heated (or just
moderately heated, in the so-called “warm gas thrusters”) and accelerated from high pressure
and ambient temperature conditions in the chamber. This means that the energy used to
accelerate the propellant, and to generate thrust, comes only from the propellant
pressurization.

4.1 General characteristics

The obvious disadvantage of cold gas rockets is that, due to the low chamber temperature,
their performance in terms of equivalent jet velocity and specific impulse in necessarily
limited. This comes, however, at the advantage of having a simpler and safer system. Figure
24 shows that a typical cold gas thruster is basically made of two elements: the nozzle
(passive) and the valve (active), actuated in this case by a spring in order to allow the gaseous
propellant flow in the nozzle.

Figure 24: Example (left) and cut-off drawing (right) of typical cold gas thrusters.

Cold gas rockets are typically used for attitude control tasks, especially in small and very
small satellites. Their specific impulse is typically not higher than 100 s, with a thrust varying
from the N-mN level, for miniaturized thrusters, to the 1-100 N range, for larger ones.

4.2 Cold gas propulsion systems

A typical cold gas system with all its components is schematized in Figure 25, showing that
the thruster itself is only the last element of the system. The other components shown in the
figure are, starting from the top:
 The tank in which the propellant is stored as a gas (sometimes in its liquefied state),
normally at very high pressure up to 400 bar to reduce the required tank volume;
 A fill valve, used to fill the tank with the propellant, or to drain the propellant from the
tank when needed;
 One or more pressure sensors, to measure the pressure inside the tank or in other points
of the system;
 A high pressure isolation valve, which is opened to let the propellant flow from the tank
to the rest of the propulsion system;
 A filter, used to avoid that any solid impurities, which might be present in the gas,
eventually reach the thruster and the nozzle;

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Lecture Notes AE2230-II
Rocket Propulsion

 A pressure regulator, needed because the required pressure at which the propellant is
used in the thruster is usually much lower than the very high pressure at which the gas is
stored in the tank;
 Finally a low pressure isolation valve, opened to allow the propellant flow into the
thruster where it is accelerated and the thrust force is generated.

Figure 25: Main components of a typical cold gas system.

A cold gas propulsion system is usually very compact, especially when it is intended for use
in miniaturized satellites where volume constraints are even more important than mass ones.

4.3 Cold gas propellants

The most typical propellants used in cold gas rockets are generally gaseous at ambient
conditions (1 bar and 298 K), chemically inert, possibly not toxic and, thus, inherently safe.
Table 5 shows the main properties of some possible cold gas propellants; in particular, the
specific impulse value given in the table is calculated at a chamber pressure of 69 bar, a
chamber temperature of 298 K and a nozzle exit pressure equal to the ambient pressure
(equal, in turn, to 1 bar).

Table 5: Properties of some typical cold gas propellants.

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Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology
Lecture Notes AE2230-II
Rocket Propulsion

The gravimetric and volumetric specific impulse of the same propellants, calculated under the
same conditions as in Table 5, are shown in a comparative way in Figure 26. It can be
observed that the propellants with lower molecular mass are also the ones with higher specific
impulse, not surprising if we recall that, from the Ideal Rocket Theory, the jet velocity is
inversely proportional to the square root of the molecular mass, see equation (48). However, it
can also be noticed that propellants characterized by higher molecular mass are typically
leading to a higher value of the volumetric specific impulse, as a direct consequence of the
fact that higher molecular mass normally means higher density and, thus, the same mass of
propellant can be stored in a much smaller volume.

Figure 26: Gravimetric and volumetric specific impulse of typical cold gas propellants.

4.4 Blow-down systems

Two different options are available in practice for feeding cold gas propellants to the thruster.
The first one, to which the schematic shown in Figure 25 is referred, is generally called
regulated pressure feeding, and is based on the use of a pressure regulator to ensure constant
chamber pressure and, hence, constant thrust and mass flow rate. The second option is usually
called blow-down pressure feeding, and is usually chosen when a simpler and cheaper design
is preferred. In this case, as schematically shown in Figure 27, there is no pressure regulator
and the pressure at which the propellant is stored in the tank is basically the same at which it
is used in the thruster. The most immediate consequence of choosing this option is that the
chamber pressure (and, thus, the mass flow rate and thrust) is not constant with time.
In blow-down systems, the tank pressure is usually in the range from 10 to 30 bar, much
smaller than in cold gas rockets based on regulated pressure feeding. It is possible to
characterize the tank conditions by relating in the following way the gas pressure pT and
density T in the tank:
pT
 constant (65)
T k
where the constant k, in particular, depends on the type of process taking place while the
propellant is extracted from the tank:
 For an isentropic process, where there is no energy exchange between tank and external
environment, k is equal to the specific heat ratio 
 For an isothermal process, where the temperature in the tank remains constant, k is simply
equal to 1. This usually happens when the tank emptying process is very slow, and the
spacecraft thermal control system has enough time to keep the tank temperature at the
required constant level during the whole process.

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Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology
Lecture Notes AE2230-II
Rocket Propulsion

Since the tank volume is constant in the case of non-flexible walls, it is also possible to write
equation (65) in the following way:
pT
 constant (66)
MT k
where MT is the mass of gas in the tank.

Figure 27: Schematic representation of a blow-down cold gas rocket.

The tank of a cold gas rocket is initially at a pressure of 40 bar and temperature of 400 K.
Assuming an isothermal blow-down process, what are the final tank pressure and
temperature when 3/4 of the initial propellant mass has been expelled?
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Final tank pressure:

pT p pTf M Tf 1
 constant  T0   pTf  pT0   pT0  10 bar
MT M T0 M Tf M T0 4
Since the process is isothermal, the tank temperature remains constant and the final tank
temperature is therefore still equal to 400 K.

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Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology
Lecture Notes AE2230-II
Rocket Propulsion

5 – Liquid propellant rockets

This chapter will discuss rocket engines based on the use of liquid propellants. In most cases
of practical interest, these are either mono-propellant rockets (when one single propellant is
used) or bi-propellant rockets (using two propellants). In both cases, the propellants are
stored as liquids and heated by a chemical reaction that takes place in the combustion
chamber. Thus, the energy used to generate thrust comes from both the propellant
pressurization and the energy produced by the chemical reaction.

5.1 Mono-propellant rockets

In the case of liquid mono-propellant rockets, as already mentioned, only one propellant is
used and the chemical reaction taking place in the combustion chamber is a propellant
decomposition, usually accelerated by means of a catalyst. Liquid mono-propellant rockets
are usually characterized by higher specific impulse than cold gas systems, normally in the
range from 100 to 250 s, and moderate thrust values, normally in the range 0.1-100 N. Their
typical applications are for attitude control, but also more exotic ones such as propulsion belts
and some amateur rockets.
An example and a schematic representation of mono-propellant thruster are shown in Figure
28. The figure shows that the thruster consists of the chamber, usually containing the catalyst,
and a nozzle. The blue area in the figure is referred to liquid (cold) propellant flow, while the
red area is referred to the gaseous (hot) decomposition products. The propellant typically
reaches relatively high temperatures, usually in the range from 1000 K to 1500 K, with
chamber pressures up to 20 bar.

Figure 28: Example (left) and schematic (right) of a liquid mono-propellant thruster.

5.2 Components of a mono-propellant system

A typical mono-propellant rocket system with all its components is schematized in Figure 29,
in the particular case when several thrusters are included in the system (as it happens, for
example, when it is used for attitude control tasks). Apart from the thrusters, the other
components shown in the figure are:
 The tank, where the propellant is stored in the liquid state, usually at low pressure (at least
initially);
 The pressurant gas, stored at high pressure (up to 300 bar in some cases) in a bladder or
directly in contact with the propellant, to pressurize the liquid propellant before sending it
to the thruster;
 A fill valve, used to fill or drain the propellant tank when needed;
 One or more pressure sensors, to measure the pressure inside the tank or in other points
of the system;
 An isolation valve, separating the propellant tank from the rest of the system, which is
opened to let the propellant flow from the tank to the thrusters;

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Lecture Notes AE2230-II
Rocket Propulsion

 A filter, used to avoid that any solid impurities present in the propellant eventually reach
the thruster and the nozzle;
 In some cases a pressure regulator might be used (not shown in the figure), when the
pressure in the propellant tank is very high compared to the required pressure in the
thruster.

Figure 29: Main components of a typical liquid mono-propellant system.

5.3 Mono-propellant fluids

Some common propellants for mono-propellant rockets are listed in Table 6, together with
their most important properties. Two among these propellants are by far the most widely used
in actual systems: hydrazine and hydrogen peroxide.
Hydrazine is historically commonly used in rocket propulsion. It is however very toxic and
expected to be gradually banned, at least in EU countries, moving towards more “green” and
less toxic alternatives, one of which is hydrogen peroxide.
Typical decomposition reactions for some of the propellant listed in Table 6 can be written in
a simplified form in the following way.
Hydrazine: 3N2 H4  4NH3  N2
Hydrogen Peroxide: 2H2O2  2H2 O  O2
Nitro-Methane: 4CH3 NO2  4CO  4H2 O  2H2  2N2
Nitrous Oxide 2N2O  2N2  O2

Table 6: Properties of some typical mono-propellant fluids.

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Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology
Lecture Notes AE2230-II
Rocket Propulsion

5.4 Mono-propellant chamber temperature

In the framework of this course, we will use a simplified method to evaluate the gas
temperature in the chamber of a mono-propellant rocket. More accurate methods, based on a
detailed study of the chemical reaction taking place in the chamber, will be not treated here
and are left to other courses.
The simplified equations derived in the following are based on the heat of decomposition
HD, a characteristic parameter giving a measure of how much power is generated by the
decomposition of a unit quantity of propellant (mole or kg). Values of this parameter for the
most common mono-propellant fluids are provided in Table 6. We can then simply calculate
the decomposition power Pdec for the given fluid in the following way:
Pdec  m  H D (67)
In the same way, the power Pheat needed to increase the temperature of the gases generated by
the propellant decomposition from its initial value T0 to a final value TC can be calculated as:
Pheat  m  c p  TC  T0  (68)

Assuming now that no thermal losses occur and the entire decomposition power is directly
used to heat the decomposition products, we can equate equations (67) and (68) and obtain an
expression for the chamber temperature:
HD
Pheat  Pdec  m  H D  m  c p  TC  T0   TC  T0  (69)
cp

In a hydrazine mono-propellant rocket, the propellant is injected in the thrust chamber at

an initial temperature of 300 K. The heat of decomposition of hydrazine is 112 kJ/mol.
The decomposition products have constant pressure specific heat cp = 0.09 kJ/(K∙mol),
specific heat ratio  = 1.37 and molecular mass MW = 10.7 g/mol.
Calculate the chamber temperature and the characteristic velocity of this rocket.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
For the chamber temperature, from equation (69):
kJ
112
HD mol  1544 K
TC  T0   300 K 
cp kJ
0.09
K  mol
And for the characteristic velocity, from equation (63):
1  11.37
 1   1  1  1.37 11.37
         1.37     0.679
 2   2 

1 RA 1 8314  J K  kmol  m
c*    TC    1544 K  1613
   MW 0.679 10.7 g mol s

5.5 Bi-propellant rockets

In the case of liquid bi-propellant rockets engines, two propellants are used: an oxidizer and a
fuel. The chemical reaction between the propellants is in this case a combustion. The two
propellants are called “hypergolic” if the combustion takes place spontaneously when they

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enter in contact with each other, without any additional input energy provided, for example,
by means of an igniter to accelerate the combustion process.
An important parameter for the characterization of these engines is the oxidizer to fuel ratio
O/F , usually also called mixture ratio, defined as the ratio of the mass flow rate of oxidizer
to the mass flow rate of fuel:
moxidizer
O /F  (70)
m fuel

Note that, since the oxidizer and the fuel flow together in the combustion chamber at the same
time, the mixture ratio can also be written as the ratio of the total mass of oxidizer to the total
mass of fuel burned by the engine in a given amount of time.
Bi-propellant rocket engines are used in a wide range of applications ranging from launchers
to missiles, amateur rockets, orbit insertion and orbital maneuvering. They are typically
characterized by the highest possible specific impulse values among chemical rockets,
normally in the range from 300 to 450 s, and are usually intended for high or very high thrust
levels, in the kN or even the MN range. The left hand side of Figure 30 shows a picture of the
Space Shuttle Main Engine, where the divergent part of the nozzle and the feeding system are
particularly visible. The right hand side of Figure 30 shows a schematic of the engine parts
close to the combustion chamber in another bi-propellant engine, including the convergent,
the throat and the first part of the divergent section of the nozzle. The fuel (shown in red) and
oxidizer (shown in yellow) are injected in the combustion chamber through an injector,
generating a fine spray of fluid and ensuring proper distribution and mixing of the propellants
in the combustion chamber. In this particular case, before being injected in the combustion
chamber, the fuel flows through some coolant channels around the nozzle and combustion
chamber walls.

Figure 30: The Space Shuttle Main Engine (left, courtesy NASA); schematic of the
Aestus liquid rocket thrust chamber (right, courtesy EADS).

5.6 Pressure-fed and pump-fed bi-propellant systems

Two options are typically available to feed the propellants into the combustion chamber of a
bi-propellant engine: pressure-fed (normally used in smaller engines, with thrust levels lower
than approximately 20 kN), and pump-fed (for larger rockets, with thrust higher than 20 kN).
Pressure-fed systems are very similar to what we have already seen for mono-propellant
rockets, as shown in the schematic in Figure 31. A high-pressure gas, used to pressurize the
propellants, is stored in a separated tank at a pressure in the order of 200 bar or higher. This
gas is fed to the propellant tanks by means of a pressure regulator, that reduces the gas
pressure to the value required in the tanks. Check valves are used to avoid backflow from the
propellant tanks to the high-pressure gas tank, which could bring with it some propellant
particles that would react in the gas tank and cause a catastrophic fail of the system.

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As usual, pressure sensors are used to measure the pressure in the tank or in other points of
the system, fill/drain valves are attached to the two propellant tanks and to the pressurizing
gas tank, and filters are included to avoid that solid particles reach the thruster and eventually
block the nozzle. Finally, the propellant valves (also called thrust valves) are opened to make
the propellants flow in the combustion chamber and start producing thrust.

Figure 31: Typical pressure-fed liquid bi-propellant system [1].

In the case of a pump-fed system (Figure 32), the propellants are stored in their tanks at a
relatively low pressure and, although sometimes a small quantity of pressurizing gas (helium
in the example shown in the figure) is used to initiate the propellant flow, the main pressure
increase is provided to the propellant by means of a turbo-pump system. The hot gas turbine
can be driven in several different ways; in the case shown in the figure this is done by a gas
generator, in which combustion of a small quantity of propellants is used to generate the hot
gases to drive the turbine. The turbine drives the fuel and oxidizer pumps, either directly on
the same shaft or through a gearbox as in the case shown in the figure. Finally, also in this
case, thrust valves are opened to allow the pressurized propellants flow in the combustion
chamber.

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Figure 32: Typical pump-fed liquid bi-propellant system [1].

As already mentioned, pump-fed systems are particularly convenient for use in large rockets,
because in this case a pressurizing gas tank would be very large and heavy, given the size of
the engine and the amount of propellants used.
Figure 33 shows, as an example, the turbo-pump assembly of the Viking rocket engine used
in the Ariane 4 launcher. It is a single-shaft turbo pump in which, similarly to what shown in
the schematic of Figure 32, both the fuel and the oxidizer pump are driven by the same
turbine. In this particular case the pumps run at a rotational speed of 10000 rpm and require a
power of 2.5 MW. The figure also shows the gas generator, which in this case provides hot
gas to the turbine at a mass flow rate of 1.2 kg/s.
In most practical cases, turbo-pumps are built in the same body of the combustion chamber
and the nozzle, to form a single assembly. This can be clearly seen, as an example, in the
picture of the Space Shuttle Main Engine shown on the left hand side of Figure 30.
In pump-fed rockets, the power Ppump required by each pump can be estimated by:
mp
Ppump  (71)

where p is the pressure increase provided by the pump to the fluid,  is the density of the
liquid propellant and  is the pump efficiency, which is usually in the order of 50% for the
pumps typically used in space rocket engines.

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Figure 33: Viking V turbo-pump with gas generator (courtesy Snecma).

In the Space Shuttle Main Engine, the total mass flow rate of liquid oxygen is 1264 kg/s.
The liquid oxygen pumps need to increase the propellant pressure from 1 MPa to the value
required in the combustion chamber, which is 20.6 MPa. The density of liquid oxygen is
1140 kg/m3.
Assuming a pump efficiency of 50%, calculate the total power required by these pumps.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The required pressure increase is:
 p  20.6 MPa  1 MPa  19.6 MPa  19.6 106 Pa
And the required pump power, from equation (71), is:

kg
1264 19.6 106 Pa
mp s
Ppump    43.46  106 W  43.46 MW
 0.5  1140 3
kg
m

5.7 Bi-propellant fluids

Table 7 shows a selection of several possible propellants combinations for liquid bi-
propellants rockets. For each oxidizer-fuel couple, it is shown whether they are hypergolic
and whether they are cryogenic, meaning that very low temperatures are needed to store them
in the liquid state (as an example, a temperature in the order of 90 K is required to store liquid
oxygen, which becomes even as low as 20 K for liquid hydrogen). The specific impulse
shown in the table is calculated in the particular case of a chamber pressure equal to 68 atm
and an adapted nozzle with exit pressure equal to 1 atm, as the maximum possible value
achievable by varying the mixture ratio with which the propellants are combined.
The most typical oxidizers are liquid oxygen (O2), nitrogen tetroxide (N2O4) and hydrogen
peroxide (H2O2), while the most commonly used fuels are liquid hydrogen (H2), liquid
methane (CH4), kerosene, hydrazine (N2H4) and its derivatives, such as Mono/Methyl
Hydrazine (MMH) and Unsymmetrical Di/Methyl Hydrazine (UDMH).
Although liquid fluorine is in principle the oxidizer with the best theoretical performance in
terms of specific impulse, it is never used in practice due to its extreme toxicity. Therefore,
the best practical option in terms of specific impulse is the one given by liquid oxygen and
liquid hydrogen. However, considering the strong cryogenic characteristics of both these

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propellants, it is not always practical to use them and, to avoid the design complexity
introduced by the need of maintaining the very low temperature required by these propellants,
it is preferred in some cases to accept a lower specific impulse and opt for a different, non-
cryogenic or only partially cryogenic, combination of propellants.

Table 7: Properties of some typical bi-propellant combinations.

5.8 Bi-propellant chamber temperature

As already done in the case of mono-propellant rockets, we will use for this course a
simplified method to evaluate the combustion chamber temperature achieved in a bi-
propellant rocket. More accurate methods, based on a detailed study of the chemical reaction
taking place in the chamber, will be not treated here and are left to other courses.
The main parameter used in our simplified equations Table 8: Heating value of some
will be the heating value HV of the fuel, which gives typical fuels, when combined
a measure of how much energy is released by a unit with oxygen at 1 atm and 298 K.
quantity of that particular fuel when combined with a
given oxidizer in a combustion reaction under
specific thermodynamic conditions (pressure and
temperature). The value of this parameter for some
typical fuels, for combustion with oxygen at 1 atm
and 298 K, is given in Table 8. It is important to be
very careful when using the values provided by this
table, because they might be even significantly
different to those achieved by the same fuel with a
different oxidizer, or under different pressure and
temperature conditions.
Given this information, in a similar way to what we
have done for mono-propellant rockets, we can
simply calculate the combustion power Pcomb in the
following way:
Pcomb  m fuel  HV (72)

In this case, the power Pheat needed to increase the

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temperature of the combustion products from its initial value T0 to a final value TC is
calculated by taking into account the total mass flow rate of propellants (fuel and oxidizer):
Pheat   m fuel  moxidizer   c p  TC  T0   m fuel 1  O /F   c p  TC  T0  (73)

where cp is, in this case, the constant pressure specific heat of the combustion products.
Also in this case, we assume that no thermal losses occur and the entire combustion power is
directly used to heat the combustion products. We can therefore equate equations (71) and
(72) and obtain an expression for the chamber temperature:
HV
Pheat  Pdec  m fuel  HV  m fuel 1  O /F   c p  TC  T0   TC  T0  (74)
c p  1  O /F 
Note, however, that this equation has been obtained under the assumption that the entire
amount of fuel flowing in the combustion chamber is burned by the oxidizer. This does not
happen in the so-called “fuel-rich” mixtures, in which the amount of fuel is in excess to what
can be combined in the chemical reaction with the oxidizer, and part of it is not effectively
burned. In this case, the value given by equation (74) is an over-estimation of the actual
combustion chamber temperature achieved in the rocket.

A rocket uses kerosene and liquid oxygen as propellants, injected in the combustion
chamber at an initial temperature of 300 K with mixture ratio O/F = 2.3. The heating value
of kerosene is 46200 kJ/kg. The combustion products have constant pressure specific heat
cp = 4.48 kJ/(kg∙K), specific heat ratio  = 1.12 and molecular mass MW = 21.3 g/mol.
Calculate the chamber temperature and the characteristic velocity of this rocket.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
For the chamber temperature, from equation (74):
kJ
46200
HV kg
TC  T0   300 K   3425 K
c p  1  O /F  4.48
kJ
 1  2.3
K  kg
And for the characteristic velocity, from equation (63):
1 11.12
 1   1  1  1.12 11.12
         1.12     0.633
 2   2 

1 RA 1 8314  J K  kmol  m
c*    TC    3425 K  1827
   MW 0.633 21.3 g mol s

5.9 Molar-averaged fluid properties

We have seen in the previous sections that, in several equations used for the characterization
of bi-propellant rockets, it is required to use some properties of the combustion products (such
as their molecular mass and constant pressure specific heat). Usually, however, the
combustion products are a mix of different gases, each one with its own properties. Which
numbers should be used then in the Ideal Rocket Theory equations for the molecular mass and
the constant pressure specific heat? They are obtained as molar averaged values of the
properties of all the components of the combustion products.
To understand how this calculation is performed in practice, we consider as an example the
chemical reaction of oxygen (O2) and kerosene (C12H26):

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37
C12 H26  O2  12CO2  13H 2 O
2
The combustion products of this reaction are water vapour (H2O) and carbon dioxide (CO2);
in particular, nCO2 = 12 moles of CO2 and nH2O = 13 moles of H2O are formed for each mole of
kerosene. These are the weights used to evaluate the molar averaged values of constant
pressure specific heat and molecular mass. In particular, if cpCO2 , cpH2O , MWCO2 and MWH2O
are, respectively, the constant pressure specific heats and molecular masses of CO2 and H2O:
nCO2  c pCO2  nH2O  c pH 2O 12  c pCO2  13  c pH 2O
cp  
nCO2  nH2O 12  13

nCO2  M WCO2  nH 2O  M WH 2O 12  M WCO2  13  M WH 2O

MW  
nCO2  nH 2O 12  13

A similar method can be applied to calculate the mixture ratio corresponding to a given
chemical reaction, but in this case (recalling the definition of mixture ratio) the molecular
masses of the combustion reactants need to be considered, using their respective number of
moles as weights. As an example, for the above reaction of oxygen (oxidizer) and kerosene
(fuel):
nO2  M WO2  37 2   MWO
O/F   2

nC12 H 26  M WC12 H 26 1  M WC12 H 26

A liquid bi-propellant engine operates with liquid oxygen and liquid methane, according to
the following chemical reaction in the combustion chamber:
CH4 +2O2  CO2 +2H2O
The molecular mass of oxygen (O2) is 32 g/mol and the molecular mass of methane (CH4)
is 16 g/mol. The constant pressure specific heat cp is 45 J/(mol∙K) for carbon dioxide
(CO2) and 39 J/(mol∙K) for water vapour (H2O). Assuming that the initial propellant
temperature is 300 K and the heating value of methane is HV = 7.5∙105 J/mol, how much is
the chamber temperature?
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The mixture ratio O/F is calculated based on the combustion reactants:
2  M WO2 64
O/F   4
1  M WCH 4 16

While the constant pressure specific heat is calculated using the combustion products:
1  c pCO2  2  c pH 2O 1  45  2  39 J
cp    41
1 2 1 2 mol  K
And the chamber temperature, from equation (74), is:

HV 7.5 105
TC  T0   300   3958.5 K
c p  1  O /F  41  1  4 

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6 – Solid propellant rockets

Solid propellant rockets, as their name suggests, are essentially bi-propellant chemical rockets
in which the oxidizer and the fuel are mixed together in a solid state grain. Solid propellants
typically consist of a rubber containing aluminium particles and an oxidizer such as, for
example, ammonium perchlorate or ammonium nitrate. In some military rockets,
nitrocellulose and nitro-glycerine can also be used as propellants.

6.1 General characteristics

A schematic representation of a solid propellant rocket is shown in Figure 34. In this type of
rockets, combustion is initiated by an igniter and, once initiated, cannot be stopped until the
propellant is completely exhausted. An important difference, compared to liquid propellant
rockets, is that no propellant feed system is needed, making the system extremely simple and
reliable. Since the propellant is in solid state, it is usually possible to achieve significantly
higher mass flow rates than liquid propellant rockets; as a consequence, even if the specific
impulse of solid propellant rockets is comparable to liquid mono-propellant ones, a much
higher thrust level can be achieved, comparable or even higher than liquid bi-propellants
engines. Typical applications of solid propellant rockets are launchers, missiles, amateur
rockets; in some cases, they can also be used for orbit transfer maneuvers.

Figure 34: Simplified representation of a solid propellant rocket [2].

6.2 Components of a solid propellant rocket

A typical solid propellant rocket with its main components is shown in Figure 35. In
particular, the following components of the system can be mentioned:
 The igniter, which provides the initial energy needed to start the combustion process;
 The propellant grain, the shape of which (as it will be explained in the following
sections) is directly related to the rocket performance, in particular its chamber pressure
and mass flow rate as functions of time;
 The case body, typically metallic and designed in such a way that it can withstand the
internal rocket pressure;
 The insulation between the case body and the propellant grain, necessary in order to avoid
overheating of the motor case;

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 Finally, as in the other types of chemical rockets, a convergent-divergent nozzle to

accelerate the gas generated by the solid propellant combustion.

Figure 35: Cut-off drawing of a typical solid propellant rocket [1].

6.3 Regression rate and chamber pressure

The solid propellant grain burns along the surface exposed to the hot flame in the combustion
chamber. The empty volume internally to the grain is usually called grain port and represents
the actual “combustion chamber” filled by the gases generated by the solid grain combustion.
The burning speed of the solid propellant or, in other words, the velocity at which the grain
surface regresses, is called regression rate. A higher regression rate, therefore, is associated
to faster burning of the propellant grain. Typical regression rates in solid propellant rockets
are in the range from a few mm/s to some cm/s.
Based on the above definitions, the mass flow rate in a solid propellant rocket is a function of
the grain density S , the burning surface Ab of the propellant grain and the regression rate r:
m  s  r  Ab (75)
The regression rate is mainly a function of the combustion chamber pressure. In its most
simplified form, this relationship can be written as follows:
r  a  pC n  m  s  a  pC n  Ab (76)
In equation (76), the coefficients a and n depend on the type of solid propellant used. In
particular, the coefficient a is also a function of the chamber temperature, while the exponent
n is very important to characterize how stable is the propellant burning. Usually, a value of n
lower than one leads to stable burning, while values higher than one lead to unstable burning:
this is the reason why, in practice, all solid propellant grains are designed in such a way that
the value of n is always well below one, to make them sufficiently stable.
Recall, now, that the mass flow rate can be written as a function of the characteristic velocity,
leading to:
pC  A* pC  A*
m  m   s  a  pC
n
 Ab  (77)
c* c*
Finally, solving equation (77) for the chamber pressure:
1
 a   s  c* 1 n
pC   *
 Ab  (78)
 A 

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To understand the importance of equation (78) note that, assuming that combustion takes
place at constant chamber temperature, all the variables on the right hand side of the equation
are constant with time, except the propellant grain burning surface Ab. The equation thus
shows a clear dependence of chamber pressure on the burning surface: if the burning surface
changes with time, the chamber pressure changes with time accordingly, as it will be
explained more in detail in the next section.

6.4 Influence of the grain geometry

To understand how the burning surface of a propellant grain varies with time, we first
consider (see Figure 36) the very simple case of a grain of hollow cylindrical shape, with an
internal burning surface of diameter db and length L.
In this case, the grain burning surface is simply Ab=∙db∙L, and evidently increases while the
propellant burns, since during the burn the grain is consumed and the internal diameter db
increases.

Figure 36: Solid propellant grain with hollow cylindrical shape.

In the same way, however, it is also possible to design grain shape geometries in which the
burning surface is constant with time or decreases with time. Some examples of possible grain
burning behaviours are shown in Figure 37.

Figure 37: Different types of solid propellant grain geometries, in terms of burning
surface as a function of time.

Looking back at equation (78), and recalling that in practical cases the exponent n is always
lower than one to avoid unstable combustion, the burning surface behaviour as a function of
time shown in Figure 37 also reflects on the chamber pressure behaviour as a function of
time: increasing, constant or decreasing burning surface also means, in turn, increasing,
constant or decreasing chamber pressure.

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A solid propellant rocket has cylindrical grain shape similar to the one shown in Figure 36.
The initial grain diameter db0 is 0.5 m, its final diameter (at the end of burning) dbf is 1 m,
its length L (assumed constant during the burn) is 5 m. The solid propellant has a density
of 1600 kg/m3, a characteristic velocity of 1600 m/s, and its regression rate coefficients
are n = 0.5 and a = 10-5 m/s*Pa0.5. The throat area A* is 0.2 m2.
Calculate the initial and final chamber pressure, and the initial and final regression rate.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The initial and final grain burning surface is:
Ab0    db0  L    0.5 m  5 m  7.85 m2
Abf    dbf  L   1 m  5 m  15.7 m2
Thus, from equation (78), the initial and final chamber pressure is:
1
 5 m kg m 10.5
 10 s  Pa 0.5 1600 m3 1600 s
1
 a   s  c*  1n 
pC0   *
 Ab0   2
 7.85 m 2   10.1 105 Pa  10.1 bar
 A   0.2 m 
 
1
 5 m kg m 10.5
 10 s  Pa 0.5 1600 m3 1600 s
1
 a   s  c*  1n 
pCf   *
 Abf   2
15.7 m 2   40.4 105 Pa  40.4 bar
 A   0.2 m 
 
And finally, from equation (76), the initial and final regression rate is:

0.5 
 10.1 105 Pa   0.01  1
m 0.5 m cm
r0  a  pC0 n  105
s  Pa s s

0.5 
 40.4  105 Pa   0.02
m 0.5 m cm
rf  a  pCf n  105 2
s  Pa s s

6.5 Hybrid propellant rockets

Hybrid propellant rockets are bi-propellant systems characterized by the fact that the two
propellants are stored in a different state, with usually a solid fuel and a liquid oxidizer.
A schematic representation of a hybrid propellant rocket is shown in Figure 38. Also in this
case the solid fuel grain has an opportunely shaped geometry and is typically made of coal,
rubber, plastic or even, in the very basic concept, wood, with or without a certain amount of
aluminum particles embedded in the grain. Typical oxidizers include, among others, liquid
oxygen, hydrogen peroxide and nitrous oxide.
The geometry of the grain port, obviously called in this case fuel port, allows for the oxidizer
to flow through it. The hybrid rocket is started by injecting the oxidizer as a fine spray into
the combustion chamber. An igniter is normally used to make the initially solid fuel gaseous,
in order for it to mix and react with the oxidizer until combustion is achieved. The most
important difference compared to a solid propellant rocket, however, is that the ignition can in
this case be stopped and restarted later.
The velocity at which the grain burning surface regresses is called, in this case, fuel
regression rate. Typical values of the fuel regression rate for hybrid rockets are one order of
magnitude smaller than solid propellant rockets. As in the case of solid propellant rockets, the
grain geometry determines the fuel mass flow rate and, therefore, the chamber pressure.

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Figure 38: Schematic representation of a hybrid propellant rocket.

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7 – Summary problems
7.1 Rocketdyne F1 Engine
The Rocketdyne F1 liquid bi-propellant
engine was used for the first stage of the
Saturn V rocket (the launcher for the Apollo
missions to the Moon). The propellants are
RP-1 kerosene (C12H26) and oxygen (O2), and
the following chemical reaction is assumed in
the combustion chamber:
C12 H26  18.5O2  12CO2  13H2O
The following data are given on this bi-propellant engine:
• Combustion chamber pressure: pC = 7∙106 Pa
• Initial propellant temperature: T0 = 300 K
• Circular nozzle, exit diameter: de = 3.75 m
• Specific heat ratio of the combustion products:  = 1.13
• Heating value of RP-1: HV = 46200 kJ/kg
• Constant pressure specific heat of the combustion products: cp =2.34 kJ/(K*kg)
• Molecular masses: 44 g/mol (CO2) , 18 g/mol (H2O), 32 g/mol (O2) , 170 g/mol (C12H26)
• Nozzle pressure ratio: pC / pe = 119
• Atmospheric pressure at sea level: pa = 101325 Pa
Assuming that the equivalent jet velocity is constant with time, calculate the following
quantities for this engine:
1. Mixture ratio
2. Nozzle exit pressure
3. Nozzle throat area
4. Thrust at sea level
5. Specific impulse at sea level
6. Number of F1 engines required by the Saturn V first stage, knowing that the required v is
3.75 km/s, the burn time is 150 s, the rocket take-off mass is 2.8106 kg, and assuming for
simplicity that the specific impulse is constant and equal to its sea level value.

Solution
Mixture ratio:
18.5  M W (O 2) 18.5  32
O/F    3.482
1  M W (C12 H 26) 1 170

Nozzle exit pressure:

pe 1 p 7 106 Pa
  pe  C   58824 Pa
pC 119 119 119
Vandenkerckhove function:
1 11.13
 1   1  1  1.13 11.13
         1.13     0.635
 2   2 

57
Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology
Lecture Notes AE2230-II
Rocket Propulsion

Nozzle expansion ratio:

Ae    0.635
    16
A*  2 1
 2
 1.131

2  pe     pe    2 1.13  1   1 
 1   
1.13 1.13
   1   

  1  pC    pC   1.13  1  119    119  
   

Nozzle throat area:

de 2 3.752 A 11.045 m2
Ae       11.045 m2  A*  e   0.69 m2
4 4  16
Combustion chamber temperature:
kJ
46200
HV kg
TC  T0   300 K   4705 K
c p  1  O /F  2.34
kJ
 1  3.482 
K  kg
Molecular mass of the combustion products:
12  MW (CO 2)  13  MW ( H 2O ) 12  44  13 18 g
MW    30.48
12  13 12  13 mol
Total mass flow rate of one engine:
pC  A* 7 106 Pa  0.69 m 2 kg
m       0.635  2707
RA J s
 TC 8314
MW K  kmol  4705 K
g
30.48
mol
Jet velocity:
 1
   1.131

2 RA   pe    2 1.13 8314   1  1.13
  3072 m
ve    TC  1        4705  1   
  1 MW   pC   1.13  1 30.48   119   s
   

Sea level thrust of one engine:

FT ( sea level )  m  ve   pe  pa   Ae  2707  3072   58824  101325  11.045  7.85 106 N

Sea level specific impulse of one engine:

veq ( sea level ) FT ( sea level ) 7.85 106 N
I sp ( sea level )     295.6 s
g0 m  g0 2707
kg m
 9.81 2
s s
Number of engines to provide the required v:
v
 
 M in  6  
 
3750
g 0  I sp
v  g 0  I sp  ln    M  M   1  e   2.8  10   1  e 9.81295.6
  2.03 10 kg
6

 in
M  M P 
P in
   
 
MP 2.03 106 kg
M P  N  m  tB  N    5 engines
m  tB 2707 150

58
Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology
Lecture Notes AE2230-II
Rocket Propulsion

7.2 Space Shuttle propulsion system

The Space Shuttle main propulsion system includes
3 liquid bi-propellant engines (Space Shuttle Main
Engine) using oxygen and hydrogen as propellants,
and 2 solid propellant engines (Solid Rocket
Boosters) using Ammonium Perchlorate as oxidizer
and Aluminium as fuel. All solid and liquid rocket
engines operate together, in parallel, during the first
phase of flight.
The following data are given on the Space Shuttle
Main Engine:
• Mixture ratio: O/F = 6
• Combustion chamber pressure: pC = 20.6∙106 Pa
• Initial propellant temperature: T0 = 75 K
• Circular nozzle, throat diameter: D* = 0.26 m
• Specific heat ratio of the combustion products:  = 1.115
• Heating value of hydrogen: HV = 141900 kJ/kg
• Constant pressure specific heat of the combustion products: cp =5.75 kJ/(K*kg)
• Molecular mass of the combustion products: MW =14 g/mol
• Nozzle pressure ratio: pC / pe = 753
• Atmospheric pressure at sea level: pa = 101325 Pa
The following data are given on the Solid Rocket Boosters:
• Mass flow rate at take-off: 5265 kg/s
• Equivalent jet velocity at take-off: veq = 2374 m/s
• Solid grain density: s = 1920 kg/m3
• We assume for simplicity a cylindrical propellant grain
• Initial internal grain diameter (at take-off): Db-i = 1.2 m
• Propellant grain length: L = 40 m
Assuming that the equivalent jet velocity is constant with time, calculate the following
quantities for this propulsion system:
1. Combustion chamber temperature (Space Shuttle Main Engine)
2. Mass flow rates of oxidizer and fuel (Space Shuttle Main Engine)
3. Thrust of one single engine at sea level (Space Shuttle Main Engine)
4. Specific impulse of one single engine at sea level (Space Shuttle Main Engine)
5. Thrust generated at take-off by each Solid Rocket Booster
6. The regression rate in the Solid Rocket Boosters at take-off

Solution
Combustion chamber temperature of the Space Shuttle Main Engine:
kJ
141900
HV kg
TC  T0   75 K   3600 K
c p  1  O /F  5.75
kJ
 1  6 
K  kg

59
Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology
Lecture Notes AE2230-II
Rocket Propulsion

Nozzle throat area of the Space Shuttle Main Engine:

D*2 0.262
A*       0.053 m2
4 4
Vandenkerckhove function:
1 11.115
 1   1  1  1.115 11.115
         1.115     0.631
 2   2 

Total mass flow rate of one single Space Shuttle Main Engine:
pC  A* 20.6  106 Pa  0.053 m 2 kg
m       0.631  471.2
RA J s
 TC 8314
MW K  kmol  3600 K
g
14
mol

Fuel mass flow rate in one single Space Shuttle Main Engine:
moxidizer m  m fuel m m 471.2 kg
O/F     1  m fuel    67.3
m fuel m fuel m fuel O / F 1 6 1 s

Oxidizer mass flow rate in one single Space Shuttle Main Engine:
kg
moxidizer  m fuel  O / F  67.3  6  403.9
s
Nozzle expansion ratio in the Space Shuttle Main Engine:
Ae    0.631
    77.45
A* 2  1
 2
 1.115 1

2  pe    pe 
 
 2 1.115  1  1.115
  1  1.115

   1     1 

  1  pC    pC   1.115  1  753    753  
   

Nozzle exit pressure and exit area in the Space Shuttle Main Engine:
pC p 20.6 106 Pa
 753  pe  C   27357 Pa
pe 753 753

Ae    A*  77.45  0.053 m2  4.105 m2

Jet velocity in the Space Shuttle Main Engine:

 1
   1.1151

2 RA   pe    2 1.115 8314   1  1.115
  4530 m
ve    TC  1        3600  1   
  1 MW   pC   1.115  1 14   753   s
   

Sea level thrust of one single Space Shuttle Main Engine:

FT ( sea level )  m  ve   pe  pa   Ae  471.2  4530   27357  101325   4.105  1.83 106 N

60
Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology
Lecture Notes AE2230-II
Rocket Propulsion

Sea level specific impulse of one single Space Shuttle Main Engine:
veq ( sea level ) FT ( sea level ) 1.83 106 N
I sp ( sea level )     395.9 s
g0 m  g0 471.2
kg m
 9.81 2
s s
Take-off thrust of each Solid Rocket Booster:
kg m
FT (TakeOff )  mTakeOff  veq (TakeOff )  5265  2374  12.5  106 N
s s
Take-off regression rate in the Solid Rocket Boosters:
mTakeOff mTakeOff 5265 m cm
m   s  r  Ab  rTakeOff     18.2  103  1.82
 s  Ab (TakeOff ) s    Db i  L 1920    1.2  40 s s

61
Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology
Lecture Notes AE2230-II
Rocket Propulsion

References
[1] Sutton, G.P., 1978, Rocket Propulsion Elements, 7th edition, John Wiley & Sons Inc.
[2] Ward, T.A., 2010, Aerospace Propulsion Systems, John Wiley & Sons Inc.
[3] Hill, P.G., Peterson C.R., 1992, Mechanics and Thermodynamics of Propulsion, Addison-
Wesley Publishing Co.
[4] Fortescue, P., Swinerd, G., Stark, J., 2011, Spacecraft Systems Engineering, 3rd Ed., John
Wiley & Sons
[5] Larson, W. J., Wertz, J.R., 1992, Space Mission Analysis and Design, 3rd edition,
Microcosm, Inc., Torrance, CA

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