AQUILO Project

Head-End Ignition

Propulsion • Design • Manufacturing • 2024

At a glance

My role: Project Lead, concept, design, manufacturing
Deliverables: Prototype hardware, production components, design report

Disclosure

Disclosure: this page only includes non-sensitive information. Propellant-specific details, performance data and proprietary design information are intentionally omitted.

Idea

Solid rocket motors are reliable and straightforward thrust sources, but characterizing propellants is difficult because small composition changes can strongly affect combustion.

The project explored the idea of a hardware solution that can expand the team's capability while avoiding repeated redesigns of the full motor endcap for each new motor model.

Design Constraints

Since an upgrade required redesign of the motor endcap, this opportunity was used to implement a head-end ignition system that could be reused across multi-rocket configurations. After exploring options, the well-tested head-end ignition concept by Richard Nakka we used as a reference point, then adapted the concept around the team's motor architecture.

Material selection: availability, mass and ESD properties
Retention method: compatibility with current motor hardware
Size constraints: limited circumference and assembly access
Operational envelope: designed around non-disclosed pressure and thermal constraints

Prototype

A prototype helped verify whether the chosen geometry could be produced with the available machinery and whether the assembly process was realistic at the scale required.

This early manufacturing pass was especially useful because the design needed to stay practical, not just theoretically elegant.

Final Production

With support from Microlan Aerospace, the project moved from prototype parts to a small set of production components for campaign use.

Testing and further development were handed over to the current AQUILO propulsion team, keeping the project alive beyond the initial design and manufacturing phase.

Project media