Point of Contact: Dr. Robert Frederick, email: robert.frederick@uah.edu Solid Propellant Sample Preparation in HPL The PRC High Pressure Laboratory (HPL) is a state-of-the-art lab for performing experimentation on solid energetics. The PRC HPL allows researchers to test solid propellants under high-pressure conditions in order to evaluate burn rate at varying levels of chamber pressure up to 5000 psi. In the lab, there are two test cells with 1-foot thick steel reinforced concrete walls, a fume hood for chemical cleanup, and a grounded work area for handling energetics. One test cell utilizes a stainless steel combustion chamber with an ultrasonic sensor to take burn rate at high pressures. The other test cell has an x-ray system capable of doing live x-ray videography of burning samples through combustion chambers under high-pressure conditions. The x-ray system also performs computed tomography of samples configurations. The PRC established the HPL in 1991. Electric Solid Propellant Combustion Experiment Showing Local Combustion at Electrode Interface23 Recent research includes: fundamental studies of electric solid propellants with laboratory demonstrations of flame sensitivity and electrochemical dependency, burn rate determination of solid propellant samples using ultrasonic pulse-echo techniques, burn rate determination of electric solid propellants with live x-ray videography, and non-destructive examination of porous hybrid grains using x-ray computed tomography. A recent paper also details safety practices and technology control methods that are used in the HPL.
