Engineering Problems of Large Clustered Solid Propellant Boosters

A comprehensive investigation of unique design problems of a solid propellant first stage for a typical NOVA launch vehicle is presented. It is found that the major differences between a solid and liquid propellant first stage arise from the higher thrust of solid propulsion units, the cluster structure necessary to combine several motors into a stage, and the vehicle stability and control problem. Analysis of these problem areas shows that satisfactory solutions can be found, using state-of-the-art techniques.