Injector and Propellant Harness, Rocket Engine, R.H. Goddard

Small dish or bowl-like top, with four small diameter equidistant pipes projecting at angles from bottom of dish, like legs, these pipes leading to larger diameter circular pipe around bottom and serving as a stand for the whole; larger diameter pipe leading at angle and projecting upwards from circular pipe, this projecting pipe open (hollow) and serving as an incoming propellant inlet, probably for the oxidizer (liquid oxygen); four thick pipes also projecting from bottom of dish, these pipes meeting smaller circular pipes underneath dish; one smaller diameter pipe leading from this smaller circular pipe and projecting upwards and at an angle at the side of the dish; this pipe also opened on top and therefore hollow, and serving as another propellant inlet, probably for the fuel (gasoline); four equidistant holes inside bowl of cup and adjacent to these, four much smaller diameter holes; the tips of small diameter white pipes, possibly ceramic, seen through the latter holes; bother series of holes cruciform patterns but not overlapping each other; overall, brown with surface corrosion, but still exhibitable; muddy yellow color underneath dish. This is an early experimental rocket injector, probably used during the 1930s, by the American rocket pioneer Dr. Robert H. Goddard (1882-1945) at his test site at Roswell, New Mexico. The larger projecting angled open pipe on one side was most likely the oxidizer (liquid oxygen) inlet while the smaller diameter projecting angled pipe on the opposite side was probably the fuel (gasoline) inlet. The purpose of the injector was to spray the oxidizer and fuel into fine streams into the combustion chamber of the rocket motor where they were ignited and burned. This oxidizer appears to have built-in ceramic very small diameter pipes for some of the injector holes as a means to protect them from the extreme heat during the injection and combustion processes.