Green rocket propellants are tested in research combustion chambers in the test container at M11.5. The ignition, injection and combustion efficiency of the propellants are investigated.
The M11.5 test field was built in 2013 as an extension to the M11 test stand. It contains a total of five test positions with different areas of application.
M11.5 / 1
Area of application
Versatile test facility for research and development tests of engines and components for micro-rockets and space propulsion systems
Test object
Development of hybrid engines
Ignition, combustion and stability behavior of hybrid engines
Development of gas generators
Investigation of solid propellant igniters
Testing of solid propellants
Partially cryogenic micro-rocket engines
M11.5 / 2
Area of application
Versatile test facility for the research and development of space engines and propulsion systems, including advanced control systems
Test object
Investigation of flashback behavior
Pressure losses and outflow coefficients in feed systems and injectors
Mixture properties of fuel oxidants for monopropellants
Investigation of ignition, combustion, cooling and performance of engines and propulsion systems
Investigation and testing of AI-based control systems for systems and engines
Non-Newtonian, particle-laden and highly viscous fluids
Investigation of injector elements and the interaction of several elements
Investigation of pressure drop
Investigation of transients in feed and injection processes
Subatmospheric and superatmospheric tests
Inert media and simulants
Investigation of components of the feed system
ALM-manufactured components vs. conventional production
M11.5 / 4
Area of application
x-DoF setup
Test object
Research and development tests of systems and engines for propulsion systems
GNC and avionics research
Testing of propulsion systems with advanced fuels
x-DoF tests with freedom from 0 to 5
ACS testing and development
Testing and development of the lander's main engine and engine group
Conventional, advanced and AI-based propulsion controls testing and development
Testing of flight system controls for reusable micro-rockets and orbital landers
Tests with reduced gravity
The DLR spin-off HyImpulse Technologies has developed and tested its hybrid rocket engine here. The test field is also available to student university groups for test activities as part of the DLR STERN program. At a second test position of the M11.5, there is a DLR test container in which advanced satellite propellants are tested for their suitability in hot gas tests. These new types of propellants include so-called "green propellants".
In close collaboration, a team of scientists has succeeded for the first time in successfully controlling a test facility including an integrated rocket engine with Artificial Intelligence. At the M11.5 test bench complex, a research combustion chamber was tested in so-called cold gas mode with pressurized nitrogen; no combustion takes place in the combustion chamber.
