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The Honeycomb Integration into Rocket Airframes (HIRA) research project aims to test the feasibility of a honeycomb shape as a structural element in a rocket airframe.

The research will include the construction and destruction of carbon fiber airframes with varying thicknesses of honeycomb to determine if the integration of a honeycomb shaped structure into the airframe increases the force the airframe can endure before it buckles. This research is relevant because multiple space launch companies (such as SpaceX and ULA) have begun using honeycomb structures in their launch vehicles, and the benefits of this application should be investigated. The HIRA project is interested in this research in order to use its results to design and build a high performance sounding rocket through the Embry-Riddle Future Space Explorers and Developers Society (ERFSEDS), and to compete in the Intercollegiate Rocket Engineering Competition (IREC) advanced category in June of 2017.

The feasibility of honeycomb as a structural element in a rocket airframe will be tested through the physical construction and destruction of tubes with and without honeycomb sandwiched in between carbon fiber layers. The thickness of the carbon fiber will be held constant, and the thickness of the honeycomb will be changed and tested in an attempt to find an optimal thickness which provides the largest structural advantage. While thickening the airframe of a rocket increases the aerodynamic drag, the benefits of the decreased weight of the airframe through the implementation of the honeycomb can be analyzed against the aerodynamic drag through a numerical comparative analysis