Rocket Link Technology, a venture company developing low-melting-point thermoplastic propellant (LTP) as a low-cost rocket solid fuel, and Uematsu Electric, a Hokkaido-based space-related business company, signed an agreement to develop a new type of rocket. The goal is to launch satellites at half the current cost.

LTP melts when heated and solidifies after about one day of natural cooling. It can be remolded even if it loses its shape, and can be manufactured at facilities available even in very small factories. Conventional solid fuel, on the other hand, is made by applying heat to a semi-liquid resin mixed with gunpowder grains and solidifying it over several weeks, and only major manufacturers can produce it. RocketLink compares LTP to "chocolate" and conventional fuel to "pottery".

Utilizing LTP costs one-tenth that of conventional fuel, and the company is looking to manufacture and sell rockets at half the current price, including research and development costs.

Worldwide, more than 200 satellites were launched annually between 2017 and 2020, with that number expected to increase to 1,000 by 2029.

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Source : https://mainichi.jp/articles/20230810/k00/00m/040/028000c

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