Search

Utah State University has recently developed a promising High-Performance "Green" Hybrid Propulsion (HPGHP) technology that derives from the novel electrical breakdown property of certain 3-D printed thermo-plastic materials. This property has been developed into a proprietary, power-efficient system that can be cold-started and restarted with a high degree of reliability. HPGHP in the most mature form uses gaseous oxygen (GOX) as the oxidizer with 3-D printed acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS) as the fuel. However, unless stored at very high pressures, GOX is a volumetrically inefficient propellant. A higher density "green" oxidizer alternative is highly desirable. Results of a preliminary test-and-evaluation campaign using "Nytrox," as volumetrically-efficient replacement for GOX are presented. Nytrox, a saturated solution similar to "laughing-gas" used for anesthesia, is blended by percolating GOX under pressure into medical grade nitrous oxide (N2O) until the solution saturates. GOX in solution dilutes the ullage N2O vapor content, increasing the thermal decomposition energy barrier by multiple orders of magnitude. Thus, risks associated with inadvertent thermal or catalytic N2O decomposition are virtually eliminated. A 10-N hybrid thruster was first tested using GOX/ABSABS as baseline propellants. Tests were repeated using Nytrox as a "drop-in" replacement for GOX. The system worked successfully with only minor modifications required.