How to Make Small 3/4in PVC Sugar Rocket Engines

video How to Make Small 3/4in PVC Sugar Rocket Engines

This is a quick tutorial on how to use the Perfect-Nozzle kit from nichropulse.com to quickly, cheaply and accurately built PVC sugar rocket motors.

Music: danosongs.com

joechasko says: Mar 18, 2013. 11:11 AM

Very nice instructions. I made similar rockets as a kid with rolled 6" paper and a wood dowel for packing, with 1" nozzle & plug. (A friend downsized it to 4" x 1/2" for higher acceleration.) We just drilled a 1/4" nozzle and 2" chamber in the last step. It took off like a moon rocket, burning for a half second before rising on a huge flaming tail and accelerating slowly to 1,000 feet or more then falling still burning. Your nozzle is smaller, but still seems like you could drill it. Have you tried it? Seems easier than the metal rig. Any idea how much thrust the conical opening gains?

superskier says: Dec 4, 2011. 2:47 PM

hii were can you get soudium nitrate btw nice vid i uese to always set off rockets and i now reaallly want to set one off

nuclear12321 in reply to superskierSep 7, 2012. 2:47 PM

Use potasium nitrate its practically identical

PhysicsIsFun says: Jul 26, 2012. 4:47 AM

Are sugar rockets reusable?

tuntini31 says: Mar 11, 2012. 9:58 AM

Where do you buy the KN03?

willb28 in reply to tuntini31Jul 22, 2012. 8:55 AM

you can get it off ebay

nichropulse (author) in reply to tuntini31Mar 12, 2012. 6:33 AM

Ebay

nuclear12321 says: Jan 13, 2012. 2:18 PM

Should I mess with the mixture or will this do fine?

nichropulse (author) in reply to nuclear12321Jan 14, 2012. 4:05 PM

It should do fine. You can try adjusting it for fun to see.

nuclear12321 in reply to nichropulseJan 15, 2012. 12:38 PM

I don't like asking so many questions but I'd like to know what the weight and thrust of these motors are. I'm guessing about 50 grams in weight with 10 newtons in thrust but I'm not sure. If you know, please respond.
Thanks in advance!

nichropulse (author) in reply to nuclear12321Jan 15, 2012. 1:04 PM

I have not measured the thrust yet.

nuclear12321 in reply to nichropulseJan 14, 2012. 6:03 PM

I had an idea but am not sure how to implement it. I could use a ring of bentonite clay filled with sugar and sodium nitrate and then I could mix 90 parts sodium nitrate with 10 parts sugar to make an ejection charge. Would this work? How would I fill the bentonite clay with sodium nitrate and sugar?

nichropulse (author) in reply to nuclear12321Jan 15, 2012. 1:08 PM

I have used KNO3/Sugar (75/25) loosely packed for an ejection charge. You can pack the bentonite clay on top of the propellant with either a small hole or a fuse through the plug. A cardboard plug would go on top of the ejection charge. Check out my Part-2 video on Small Sugar Rocket propellant and end-plug design. It shows exactly how I do both of these techniques. Go to the NichroPulse YouTube channel and look under the Tutorials playlist.

nuclear12321 in reply to nichropulseJan 15, 2012. 3:55 PM

First, I'm kicking myself because I haven't commented at all on how awesome this video is. This is approximately infinity times better than most of the instructables out there.

Second, where do you get the equipment? The things I need are the super-accurate scale, the rammer, the thing you use to hold the PVC, and the core rod. What site do you get these on? Also, what are the formal names for them so I can find them?

Thirdly, I want to thanks you for replying to me and answering my questions.

nichropulse (author) in reply to nuclear12321Jan 16, 2012. 8:55 AM

They are called "Perfect Nozzles". Go to the Nichropulse website to get FREE plans for the tooling. The zip file includes the sources list and all necessary drawings for fabrication.

nuclear12321 in reply to nichropulseJan 16, 2012. 5:38 PM

Thanks for the last answer, that was very helpful.

I took a look at your YouTube channel and website, both are very cool.

However, I may build a rocket that I hope to get to 1 mile. I will bring a payload of a miniGPS, a button camera, and of course a parachute, plus I need a small explosive charge to be able to calculate the altitude. My question is whether or not I should use multiple stages. Multiple stages have the advantage of lowering the weight as it goes on, but they are much more complicated. My original plan was 5 2" long stages. Will a single rocket have enough thrust to lift everything or should I make it a twin rocket for 2 or 3 of the bottom stages? Should I keep it as 5 stages, forgo the trouble and use 1 stage, or go between the 2 extremes and make it a 2 or 3 stage rocket? Will I even see/hear the charge from a mile up?
Thanks in advance!

nichropulse (author) in reply to nuclear12321Jan 17, 2012. 5:49 AM

I would definitely go with an electronic altimeter for that application, not a report charge. The report charge just gives distance not altitude, and is a very rough approximation for low altitude motors. Getting up to 1-mile with a larger payload on sugar is a fun challenge! Check out James Yawn website and the Nakka-rocketry website. These two guys are the masters of large sugar rocketry. I'm only the master of small-model and firework sugar rocketry.

nuclear12321 in reply to nichropulseFeb 24, 2012. 5:03 AM

I'm just wondering:
I was thinking of casting the sugar instead of ramming it because I suspect it will have a slightly higher grain density and also I can make multiple size engines (diameter). For the nozzle, will I need to ram that or is there another way of making a nozzle, like melting the bentonite clay? I feel that a larger diameter engine will increase burn time and help me get to my 1-mile goal.

Thanks in advance!

nichropulse (author) in reply to nuclear12321Feb 25, 2012. 12:23 PM

Yes, casting is better for large motors. It will reduce the chance of a grain failure if done properly in a liner. The energy density won't be all that different from a finely powdered and firmly pressed sugar/KNO3.
Bentonite does not melt well, which is why it works for nozzles. Many people use a steel or aluminum nozzles. I have even seen washers inserted into PVC fittings that cement on. If you use cement or as i recommend Durham's Rock Hard Water Putty in PVC, you might try grooving the inner PVC or even drilled holes around the end for the putty/cement/bentonite to grab onto. Same for top plug if you don't use a simple PVC cap cemented on.

nuclear12321 in reply to nichropulseFeb 26, 2012. 5:19 AM

Thanks very much.
What about a PVC end cap with 1/2" diameter hole drilled through it?

nichropulse (author) in reply to nuclear12321Feb 26, 2012. 4:27 PM

A simple hole in an end-cap would work okay for smaller motors like this, but not a 0.5in diameter, that is too big. The throat diameter that I use is about 6mm (0.236in).

Aron313 says: Dec 21, 2011. 2:33 PM

Does the potassium come already milled? And if not how do you mill it?

nichropulse (author) in reply to Aron313Jan 14, 2012. 4:06 PM

I mill it with a small high speed blender or a rock tumbler with glass marbles.

FoolishSage says: Sep 27, 2011. 1:01 PM

Cool. How do you ignite the engine? Would it be possible to make fireworks based on this?

Just a small comment on the video. Near the end your unit conversion is off 1 inch is about 2,5 cm not 2,5 mm.