Evaluation of the Performance of Some Metals and Nonmetals in Solid Propellants for Rocket-Ramjet Engines

A comparative evaluation of the use of various metals and nonmetals as fuel components of a solid propellant containing ammonium perchlorate as an oxidizer and rubber as a binder was performed using the flight range criterion of a rocket-ramjet aircraft taking into account the expected completeness of combustion of individual components. The influence of the energetic properties of the propellant on the technical and economic characteristics and flight performance of the aircraft was also taken into account. The aircraft flight range was calculated by numerical integration of flight dynamics equations. Based on the results, it is recommended that a number of fuel components should be studied in more detail, in particular, for the purpose of the full or partial replacement of boron currently used in solid propellants for rocket-ramjet engines.