Liquid Propellant Rotating Detonation Rocket Engine

The RDRE is an innovative approach to propulsion with the potential to be 25% more efficient than conventional rocket engines. This project will leverage this technology to reduce cost and improve sustainability. Conventional rocket engines use subsonic combustion – the same process as a car engine – while RDREs use supersonic combustion, also known as detonation. The key component of the RDRE is an annular combustion chamber where a detonation wave continuously propagates at supersonic speeds to efficiently burn the injected propellant.

The team designed, simulated, fabricated and tested a prototype RDRE. The focus was optimizing the detonation wave dynamics and ensuring the structural integrity of the engine under operating conditions. The team’s RDRE uses an injector plate designed to mix liquid propellants and ensure stable detonation in the combustion chamber. A deflagration-to-detonation transition tube starts a detonation wave which continuously travels around the chamber. The engine also features an aerospike nozzle to generate optimal thrust at various altitudes. The team’s tests demonstrated detonation-based propulsion’s potential to advance rocket technology, and the project has real-world applications in space exploration and defense.