Testing Solid-Fuel Ramjets (IMAGE)

Naval Research Laboratory

Testing Solid-Fuel Ramjets

Caption

Featured are composite fuel slabs at the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory’s (NRL) Combustion Lab in Chesapeake Beach, Maryland, Jan. 15, 2026. The fuel slabs contain a polymer binder, featuring carbon black (left) to increase its absorption of radiant energy and aluminum (right) to increase its energy density. Researchers and engineers at NRL use these fuel slabs with an optically-accessible solid-fuel slab burner to perform combustion experiments at conditions relevant to solid-fuel ramjet flight. (U.S. Navy photo by Jonathan Sunderman)

Credit

Jonathan Sunderman

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