AbstractThis article presents an efficient numerical algorithm for determining, for a given metallized propellant system, the optimum combination of reactants which can fetch the maximum specific impulse, and also the salient features of the associated computer program. The optimization procedure is based on the Fletcher‐Powell technique with the objective function being augmented by a penalty term to accommodate the constraints. Numerical results for the optimization, obtained by means of a computer program written in FORTRAN IV on the IBM‐360 computer for a representative propellant system, are also presented in this note.