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{ "item_title" : "Rocket Propulsion Fundamentals", "item_author" : [" Desmond Mercer "], "item_description" : "Turn rocket equations into engineering decisionsRocket propulsion can feel like a wall of equations, disconnected hardware, and specialized terminology. A thrust calculation may look straightforward until chamber pressure, mixture ratio, nozzle expansion, feed losses, cooling limits, combustion stability, mass, reliability, and mission constraints must agree. This practical guide connects those pieces so readers can move from first principles to defensible preliminary calculations.The material develops in a deliberate sequence. Thermodynamics and compressible flow establish the physical foundation. Combustion chemistry then links propellant choice to temperature, molecular mass, and achievable performance. Later chapters show how those fundamentals shape liquid, solid, and hybrid engines, including feed systems, engine cycles, injectors, chambers, turbomachinery, structures, manufacturing, instrumentation, and transient behavior.Derive thrust, specific impulse, characteristic velocity, and thrust coefficient from governing relationships.Analyze converging-diverging nozzles across underexpanded, ideally expanded, and overexpanded operating conditions.Compare pressure-fed, gas-generator, staged-combustion, expander, solid-motor, and hybrid architectures.Estimate heat flux, coolant requirements, pressure losses, pump power, grain regression, and burn behavior.Interpret test measurements, uncertainty, stability indicators, startup transients, and evidence for design closure.Practice with worked examples, topic-specific tables, technical figures, review problems, and complete answers.Coverage extends beyond chemical engines to electric propulsion, nuclear thermal concepts, advanced propulsion options, integrated engine design, manufacturing constraints, reliability, and safety. The emphasis remains practical: every major model is connected to assumptions, units, hardware consequences, and the measurements needed to judge whether a result is credible.Across eighteen chapters, readers encounter more than fifty worked examples, over one hundred forty review problems with answers, eighteen topic-specific tables, and thirty-six labeled technical figures. The variety makes it possible to study sequentially or locate a focused calculation during design and test work.This text is designed for aerospace and mechanical engineering students, early-career propulsion engineers, experienced practitioners reviewing adjacent disciplines, educators selecting worked problems, and technically prepared readers who want more than a descriptive survey. Calculus, basic thermodynamics, and fluid mechanics are helpful, while the progression and variable definitions support readers who need a structured refresher.Use the chapters as a course-length introduction, a problem-solving companion, or a desk reference for preliminary engine studies. Build the analysis from mission need to requirements closure, and understand how thrust, thermal limits, propellant behavior, manufacturability, test evidence, cost, reliability, and safety interact in a real propulsion system.", "item_img_path" : "https://covers1.booksamillion.com/covers/bam/9/79/819/053/9798190532180_b.jpg", "price_data" : { "retail_price" : "150.99", "online_price" : "150.99", "our_price" : "150.99", "club_price" : "150.99", "savings_pct" : "0", "savings_amt" : "0.00", "club_savings_pct" : "0", "club_savings_amt" : "0.00", "discount_pct" : "10", "store_price" : "" } }
Rocket Propulsion Fundamentals|Desmond Mercer

Rocket Propulsion Fundamentals : A Practical Engineering Guide to Thrust, Nozzle Design, and Propellant Systems with Worked Problems for Students and W

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Overview

Turn rocket equations into engineering decisions

Rocket propulsion can feel like a wall of equations, disconnected hardware, and specialized terminology. A thrust calculation may look straightforward until chamber pressure, mixture ratio, nozzle expansion, feed losses, cooling limits, combustion stability, mass, reliability, and mission constraints must agree. This practical guide connects those pieces so readers can move from first principles to defensible preliminary calculations.

The material develops in a deliberate sequence. Thermodynamics and compressible flow establish the physical foundation. Combustion chemistry then links propellant choice to temperature, molecular mass, and achievable performance. Later chapters show how those fundamentals shape liquid, solid, and hybrid engines, including feed systems, engine cycles, injectors, chambers, turbomachinery, structures, manufacturing, instrumentation, and transient behavior.

  • Derive thrust, specific impulse, characteristic velocity, and thrust coefficient from governing relationships.
  • Analyze converging-diverging nozzles across underexpanded, ideally expanded, and overexpanded operating conditions.
  • Compare pressure-fed, gas-generator, staged-combustion, expander, solid-motor, and hybrid architectures.
  • Estimate heat flux, coolant requirements, pressure losses, pump power, grain regression, and burn behavior.
  • Interpret test measurements, uncertainty, stability indicators, startup transients, and evidence for design closure.
  • Practice with worked examples, topic-specific tables, technical figures, review problems, and complete answers.

Coverage extends beyond chemical engines to electric propulsion, nuclear thermal concepts, advanced propulsion options, integrated engine design, manufacturing constraints, reliability, and safety. The emphasis remains practical: every major model is connected to assumptions, units, hardware consequences, and the measurements needed to judge whether a result is credible.

Across eighteen chapters, readers encounter more than fifty worked examples, over one hundred forty review problems with answers, eighteen topic-specific tables, and thirty-six labeled technical figures. The variety makes it possible to study sequentially or locate a focused calculation during design and test work.

This text is designed for aerospace and mechanical engineering students, early-career propulsion engineers, experienced practitioners reviewing adjacent disciplines, educators selecting worked problems, and technically prepared readers who want more than a descriptive survey. Calculus, basic thermodynamics, and fluid mechanics are helpful, while the progression and variable definitions support readers who need a structured refresher.

Use the chapters as a course-length introduction, a problem-solving companion, or a desk reference for preliminary engine studies. Build the analysis from mission need to requirements closure, and understand how thrust, thermal limits, propellant behavior, manufacturability, test evidence, cost, reliability, and safety interact in a real propulsion system.

This item is Non-Returnable

Details

  • ISBN-13: 9798190532180
  • ISBN-10: 9798190532180
  • Publisher: Independently Published
  • Publish Date: August 2026
  • Dimensions: 11 x 8.5 x 0.8 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 1.98 pounds
  • Page Count: 388

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