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Burton

Rodney L. Burton

Professor Emeritus

rburton@illinois.edu		 Return to: Faculty
Office address Mailing Address Research Group
206B Talbot Lab
217-244-6223		 306 Talbot Lab
104 S. Wright St.
Urbana, IL  61801		  
Research Areas
Largest program is electric propulsion. Programs include both dc and pulsed devices. Interests in these are both experimental and theoretical. Specific research includes Langmuir probing of electromagnetic thrusters, and performance and modeling of these thrusters. Additional interest is low power thrusters, including pulsed plasma thrusters. Newest program is high power gallium thruster for NASA's Jupiter mission.

Professor Burton's research emphasizes advanced propulsion. He has over 40 years experience in electric propulsion for spacecraft and concentrates on low power propulsion, both steady and pulsed, for satellites. He has also developed advanced techniques for the study of high energy particle combustion at high pressure.  He is currently investigating air launch for heavy lift boost, and high Mach number turbojets.

Education:

  • Ph.D., Aerospace Sciences, Princeton University, 1966.
  • B.S.E. Aeronautical Engineering, Princeton University, 1962.

Academic Positions:

  • Interim Head, University of Illinois Aerospace Engineering, 2006-date.
  • Professor, University of Illinois Aerospace Engineering, 1997-date.
  • Associate Professor, University of Illinois Aerospace Engr. 1989-1997.
  • Assistant Professor, MAE Dept, UCSD 1966-1971.
  • Director, Space Applications, GT-Devices, Alexandria, VA 1981-1989.
  • Research Engineer, Princeton University 1979-1981.
  • Sr. Scientist, JAYCOR, Alexandria, VA, 1977-1979.
  • Sr. Scientist, Dutcher Industries, San Diego, CA, 1971-1977.
  • Associate Fellow, AIAA, Member of AIAA Electric Propulsion TC

Major Honors and Awards:

  • Co-winner, AIAA Paper of the Year Award, Plasmadynamics and Lasers Conference, 1996

Selected Publications:

  • Burton, R. L. , Brown, K. and Jacobi, A. M., "Low Cost Launch of Payloads to Low Earth Orbit," Journal of Spacecraft and Rockets, Vol. 43, No. 3, 696-698, May-June, 2006.
  • Antonsen, E. L., Burton, R. L., Spanjers,  G. C., and Engelman, S. F., "Herriot Cell Augmentation Of A Quadrature Heterodyne Interferometer," Review of Scientific Instruments, Vol. 74, No. 1, 88 - 93, Jan., 2003.
  • Bushman, S. S. and Burton, R. L., "Heating And Plasma Properties In A Coaxial Gasdynamic Pulsed Plasma Thruster," Journal of Propulsion and Power, Vol. 17, No. 5, 959-966, 2001.
  • Krier, H., Burton, R. L., and Melcher, J. C., "Combustion of Aluminum Particles in Solid Rocket Motor Flows," AIAA Progress Series, Vol. 185, Solid Propellant Chemistry, Combustion, and Motor Interior Ballistics, Yang,V., Brill,T. and Ren,W-Z. eds., Chap. 2, pp. 723-747, 2000.
  • Burton, R. L., Rysanek, F., Antonsen, E. A., Wilson, M. J., and Bushman, S. S., "Pulsed Plasma Thruster Performance for Microspacecraft Propulsion," AIAA Progress Series, Vol. 187, M. Micci, ed., Chapter 13, 2000.
  • Willmes, G. F. and Burton, R. L., "The Low Power Helium Pulsed Arcjet," Journal of Propulsion and Power,.Vol. 15, No. 2, pp. 440-446, May.-Jun. 1999.