Assessment of Variability in the Thermophysical Properties of Rocket Propellant RP-1

Density, speed of sound, and viscosity have been measured for 11 orthogonal blends of the rocket propellant RP-1. Density and speed of sound were measured over the temperature range of 278 to 343 K, while viscosity was measured from 263 to 373 K. All measurements were made at ambient atmospheric pressure. The density and sound speed data were used to derive adiabatic compressibilities, and those results are also reported. Different, yet significant, degrees of variability over the 11 RP-1 samples were observed for all reported properties. The largest variability was observed for viscosity. The measurement data were also compared to previously reported results for an additional RP-1 sample and to the predictions of an existing surrogate mixture model. Discrepancies were observed that seem to indicate a need for the development of a more general model to capture the whole range of thermophysical property variability that is possible with the RP-1 fuel.