Rocket Belt

[marksteamnz]

http://www.peroxidepropulsion.com/article/26
http://www.rocketbelt.co.uk/

Cool. Looks like he's close to flying a rocket belt.
I hope this causes an outbreak of silliness

[yipster]

hot hot hot

[Mike Everman]

I like the very top picture on the rocketbelt site, they drew the exhaust coming out the wrong place. Hoo.

[Bruno Ogorelec]

I keep thinking that a pulsejet should be able to do this. Peroxide is just too damn exotic and dangerous. It would be a big pack but not necessarily very heavy.

[skyfrog]

I keep thinking that a pulsejet should be able to do this. Peroxide is just too damn exotic and dangerous. It would be a big pack but not necessarily very heavy.

How about my x150 ? Two of them would give enough thrust to liftoff a 80kg man + 2 engines + 20 kg fuel. The engine weighs about 10kg each. 4 months later I'll be able to judge whether my project is successful or not. However, as more outsourced parts are arriving, the confidence gets more and more stronger.

Crazy idea, isn't it ? :-)

[Bruno Ogorelec]

I keep thinking that a pulsejet should be able to do this. Peroxide is just too damn exotic and dangerous. It would be a big pack but not necessarily very heavy.

How about my x150 ? Two of them would give enough thrust to liftoff a 80kg man + 2 engines + 20 kg fuel. The engine weighs about 10kg each. 4 months later I'll be able to judge whether my project is successful or not. However, as more outsourced parts are arriving, the confidence gets more and more stronger.

Crazy idea, isn't it ? :-)

Are you talking about the turbojet engines? If you are, it is not crazy at all. The best flying backpack ever was built by Bell in 1969. It used a Williams WR-19 turbojet engine and could fly continuously for some 20 minutes. Many successful flights were made.

[Bruno Ogorelec]

you would have to have a very fast computer-controlled self starting system. If an engine flamed out at 20 feet above the ground, it would have to instantly throttle the other engine(s) down to idle, restart the first engine, then open them both wide, all in less than 1.11 seconds before you hit ground and break some bones.

My idea is to have several (well, more than one) engines feeding a plenum, so that the failure of one engine only decreases lift, rather than kills it or (God forbid) makes it lopsided.

I'd be afraid of peroxide, too. I mean, I could take becoming a blond, but not all the way to the bone...

[peroxidepropulsion]

Hi,
I noticed some of you are concerned about hydrogen peroxide hazards.
I have been working with this chemical since 1985 and I have never had a serious wound, dispite I have had spillages on my skin many times. Oposite to acids and caustic one do not get a permanent wound from a spillage of HP on the skin. OK, it hurts like if someone pinched you, if you don´t wash it away quickly but within an hour or two, the acheing feeling disapear, and there is no permanent damage or scar on the skin.
I thought people would consider me to have correct personal protection on the photo on the page you link to on your forum: www.peroxidepropulsion.com/article/26 , but I understand from your comments that you are concerned.
Before I did not understand peoples concern. You can watch the minimum personal protection I used to have before, on this page: www.peroxidepropulsion.com/article/23
I am not saying you should not ware personal protection, I am just saying you should not spread false myths about the hazards of hydrogen peroxid. In fact it is a quite friendly chemical!

[pezman]

Erik, your site is awesome!

[marksteamnz]

I'd also like to say wonderfull site Erik. Very impressed at the research work and components you supply.
My first post meant, just in case it was missed in transtlation from my New Zealand slang to Euro english, I hope your work inspires many more rocket belts to be built.

[Bruno Ogorelec]

I bookmarked the site immediately. Erik, your site is an example to everyone whow decent sies of this kind should be done.

You do some impressive stuff. I'll have to rethink H2O2.

[peroxidepropulsion]

Thank you guys for your apreciating comments about my site.
I am fascinated of the pulse-jet engines you are discussing in your forum, but HP rockets are also interesting I think, because they can be made much smaller than a pulse jet and they are easy to start, stop and to fine tune the thrust during operation, just by adjusting the flow control valve. No spark plug is needed.
If someone of you are cinsidering to build a rocket I will try to assist you the best I can. There is a small design program, written in excell, on my site. I can supply you with the decomposition catalyst, which is made of silver wire screen. I also have Rocket Grade Hydrogen Peroxide in stock. I plan to start up comercial scale production this comming spring.

[skyfrog]

Erik,

Do you source HP or do you produce this chemical at home ?

Interesting site and congratulations for the success.

Merry Christmas,

[peroxidepropulsion]

I do not really produce hydrogen peroxide. I start with standard grade hydrogen peroxide 50% concentration and concentrate it to around 85%and purify it.
When used as a rocket fuel, the concentration need to be at least 70%, otherwise the heat of decomposition is not high enough to vaporize all the water to steam.
It also needs to be pure. especially important is to remove the phosphate ions precent, because the phosphate forms a layer on the catalyst surface and prevents the decomposition reaction, or at least it will give a short life time of the catalyst. This is in fact why phosphate and other so called stabilizers are added to standard grade hydrogen peroxide by the producers in the first place: They want to prevent decomposition in contact with catalytic active surfaces, like silver, cupper and iron.
The best material for storage of HP is aluminium or PE (Poly Ethylen) drums.