Detonation engines burn fuel through a supersonic combustion wave instead of a slow flame — unlocking a more efficient thermodynamic cycle than any conventional jet or rocket. Here's how we're turning that physics into hardware.
Today's engines rely on deflagration — a subsonic flame that burns at roughly constant pressure. Detonation instead couples a shock wave to the combustion zone, burning the mixture almost instantly at far higher pressure.
That pressure gain is the prize: it raises the effective compression of the cycle without extra turbomachinery, which is why detonation engines promise higher efficiency, lower mass and simpler designs across a huge range of vehicles.
Our near-term flagship: a cyclic detonation engine that is mechanically simple, fast to prototype, and largely untapped commercially — making it our most direct route to a fundable, testable demonstrator.
| Combustion mode | Intermittent / cyclic detonation |
|---|---|
| Architecture | Valved or valveless detonation tube |
| Moving parts | Minimal |
| Operating frequency | Tens to hundreds of Hz |
| Development stage | Demonstrator design |
| Primary advantage | Simplicity & speed to prototype |
Figures are indicative targets for our demonstrator program, not finalised specifications.
A continuously rotating detonation wave inside an annular chamber, producing steady, compact, high-density thrust. The platform with the broadest long-term potential across launch and air-breathing propulsion.
| Combustion mode | Continuous rotating detonation |
|---|---|
| Architecture | Annular detonation chamber |
| Thrust profile | Steady & continuous |
| Footprint | Highly compact for thrust produced |
| Development stage | Applied research |
| Primary advantage | Scalability & power density |
RDE science is decades old yet still largely pre-commercial — leaving substantial room for genuine engineering differentiation.
Both are detonation engines — but they make different trade-offs. We advance them in parallel and select per application.
Because detonation combustion is a fundamental upgrade, the same core technology scales across markets.
Higher-efficiency, lower-mass propulsion for launch vehicles, upper stages and kick stages.
Compact, high-density thrust for tactical, high-speed and expendable platforms.
Detonation combustors that can replace conventional chambers in turbojet and turbofan engines.
Lightweight, simple PDE propulsion for unmanned and autonomous flight systems.
A platform for foundational work toward future advanced and nuclear propulsion.
Static-fire and flight demonstrators that generate the data partners and grant bodies need.
Company formation, core team, market validation and the design of our first detonation demonstrator — anchoring our inaugural research grant.
Fire a sub-scale engine on the stand to characterise detonation stability, thrust and thermal behaviour.
Fly the engine with an established platform partner to produce real-world flight data.
Extend the detonation core into air-breathing combustors and begin foundational advanced-propulsion research.
We share detailed engineering material with serious research, investment and integration partners under NDA.