Making of Water Rockets

Preparations for Making Water Rockets part 1

This chapter will introduce the terminology for water rockets, as well as materials, tools and equipment needed to make the water rocket body and launcher.

Terminology for the water rocket

Terminology for the water rocket

Download Photo

Terminology for the launcher

Terminology for the launcher

Launch gear :Hand-made device to launch the water rock-et It is made by attaching a ready-made join-ter (to set the nozzle onto) to a break bar of a bicycle.

Materials needed to make the water rocket and launcher

Essential materials and tools
Materials needed to build one rocket
2 PET bottles (for carbonated drinks).
Get two PET bottles that have been emptied, cleaned and dried, and had their labels removed. One bottle will be used for the rocket body, and the other to make the nose cone. While it is usually advisable to use 1.5-liter round (cylindrical) bottles, smaller 500-milliliter bottles can also be used. However, the PET bottles must be for carbonated drinks, as these can withstand greater pressure than bottles used for non-carbonated drinks. Bottles must also be smooth and free from damage. When launching your rocket, the air pressure should not exceed 7 atmospheres. For the sake of safety, we recommend 4~5 atmospheres. Technically speaking, only the bottle from which the rocket body will be fashioned needs to be for carbonated drinks since the rocket body, and not the cone, will be put under pressure. The other bottle, used for the nose cone, can be for other types of drinks. However, to avoid confusion during the rocket building process, it is better to use two carbonated drink bottles.

2 PET bottles (for carbonated drinks).

 PVC sheet (or any thin sheet of flexible yet sturdy plastic) 10cm ×20cm

To make fins, get a sheet of PVC that is 1~2mm in thickness. You can find these at your local do-it-yourself outlet. If PVC sheets are unavailable, you can substitute them with any type of thin, flexible yet sturdy plastic, such as writing boards made of poly-styrene.

This is used to make the skirt. Available at your local stationery shop, etc.

Modeling clay approx. 50g

Modeling clay is used as ballast. If you will be mak-ing several water rockets at one time – for example, as a school project – it is advisable to prepare a suitable number of individual lumps of clay before-hand, each weighing about 50g.

Vinyl bag (as cushion: 45-liter capacity trash bag) 1 piece

A vinyl bag is put into the nose cone as a cushion to absorb the impact when the rocket returns to Earth. Please use one 45- to 70-liter vinyl garbage bag for each rocket.

Vinyl tape

Vinyl tape is used to put parts and materials togeth-er. By offering an assortment of tapes of various col-ors, children can  combine them to create their own colorful designs.

As a safety precaution, we strongly recommend the use of mass-produced nozzles. While it is possible to use a rubber stopper, you run the risk of the stop-per failing as air pressure increases; such unpre-dictability makes them a poor  choice as far as safety is concerned. Commercially available nozzles also can be used repeatedly.

Tools and equipment

While most of the cutting work can be done using a pair of common scissors, a cutter or specially designed pair of scissors with pointed tips is used to cut the nose cone from the second PET bottle. We advise you to take every precaution when handling these tools.

Scissors 

The type of scissors as shown here is used for most of the cutting, such as for the fins, skirt and nose cone. Special PET bottle scissors are also available.

Cutter

A cutter is used when making the nose cone. You are tasked with explaining to the children the proper way to hold the cutter, how to handle other tools, and other safety precautions to ensure that risk of injury is reduced to a minimum.

 Cutter mat

When using the cutter, students should be given a mat to protect their desks.

 Plywood
If you will be making the rockets in a classroom, gymnasium or other similar location you might choose to place a piece of plywood on each stu-dent’s desk or on the floor to prevent damage to the desk or wood floor.


Permanent marker

A permanent marker is used to draw cut guidelines and names on PET bottles. The use of various color markers can enhance enjoyment of the building process as they allow your students to  illustrate their rocket bodies.

Materials, tools and equipment needed build the launcher
 
The launcher we describe in this manual is simple to make and uses materials and tools encountered in your daily life. The launcher is designed to be adjustable, allowing you to adjust the launch angle as desired.
 

• Wood slabs: 2 types each for the guide rail and base sections These wooden slabs constitute the core sections of the launcher. Strong and durable materials like waterproof plywood are recommended.

• Square wooden rods: 4 pieces  These square rods are used as guide rails.

• Hinges: 2 pieces

Used to connect the wooden slabs for the base section.

• Hooks and hetons: 2 pieces each

Used to connect the guide rail section to the base section.

• Protractor, kite string, weight

Used to make the mechanism to determine the launch angle.

• Chain: 1 piece

Used to fix the launch angle.

• Nails, adhesive agent, vinyl tape

• Oil-based varnish for application to wooden materials

Since the launcher we are going to make is made of wood, we coat its entire surface with var-nish to protect against water damage.

Tools and equipment

• Hammer
• Saw
• Wood adhesive
• Pencil

 Rocket flow chart: from building to launch 

Rocket flow chart: from building to launch

 Making Your Water Rocket 

 Note:Project by  Prof. Nobuaki Ishii Institute of Space and Astronautical Science Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency

Source:  http://paksc.org/pk/diy-projects/item/872-making-of-water-rocket.html