Superfuels

From: "Al Globus"
To:
Sent: Monday, September 24, 2001 6:26 PM
Subject: Re: [spacesettlers] Re: Diversification

[snikt]
> NASA tried to build a SSTO with aerospace plane but failed. We probably
> need a more energetic fuel than hydrogen/oxygen to get a positive
> payload mass. A NASA collegue of mine is studying tetrahedral
> nitrogen. It's never been made, but theory says it's stable and it
> should have about ~50% higher isp than hydrogen/oxygen. NASA has some
> ideas about how to make tetrahedral nitrogen and will be testing them
> over the next few months and years
>

Cool, I had never heard about this potential fuel. Can theory predict how
would this thing be? Would it be liquid at room temperature/pressure? What
would be the exhausts? Nitric oxide or something? (My Chemistry is far from
acceptable...) If so, then we may count on ecofreak protests...

Talking about ecofreaks, if I remember correctly it was shown in the 60's
that nukes could also make a SSTO possible. Oh, well...

And what about metallic hydrogen? I heard some time ago that it is already
possible to create the unstable form. If the theoretically stable form is
proven to be possible, than that could also be used as a fuel with HUGE isp.

[snikt]
Lucio Coelho