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PropulsionHow do conventional rockets work? |
Rocket propellants are the fuels and the oxidizers carried by the rocket for propulsion. There are a variety of different fuels and oxidizers because they all have some tradeoffs. For example, the cryogenic propellants have a better specific impulse but they are harder to handle and tend to have low densities. A higher specific impulse helps by increasing the efficiency of the thrust per amount fuel spent. However there is a tradeoff in terms of difficulty in handling and the low densities which require a larger tank
| Propellant | Chemical Formula | Molar Mass | Melting/ Freezing (K) | Boiling (K) | Heat of Vapor-ization (kJ/kg) | Specific Heat (cal/kgK) | Specific Gravity | Viscos-ity (centi-poise) |
| LiF | F2 | 38.0 | 53.7 | 84.8 | 172.5 | 0.366 | 1.43 | 0.299 |
| Hydrazine | N2H2 | 32.05 | 274.5 | 386.4 | 1256 | 0.758 | 0.984 | 0.97 |
| LiH | H2 | 2.016 | 14.0 | 20.4 | 446 | 1.75 | 0.071 | 0.013 |
| MMH | CH3NHNH2 | 46.08 | 220.7 | 360.6 | 790 | 0.725 | 0.862 | 0.40 |
| Nitrogen Tetraoxide | N2O4 | 92.016 | 261.5 | 294.3 | 413 | 0.367 | 1.37 | 0.42 |
| LiO | O2 | 32 | 54.4 | 90 | 213 | 0.4 | 1.14 | 0.19 |
| RP-1 | hydrocarbon CH1.97 | ~175 | 225 | 460- 540 | 246 | 0.45 | 0.58 | 0.21 |
| UDMH | (CH3)2NNH2 | 60.1 | 216 | 336 | 584 | 0.649 | 0.85 | 0.754 |
| Water | H20 | 18.02 | 273.15 | 373.15 | 2253 | 1.008 | 1.00 | 0.284 |
What are the types of rocket propulsion?
