Customer Reviews

Mechanics and Thermodynamics of Propulsion (Addison-Wesley Series in Aerospace Science)

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Yeah, that's a big statement, but considering the fact that I own 7 other major propulsion books and refer to this one 10 times more than any of the others, I think it's definitely true. All of the top Aerospace Engineering schools use it, and for good reason.

It is NOT a teach-yourself book. If that is what you are into, then go buy something with more pretty pictures, because some sections take some work to dig into. But if you are Senior level or grad student, then the book will be very good for you. The content in the book is very insightful, and if you go through the book concurrently with a course it is a great help.

This book is an excellent source of information for a wide range of propulsion systems, both airbreathing and rocket. The book focuses on the basic principles of thermodynamics and aerodynamics in the early chapters and then later deals with the various forms of aerospace propulsion systems. Three chapters are reserved for turbojet engines, dealing with the compressors and turbines. Several chapters are dedicated to rocket proplusion, including the principles of staging and structural design. Overall this book is well written and is intersting to read. It is a good mixture of the presentation of the equations relating to the field as well as presenting these concepts in a digestable format.

amazon listed this book in its periodic email of recommended books. I was shocked to see three stars next to it as an aggregate rating, and I was compelled to write a raving review of it. I own the fist edition of this book (1965!). this is probably one of the best written scientific books I know of. crystal clear and captivating from fundamentals to core advanced topics. anyone who was not there at the time should be fascinated by this book, and astounded to find out just what was already known in the sixties about propulsion, and mortified about how little progress has been made since, in comparison. it is true you will not find as many examples in this book as in some more recent books. in my opinion, the clarity of general explanations (with worked math) more than makes up for this. in many newer books authors seem to throw in confusing new notation, and end up with weaker explanations of core subjects. then, some people expect to use precooked examples for everything. I do not own the second edition of this book. I hope nobody has done it the great disservice of reediting it to any significant extent.

This is a very good book for indepth information into the working of jet and rocket propulsion. However, as a student in aerospace engineering, I find it lacking examples of any kind throughout the entire book. Without examples it is very difficult to take in and understand fully what the author is discussing. Unless you already know a good deal about engines, this might not be the book for you.

As a student, I found this book to be inadequate and rather frustrating. Lack of example problems causes extreme weakness in material coverage. Problems at the end of each chapter are confusing at best and require extensive guidance from a qualified professor. Also the book is far overpriced. I would definitely prefer to use another book for my class.

I must say i was highly impressed with this text. Not only did it cover the material required, it also managed to clear up the confusion the resulted after every lecture with the prof. In fact, i learned airbreathing engines and rocket systems almost soley from this book.

The text is well-written and encompases a great deal about aerospace propulsion. There are few example problems, and the problems at the end of each chapter are worded so poorly it is difficult to know what is wanted without already knowing. Although the text is wonderfully instructive, it is a rather irritating textbook.

This is just the best book for propulsion. But maybe not for beginners. And may be not for those who just want to score marks in exams by practicing large no. of problems but not caring for real & physical understanding of jet engines.

I use Hill and Peterson in my rocket course because the 4th or 5th editions of Sutton are not available anymore. I tried using the 7th/8th editions of Sutton one year and it did not go so well for the students. I use Farohki's book in my air breather course because the course 80-90% air breathers with a bit of rockets at the end, but for the rocket course I find I have enough well written material to go as in depth as I like without excessive verbiage using Hill and Peterson. I go from thrust calculations to chamber and turbomachinery design with undergrads and it works very well. I also present the Ion motor material in the book which is well written. Students then designed a liquid rocket chamber in their capstone course. Of course older editions of Sutton and Huzel and Huang are very useful for this execise! Just some thoughts...

David Myre

The book was new just as described and shipped in a decent time. Thanks.