A self-eating rocket engine could make rockets more efficient by reducing the amount of propellant needed in onboard tanks. This would allow the craft to be lighter or carry more payload.
The engine works by storing fuel inside the rocket chamber. As the engine fires, some of the heat melts the plastic of the fuselage. The melted plastic is then fed into the chamber as fuel, supplementing the liquid propellant.
The engine is called the Ouroborous-3, named after the ancient symbol of a snake eating its own tail. The engine is designed to consume its own back end as it uses up the rocket fuel contained there.
The self-eating rocket would completely consume itself in flight and leave no debris behind. This could help mitigate orbital debris.
The design was presented at the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics SciTech Forum in Orlando, Florida, on Wednesday, and is based on an idea that was patented in 1938.
It’s really quite an ingenious concept, essentially some fuel is stored up inside the rocket chamber itself. As the engine fires, some of the heat melts through the plastic of its own fuselage and as the plastic melts, it is fed into the chamber as fuel to suplement the usual liquid propellant
A self-eating rocket engine could make rockets more efficient by reducing the amount of propellant needed in onboard tanks. This is because the engine burns the rocket’s supporting structure, which is made of a plastic tube. The molten plastic is then fed into the engine’s combustion chamber as additional fuel.
This technology allows spacecraft to be lighter, or have additional payload onboard. It also helps stem the growing space junk problem.
The rocket is named Ouroborous-3 after the ancient Egyptian symbol of a serpent eating its own tail.
This means that an autophage vehicle would require less propellant in onboard tanks, and the mass freed up could be allocated to payload instead. The consumption of the fuselage could also help avoid adding to the problem of space debris – discarded waste that orbits the Earth and could hamper future missions
An autophage vehicle requires less propellant in onboard tanks because it consumes its own fuselage for fuel. The molten plastic is fed into the engine’s combustion chamber, where it burns alongside the regular liquid propellants. This process allows the saved mass to be used for payload instead.
The technology also helps stem the growing space junk problem. The first test of the autophage rocket engine was carried out in 2018, and the most recent test was in July 2023.
The molten plastic is fed into the engine’s combustion chamber as additional fuel to burn alongside its regular liquid propellants. This means that an autophage vehicle would require less propellant in onboard tanks, and the mass freed up could be allocated to payload instead
The autophage engine is a “self-eating” rocket engine that uses waste heat from combustion to melt its own plastic fuselage. The molten plastic is then fed into the engine’s combustion chamber as additional fuel to burn alongside its regular liquid propellants
This means that an autophage vehicle can require less propellant in onboard tanks, and the mass freed up can be allocated to payload instead.
UK-based start-up Pulsar Fusion is working on a “green” rocket engine that uses a hybrid fuel of high-density polyethylene (HDPE) and oxidising nitrous oxide N2O
A rocket can gain 5–16% more fuel by burning a plastic tube that supports its structure. The molten plastic is fed into the engine’s combustion chamber to burn along with the liquid propellants. This allows the rocket to be lighter and have more room for payloads when it launches.
The Glasgow team’s rocket uses gaseous oxygen and liquid propane in its engine. As the engine heats up, it melts the plastic tube and burns it. The container is made of polyethylene plastic.
Some challenges include:
- Ensuring the plastic fuselage is burned and fed into the engine at a consistent speed
- Testing how burning up pieces of the rocket alters its shape and flight path
The rocket’s supporting structure is made of a plastic tube that melts and burns as the engine heats up. The engine uses waste heat from combustion to melt its own plastic fuselage as it fires.
The Ouroborous-3 uses high-density polyethylene plastic tubing as its autophagic fuel source. The tests showed that the Ourobourous-3 is capable of stable burn.
By burning this plastic, the rocket gains an additional 5 to 16 percent of fuel, allowing it to be lighter when it launches and have more room for payloads.
Plastic is derived from oil, which contains a lot of potential chemical energy. This energy is used directly to fuel vehicles such as automobiles, ships and aircraft.
The University of Glasgow has developed a rocket engine called the Autophage Engine that eats its own tail, similar to the mythical serpent. The engine is a concept called Ouroborous-3, named after the ancient mythical creature that eats its own tail.
The engine burns itself for fuel, gradually burning to reach orbit. The term “self-eating” comes from the Latin word for “self-eating”.
The concept of a self-eating rocket engine is nearly a century old and could help the UK take a big bite of the space industry. The engine could make rockets more efficient and help curb the space junk problem
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