RATHI AEROSPACE LABS PRIVATE LIMITED

In their own words

RAL is an IIT Madras incubated company which was incorporated on 20th April 2017. It has been founded by Dr. Nikunj Rathi who obtained his PhD in March 2018 from the Department of Aerospace Engineering, IIT Madras. Prof. P.A. Ramakrishna is the advisor for the company. We have developed a variety of wax products for various applications related to HERML and ISRO. The two key products among others on which the company is currently working are Wax based collapsible Mandrel and Wax based fuel for Hybrid Rockets. Wax based collapsible Mandrel is useful in making complicated solid propellant grains. This method is both safe and cost effective compared to the current methods such as machining and mechanically collapsible mandrel. The wax based collapsible mandrel has been successfully tested in small scale at ACEM, Nashik. Further, the work is in progress to develop a star shaped mandrel for ACEM, Nashik for 40 kg rocket motor. Additionally, a formal project is being taken up with DRDL, Hyderabad to develop a mandrel for deep fin configuration. Wax based fuel for Hybrid Rockets combines the benefits of both solid and liquid rockets. It has specific impulse as high as a liquid rocket but half the complexity. Compared to solid rockets, hybrid rockets provide control on the thrust during flight. We are working with SDSC, SHAR for the development of this wax fuel to test the scaled model of the 3rd Launch Pad. The aim of this project is to developed a hybrid rocket which would act as a gas generator to simulate the exit conditions of the semi-cryo engine. Initially a 1:50 scale rocket motor has to be developed and tested to meet all the required parameters and thereafter 1:30 scale motor would be supplied to SDSC, SHAR for more than 40 tests. Additionally, we are in the process of supplying both aluminized and non-aluminized wax fuel grains to VSSC, Thrivandrum. VSSC aims at replacing the solid fuel RH200 sounding rocket with a hybrid rocket and targets the first flight by 2019.

Written by the company on its public Startup India profile. Not verified by us.