Washington, Aug 24 - NASA has launched a small rocket using a clean, green and safe propellant comprising aluminium powder and water ice.

'This collaboration (with US Air Force) has been an opportunity for graduate students to work on an environment-friendly propellant that can be used for flight on earth and used in long distance space missions,' said NASA chief engineer Mike Ryschkewitsch.

'These sorts of university-led experimental projects encourage a new generation of aerospace engineers to think outside of the box and look at new ways for NASA to meet our exploration goals.'

Using the propellant named ALICE as fuel, a nine-foot rocket soared to a height of 1,300 feet over Purdue University's Scholer farms in Indiana earlier this month.

ALICE is generating excitement among researchers because it has the potential to replace some liquid or solid propellants.

When it is optimised, it could have a higher performance than conventional propellants.

The propellant has a high burn rate and achieved a maximum thrust of 300 kg during this test, said an AFOSR release.