C-Stoff
German rocket fuel
title: "C-Stoff" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["german-inventions-of-the-nazi-period", "rocket-fuels"] description: "German rocket fuel" topic_path: "geography/germany" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/C-Stoff" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0
::summary German rocket fuel ::
C-Stoff (; "substance C") was a reductant used in bipropellant rocket fuels (as a fuel itself) developed by Hellmuth Walter Kommanditgesellschaft in Germany during World War II. It was developed for use with T-Stoff (a high-test peroxide) as an oxidizer, which together with C-Stoff as the fuel, forms a hypergolic mixture.
::data[format=table]
| Catalyst 431 | K3[Cu(CN)4] | potassium tetracyanocuprate(I) |
|---|---|---|
| :: |
The proportions of the components in C-Stoff were developed to catalyse the decomposition of T-Stoff, promote combustion with the oxygen released by the decomposition, and sustain uniform combustion through sufficient quantity of the highly reactive hydrazine. The combination of the C-Stoff, used as a rocket fuel, with the T-Stoff used as the oxidizer, often resulted in spontaneous explosion from their combined nature as a hypergolic fuel combination, necessitating strict hygiene in fueling operations; there were numerous catastrophic explosions of the Messerschmitt Me 163 aircraft that employed this fuel system. Another hazard was toxicity to humans of each of the propellants.
C-fuel
After the war, Allied studies into rocket propellants continued with engines such as the Armstrong Siddeley Beta, under the name "C-fuel".
References
References
- Stüwe, Botho. (1998). "Peene Münde West: die Erprobungsstelle der Luftwaffe für geheime Fernlenkwaffen und deren Entwicklungsgeschichte". Bechtermünz im Weltbild Verlag.
- "United Kingdom Aerospace and Weapons Projects: Rocket Engines". Skomer.
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