Encyclopedia of Microfluidics and Nanofluidics

2015 Edition
| Editors: Dongqing Li

Microrockets

Reference work entry
First Online:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-5491-5_1006
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Synonyms

Microjets; Microthrusters

Definition

Microrockets are microfluidic systems that generate a high-speed (supersonic) jet of gas, used either for propulsion, materials processing, or other applications.

Overview

Microrockets generate high-speed gas jets by expanding a gas (or vapor) through a converging–diverging nozzle to generate high-speed supersonic jet at the exit. The appeal of microrockets derives from the cube– square law. In general, the thrust of a rocket is determined by the plenum pressure, P c, and the nozzle throat area of the rocket, while the mass of propellant used is proportional to the plenum pressure and the volume of the system. Thus, the thrust-to-weight ratio of a rocket will increase as the characteristic scale decreases:
$$ \frac{F}{m}\propto \frac{P_{\mathrm{c}}{L}^2}{P_{\mathrm{c}}{L}^3}=\frac{1}{L}. $$
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References

  1. 1.
    Bayt RL, Breuer KS (2000) Fabrication and testing of micron-sized cold-gas thrusters. In: Micci M, Ketsdever AD (eds) Micropropulsion for small spacecraft. Progress in astronautics and aeronautics, vol 187. AIAA, Reston, pp 27–120Google Scholar
  2. 2.
    Bayt RL, Breuer KS (2001) Analysis and testing of a silicon intrinsic point heater in a micro propulsion application. Sens Actuators A 91:249–55Google Scholar
  3. 3.
    London AP, Epstein AH, Kerrebrock JL (2001) High-pressure bipropellant microrocket engine. J Propulsion Power 17(4):780–787Google Scholar

Copyright information

© Springer Science+Business Media New York 2015

Authors and Affiliations

  1. 1.School of EngineeringBrown UniversityProvidenceUSA