Abstract
The development of military technologies is often framed as a neutral pursuit of engineering excellence, yet every technical advancement carries profound moral implications depending on its context of use. While hundreds of billions of dollars are spent annually on defense research and thousands of scientists and engineers are directly employed in weapons development, the ethical and physical dynamics of these technologies are rarely examined together. This thesis portfolio addresses the dual nature of innovation in the defense sector by investigating the practical feasibility of silent propulsion alongside the sociotechnical frameworks that allow practitioners to rationalize their participation in lethal research. On one hand, engineers seek to overcome physical limitations like noise and vibration to gain strategic advantages in stealth; on the other, they must navigate the moral dissonance inherent in creating tools designed for destruction. By linking a technical investigation into magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) propulsion with an ethical analysis of moral insulation in weapons labs, this work highlights how institutional structures and technical goals co-produce the modern defense industry. Together, these projects explore the critical boundary where the pursuit of technical possibility meets the responsibility for its eventual consequences.
The technical report, "Project Loch Ness: Analyzing the Feasibility of Magnetohydrodynamic Propulsion," evaluates a non-mechanical alternative to traditional marine propulsion. Traditional propellers and pump-jets are limited by acoustic signatures and mechanical wear, which compromise the stealth and longevity of underwater vehicles. To address this, the team designed and fabricated a series of small-scale MHD thrusters that generate thrust through Lorentz force interactions in conductive saltwater without any moving parts. Using an iterative rapid prototyping approach, the project developed three versions of the drive, culminating in Version 3 (V3), which utilized a 12-magnet Halbach array to maximize magnetic field uniformity and channel volume. Experimental results in a controlled laboratory tank validated the fundamental MHD math model, confirming a proportional relationship between input current and thrust generation. V3 achieved a maximum mean thrust of 0.056 Newtons, representing a 48% increase in thrust and a 110% increase in power efficiency over the previous iteration at 10 Amps of input current. While the study confirmed the feasibility of miniaturized MHD propulsion, it concluded that practical full-scale efficiency is currently limited by material challenges such as electrode degradation and the field strength constraints of permanent magnets.
The STS research paper, "Moral Insulation: A Sociotechnical Analysis of Ethical Justification in the Defense Industry," investigates the psychological and institutional frameworks used by U.S. defense researchers to justify work intended to cause harm. Through a qualitative document analysis of corporate mission statements, patents, and professional journals, the study identifies a system of "moral insulation" that reconciles professional identity with the destructive nature of lethal innovation. The research finds that practitioners utilize implicit mechanisms of avoidance, such as euphemistic labeling and mathematical framing that reduces lethal outcomes to optimization variables like the probability of kill. Additionally, institutional structures like "administrative evil" fracture complex tasks into minute, non-lethal pieces, allowing individuals to frame their participation as "good administration" rather than a direct contribution to violence. Explicit justifications often rely on an instrumentalist view of technology as a value-neutral tool, effectively offloading moral responsibility to policymakers and end-users. The paper concludes that a widening responsibility gap exists, particularly in the shift toward autonomous systems, where traditional accountability frameworks are increasingly displaced by entrenched professional norms and institutional distancing.
Ultimately, this thesis portfolio demonstrates that engineering in the defense sector cannot be isolated from its sociotechnical context. The technical successes of Project Loch Ness in achieving quieter, more efficient propulsion fulfill a strategic military goal, yet the STS analysis reveals how such pursuit of excellence often relies on a sophisticated system of moral distancing that hides the ethical complexity of the work. While the technical experiments offer a strong foundation for future silent submersible design, the STS findings suggest that responsible innovation requires more than just technical feasibility; it demands a reconciliation of professional routine with ultimate societal impact. Future researchers should continue to explore high-field superconductors to overcome MHD efficiency limits while simultaneously investigating the long-term effects of technical excellence on the moral identity of the engineers who create these systems. By exploring both the mechanics and the morality of modern defense technology, this thesis aims to advance the ethical consciousness necessary for responsible innovation in an increasingly militarized world.
Notes
School of Engineering and Applied Science
Bachelor of Science in Aerospace Engineering
Technical Advisors: Daniel Quinn, Chris Goyne
STS Advisor: Kent Wayland
Technical Team Members: Eric Avellone, Kellylyn Brinkac, Cameron Dearman, Jack Finning, Will Hixson, Tyler Kaczmarek, William McGee, Samantha Ritchie, Amitav Suchdev
