Expandable Static Test Stand
This is a vertical oriented test stand designed and fabricated by myself and two other BU students. The stand is positioned vertically because the rockets we test on it are of hybrid design. Testing the thrust of a hybrid rocket on its side can potentially yield unsteady or inaccurate thrust curves because of the liquid oxidizer ablate the fuel in an uneven geometry.
The stand consists of a triangular pole configuration with an embedded steel base in concrete. The concrete is rebar reinforced and the way the base is designed is meant to translate the tension force created by thrust into compressive force to be absorbed by the concrete. The blast deflector is also embedded in the concrete. The entire above ground part of the structure is made of aluminum and has modular stages to test rockets of different lengths. Each stage is coupled by steel bolts.
Lastly, the top of the stand is fitted with a compression/tension measuring load cell which is how we acquire a thrust curve to predict the flight path of the vehicle during launch. The location of the test site is in a rock/gravel quarry (actual location top secret).
The stand consists of a triangular pole configuration with an embedded steel base in concrete. The concrete is rebar reinforced and the way the base is designed is meant to translate the tension force created by thrust into compressive force to be absorbed by the concrete. The blast deflector is also embedded in the concrete. The entire above ground part of the structure is made of aluminum and has modular stages to test rockets of different lengths. Each stage is coupled by steel bolts.
Lastly, the top of the stand is fitted with a compression/tension measuring load cell which is how we acquire a thrust curve to predict the flight path of the vehicle during launch. The location of the test site is in a rock/gravel quarry (actual location top secret).