Non-intrusive combustion diagnostics of propellant flames and rocket plumes.

The development of solid propellants is a major topic at ICT. Therefore - besides of the determination of the mechanical properties - the investigation of the burning behaviour is of importance: with spectrometric and pyrometric methods the combustion products of the burning propellant are determined and the temperature of the gases measured. This can be done at different pressures and in the presence of different atmospheres. If the measured data are not in accordance with the desired characteristics of the propellant they will give some hints for the change of the formulation. From the aspect of the increasing environmental awaremess - keywords recycling or atmospheric pollution - these investigation methods have got new relevance. In this paper the methods of investigation which are available at ICT are described and illustrated with some applications.