NK-33

Last updated

NK-33
Aerojet AJ26 in the Stennis E-1 Test Stand - cropped.jpg
The Russian NK-33 was modified and renamed the AJ26-58 by Aerojet. This AJ26-58 is shown on the test stand at John C. Stennis Space Center.
Country of originSoviet Union
Date1970s
Designer Kuznetsov Design Bureau
Manufacturer JSC Kuznetsov (Mashinostroitel)
Application1st/2nd-stage engine
Associated LV
Predecessor NK-15, NK-15V
SuccessorAJ26-58, AJ26-59, AJ26-62
Liquid-fuel engine
Propellant LOX / RP-1
Cycle Staged combustion
Pumps Turbopump
Performance
Thrust, vacuum1,680 kN (380,000 lbf)
Thrust, sea-level1,510 kN (340,000 lbf)
Throttle range50–105%
Thrust-to-weight ratio 137
Chamber pressure 14.83 MPa (2,151 psi)
Specific impulse, vacuum331 s (3.25 km/s)
Specific impulse, sea-level297 s (2.91 km/s)
Dimensions
Length3.7 m (12 ft)
Diameter2 m (6 ft 7 in)
Dry mass1,240 kg (2,730 lb)
References
References [1]

The NK-33 and NK-43 are rocket engines designed and built in the late 1960s and early 1970s by the Kuznetsov Design Bureau. The NK designation is derived from the initials of chief designer Nikolay Kuznetsov. The NK-33 was among the most powerful LOX/RP-1 rocket engines when it was built, with a high specific impulse and low structural mass. They were intended for the ill-fated Soviet N1F Moon rocket, which was an upgraded version of the N1. The NK-33A rocket engine is now used on the first stage of the Soyuz-2-1v launch vehicle. When the supply of the NK-33 engines are exhausted, Russia will supply the new RD-193 rocket engine. It used to be the first stage engines of the Antares 100 rocket series, although those engines are rebranded the AJ-26 and the newer Antares 200 and Antares 200+ rocket series uses the RD-181 for the first stage engines, which is a modified RD-191, but shares some properties like a single combustion chamber unlike the two combustion chambers used in the RD-180 of the Atlas V and the four combustion chambers used in the RD-170 of the Energia and Zenit rocket families, and the RD-107, RD-108, RD-117, and RD-118 rocket engines used on all of the variants of the Soyuz rocket.

Contents

Design

Simplified diagram of NK33 rocket engine Simplified diagram of NK33 rocket engine , Jan 2021 (English verson).png
Simplified diagram of NK33 rocket engine

The NK-33 series engines are high-pressure, regeneratively cooled oxygen-rich staged combustion cycle bipropellant rocket engines. The turbopumps require subcooled liquid oxygen (LOX) to cool the bearings. [2] The United States had not investigated oxygen-rich combustion technologies until the Integrated Powerhead Demonstrator project in the early 2000s. [3] The Soviets, however, perfected this method.

The problem is that hot high-pressure oxygen must flow throughout the engine. If the surfaces contacting this oxygen were bare metal, they would corrode too quickly. The problem was solved using an inert enamel coating on all metal surfaces in contact with the hot oxygen. [4]

The NK-33 engine has among the highest thrust-to-weight ratio of any Earth-launchable rocket engine; only the NPO Energomash RD-253, SpaceX Merlin 1D, and SpaceX Raptor engines achieve a higher ratio. The NK-43 is similar to the NK-33, but is designed for an upper stage, not a first stage. It has a longer nozzle, optimized for operation at altitude, where there is little to no ambient air pressure. This gives it a higher thrust and specific impulse, but makes it longer and heavier. It has a thrust-to-weight ratio of about 120:1. [5]

The predecessors of NK-33 and NK-43 are the earlier NK-15 and NK-15V engines respectively.

The oxygen-rich technology lives on in the RD-170/-171 engines, their RD-180, and recently developed RD-191 derivatives, but these engines have no direct connection to the NK-33 except for the oxygen-rich staged combustion cycle technology, the kerosene/RP-1 fuel, and in case of the RD-191 and its variants like the RD-193 and the RD-181, the single combustion chamber instead of the multiple chambers in previous Russian rocket engines.

History

N-1

The N-1 launcher originally used NK-15 engines for its first stage and a high-altitude modification (NK-15V) in its second stage. After four consecutive launch failures and no successes, the project was cancelled. While other aspects of the vehicle were being modified or redesigned, Kuznetsov improved his contributions into the NK-33 and NK-43 respectively. [6] The 2nd-generation vehicle was to be called the N-1F. By this point the Moon race was long lost, and the Soviet space program was looking to the Energia as its heavy launcher. No N-1F ever reached the launch pad. [7]

When the N-1 program was shut down, all work on the project was ordered destroyed. A bureaucrat instead took the engines, worth millions of dollars each, and stored them in a warehouse. Word of the engines eventually spread to the US. Nearly 30 years after they were built, rocket engineers were led to the warehouse. One of the engines was later taken to the US, and the precise specification of the engine was demonstrated on a test stand. [7]

Combustion-chamber design

The NK-33 oxygen-rich closed-cycle technology works by sending the auxiliary engines' exhaust into the main combustion chamber. The fully heated liquid O2 flows through the pre-burner and into the main chamber in this design. The extremely hot oxygen-rich mixture made the engine dangerous: it was known to melt 3-inch (76 mm) thick castings "like candle wax[ citation needed ]. Oxidizer-rich staged combustion had been considered by American engineers, but was not considered a feasible direction because of resources they assumed the design would require to make work. [8] One of the controversies in the Kremlin over supplying the engine to the US was that the design of the engine was similar to Russian ICBM engine design. The NK-33's design was used in the later RD-180 engine, which had twice the size of the NK-33. The RD-180 engines were used (as of 2016) to power the Atlas V rocket. This company also acquired a license for the production of new engines. [9] [10] [11]

Sale of engines to Aerojet

About 60 engines survived in the "Forest of Engines", as described by engineers on a trip to the warehouse. In the mid-1990s, Russia sold 36 engines to Aerojet General for $1.1 million each, shipping them to the company facility in Sacramento CA. [12] During the engine test in Sacramento, the engine hit its specifications.

Aerojet has modified and renamed the updated NK-33 to AJ26-58, AJ-26-59 and AJ26-62, and NK-43 to AJ26-60. [9] [10] [11] [13]

Kistler K-1

Kistler Aerospace, later called Rocketplane Kistler (RpK), designed their K-1 rocket around three NK-33s and an NK-43. On 18 August 2006, NASA announced that RpK had been chosen to develop Commercial Orbital Transportation Services for the International Space Station. The plan called for demonstration flights between 2008 and 2010. RpK would have received up to $207 million if they met all NASA milestones, [14] [15] [16] but on 7 September 2007, NASA issued a default letter, warning that it would terminate the COTS agreement with Rocketplane Kistler in 30 days because RpK had not met several contract milestones. [17]

Antares

An Antares rocket being rolled out for testing, showing the two NK-33 engines Antares rolls out - Oct 2012.jpg
An Antares rocket being rolled out for testing, showing the two NK-33 engines

The initial version of the Orbital Sciences Antares light-to-medium-lift launcher had two modified NK-33 in the first stage, a solid Castor 30-based second stage and an optional solid or hypergolic third stage. [18] The NK-33s were imported from Russia to the United States, modified, and re-designated as Aerojet AJ26s. This involved removing some electrical harnessing, adding U.S. electronics, qualifying it for U.S. propellants, and modifying the steering system. [19]

In 2010 stockpiled NK-33 engines were successfully tested for use by the Orbital Sciences Antares light-to-medium-lift launcher. [19] The Antares rocket was successfully launched from NASA's Wallops Flight Facility on 21 April 2013. This marked the first successful launch of the NK-33 heritage engines built in early 1970s. [20]

Aerojet agreed to recondition sufficient NK-33s to serve Orbital's 16-flight NASA Commercial Resupply Services contract. Beyond that, it had a stockpile of 23 1960s- and 1970s-era engines. Kuznetsov no longer manufactures the engines, so Orbital sought to buy RD-180 engines. Because NPO Energomash's contract with United Launch Alliance prevented this, Orbital sued ULA, alleging anti-trust violations. [21] Aerojet offered to work with Kuznetsov to restart production of new NK-33 engines, to assure Orbital of an ongoing supply. [22] However, manufacturing defects in the engine's liquid-oxygen turbopump and design flaws in the hydraulic balance assembly and thrust bearings were proposed as two possible causes of the 2014 Antares launch failure. [23] As announced on 5 November 2014, Orbital decided to drop the AJ-26 first stage from the Antares and source an alternative engine. On 17 December 2014, Orbital Sciences announced that it would use the NPO Energomash RD-181 on second-generation Antares launch vehicles and had contracted directly with NPO Energomash for up to 60 RD-181 engines. Two engines are used on the first stage of the Antares 100-series. [24]

Current and proposed uses

RSC Energia is proposing an "Aurora-L.SK" launch vehicle, which would use an NK-33 to power the first stage and a Blok DM-SL for the second stage. [25]

Soyuz-2-1v

In the early 2010s the Soyuz launch vehicle family was retrofitted with the NK-33 engine – using the lower weight and greater efficiency to increase payload; the simpler design and use of surplus hardware might actually reduce cost. [26] TsSKB-Progress uses the NK-33 as the first-stage engine of the lightweight version of the Soyuz rocket family, the Soyuz-2-1v. [27] The NK-33A intended for the Soyuz-2-1v was successfully hot-fired on 15 January 2013, [28] following a series of cold-fire and systems tests of the fully assembled Soyuz-1 in 2011–2012. [29] The NK-33 powered rocket was finally designated Soyuz-2-1v, with its maiden flight having taken place on 28 December 2013. One NK-33 engine replaces the Soyuz's central RD-108, with the four boosters of the first stage omitted. A version of the Soyuz rocket with four boosters powered by NK-33 engines (with one engine per booster) has not been built, which results in a reduced payload compared to the Soyuz-2 launch vehicle.

Versions

During the years there have been many versions of this engine:

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Energia (rocket)</span> Soviet launch vehicle

Energia was a 1980s super-heavy lift launch vehicle. It was designed by NPO Energia of the Soviet Union as part of the Buran program for a variety of payloads including the Buran spacecraft. Control system main developer enterprise was the Khartron NPO "Electropribor". The Energia used four strap-on boosters each powered by a four-chamber RD-170 engine burning kerosene/LOX, and a central core stage with four single-chamber RD-0120 (11D122) engines fueled by liquid hydrogen/LOX.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Soyuz (rocket family)</span> Russian and Soviet rocket family

Soyuz is a family of expendable Russian and Soviet carrier rockets developed by OKB-1 and manufactured by Progress Rocket Space Centre in Samara, Russia. The Soyuz is the rocket with the most launches in the history of spaceflight.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">RP-1</span> Highly refined form of kerosene used as rocket fuel

RP-1 (alternatively, Rocket Propellant-1 or Refined Petroleum-1) is a highly refined form of kerosene outwardly similar to jet fuel, used as rocket fuel. RP-1 provides a lower specific impulse than liquid hydrogen (H2), but is cheaper, is stable at room temperature, and presents a lower explosion hazard. RP-1 is far denser than H2, giving it a higher energy density (though its specific energy is lower). RP-1 also has a fraction of the toxicity and carcinogenic hazards of hydrazine, another room-temperature liquid fuel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">N1 (rocket)</span> Soviet super heavy-lift launch vehicle

The N1/L3 was a super heavy-lift launch vehicle intended to deliver payloads beyond low Earth orbit. The N1 was the Soviet counterpart to the US Saturn V and was intended to enable crewed travel to the Moon and beyond, with studies beginning as early as 1959. Its first stage, Block A, was the most powerful rocket stage ever flown for over 50 years, with the record standing until Starship's first integrated flight test. However, each of the four attempts to launch an N1 failed in flight, with the second attempt resulting in the vehicle crashing back onto its launch pad shortly after liftoff. Adverse characteristics of the large cluster of thirty engines and its complex fuel and oxidizer feeder systems were not revealed earlier in development because static test firings had not been conducted.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Angara (rocket family)</span> Russian family of space launch vehicles

The Angara rocket family is a family of launch vehicles being developed by the Moscow-based Khrunichev State Research and Production Space Center. The launch vehicles are to put between 3,800 kg (8,400 lb) and 24,500 kg (54,000 lb) into low Earth orbit and are intended, along with Soyuz-2 variants, to replace several existing launch vehicles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Staged combustion cycle</span> Rocket engine operation method

The staged combustion cycle is a power cycle of a bipropellant rocket engine. In the staged combustion cycle, propellant flows through multiple combustion chambers, and is thus combusted in stages. The main advantage relative to other rocket engine power cycles is high fuel efficiency, measured through specific impulse, while its main disadvantage is engineering complexity.

The Kuznetsov Design Bureau was a Russian design bureau for aircraft engines, administrated in Soviet times by Nikolai Dmitriyevich Kuznetsov. It was also known as (G)NPO Trud and Kuybyshev Engine Design Bureau (KKBM).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">RD-180</span> Russian rocket engine

The RD-180 is a rocket engine that was designed and built in Russia. It features a dual combustion chamber, dual-nozzle design and is fueled by a RP-1/LOX mixture. The RD-180 is derived from the RD-170 line of rocket engines, which were used in the Soviet Energia launch vehicle. The engine was developed for use on the US Atlas III and Atlas V launch vehicles and first flew in 2000. It was never used on any other rocket. The engine has flown successfully on all six Atlas III flights and on 99 Atlas V flights, with just a single non-critical failure in March 2016.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">RD-170</span> Soviet (now Russian) rocket engine, the most powerful in the world

The RD-170 is the world's most powerful and heaviest liquid-fuel rocket engine. It was designed and produced in the Soviet Union by NPO Energomash for use with the Energia launch vehicle. The engine burns kerosene fuel and LOX oxidizer in four combustion chambers, all supplied by one single-shaft, single-turbine turbopump rated at 170 MW (230,000 hp) in a staged combustion cycle.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kistler K-1</span> Rocket type

The Kistler K-1 was a two-stage, fully reusable launch vehicle design created by Kistler Aerospace. It was to accommodate a wide range of missions, including payload delivery to low Earth orbit (LEO), payload delivery to high-energy orbits with a K-1 Active Dispenser, technology demonstration flights, microgravity missions, and commercial cargo resupply, recovery, and reboost services for the International Space Station (ISS).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">NPO Energomash</span> Russian rocket engine manufacturer

NPO Energomash "V. P. Glushko" is a major Russian rocket engine manufacturer. The company primarily develops and produces liquid propellant rocket engines. Energomash originates from the Soviet design bureau OKB-456, which was founded in 1946. NPO Energomash acquired its current name on May 15, 1991, in honor of its former chief designer Valentin Glushko.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">RD-107</span> Russian rocket engine

The RD-107 and its sibling, the RD-108, are a type of rocket engine used on the R-7 rocket family. RD-107 engines are used in each booster and the RD-108 is used in the central core. The engines have four main combustion chambers and either two (RD-107) or four (RD-108) vernier chambers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Antares (rocket)</span> Medium-lift expendable rocket by Northrop Grumman

Antares, known during early development as Taurus II, is an American expendable medium-lift launch vehicle developed and built by Orbital Sciences Corporation with financial support from NASA under the Commercial Orbital Transportation Services (COTS) program awarded in February 2008, alongside the company's automated cargo spacecraft, Cygnus. Like other launch vehicles developed by Orbital, Antares leveraged lower-cost, off-the-shelf parts and designs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">JSC Kuznetsov</span> Subsidiary of United Engine Corporation

JSC Kuznetsov is one of the leading Russian producers of aircraft engines, liquid-propellant rocket engines as well as aeroderivative gas turbines and modular stations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">RD-191</span> Russian rocket engine

The RD-191 is a high-performance single-combustion chamber rocket engine, developed in Russia and sold by Roscosmos. It is derived from the RD-180 dual-combustion chamber engine, which itself was derived in turn from the four-chamber RD-170 originally used in the Energia launcher.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">RD-0124</span> Russian rocket engine

The RD-0124 is a rocket engine burning liquid oxygen and kerosene in an oxygen-rich staged combustion cycle, developed by the Chemical Automatics Design Bureau in Voronezh. RD-0124 engines are used on the Soyuz-2.1b and Soyuz-2-1v. A variant of the engine, the RD-0124A, is used on the Angara rocket family's URM-2 upper stage.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Soyuz-2-1v</span> Russian expendable carrier rocket

The Soyuz 2.1v, GRAU index 14A15, known early in development as the Soyuz 1, is a expendable Russian medium-lift launch vehicle. It is derivative of the Soyuz 2 but utilizing a single core stage built around the powerful NK-33 engine, 50-year-old refurbished remnants from the Soviet N1 moon rocket. It is a member of the R-7 family of rockets built by Progress in Samara. Launches have been conducted from the Plesetsk Cosmodrome in northwest Russia, and are expected to be conducted in the future from the Vostochny Cosmodrome in eastern Russia, and the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.

The RD-701 is a liquid-fuel rocket engine developed by Energomash, Russia. It was briefly proposed to propel the reusable MAKS space plane, but the project was cancelled shortly before the end of USSR. The RD-701 is a tripropellant engine that uses a staged combustion cycle with afterburning of oxidizer-rich hot turbine gas. The RD-701 has two modes. Mode 1 uses three components: LOX as an oxidizer and a fuel mixture of RP-1 / LH2 which is used in the lower atmosphere. Mode 2 also uses LOX, with LH2 as fuel in vacuum where atmospheric influence is negligible.

The RD-120 is a liquid upper stage rocket engine burning RG-1 and LOX in an oxidizer rich staged combustion cycle with an O/F ratio of 2.6. It is used in the second stage of the Zenit family of launch vehicles. It has a single, fixed combustion chamber and thus on the Zenit it is paired with the RD-8 vernier engine. The engine was developed from 1976 to 1985 by NPO Energomash with V.P. Radovsky leading the development. It is manufactured by, among others, Yuzhmash in Ukraine.

The RD-193 is a high performance single-combustion chamber rocket engine, developed in Russia from 2011 to 2013. It is derived from the RD-170 originally used in the Energia launcher.

References

  1. "LRE NC-33 (11D111) and NC-43 (11D112)" (in Russian). Retrieved 1 April 2015.
  2. "Orbital ATK ready for Antares' second life". NASASpaceflight. 21 January 2016. Retrieved 18 March 2016.
  3. U.S. Air Force-NASA Technology Demonstrator Engine for Future Launch Vehicles Successfully Fired During Initial Full Duration Test.
  4. Reusable Booster System: Review and Assessment. National Academic Press. January 2013. p. 29. Retrieved 23 July 2024.
  5. Astronautix NK-43 entry Archived 28 October 2007 at the Wayback Machine
  6. Lindroos, Marcus. The Soviet Manned Lunar Program Massachusetts Institute of Technology . Accessed: 4 October 2011.
  7. 1 2 Clifton, Dan (1 March 2001). "The Engines That Came in from the Cold". Channel 4. London. Ideal World Productions. Retrieved 3 January 2014.
  8. Cosmodrome History Channel, interviews with Aerojet and Kuznetsov engineers about the history of staged combustion
  9. 1 2 "Space Lift Propulsion". Aerojet. April 2011. Archived from the original on 14 August 2011.
  10. 1 2 Clark, Stephen (19 December 2010). "Taurus 2 main engine passes gimbal steering test". Spaceflight Now. Tonbridge, Kent, UK. Archived from the original on 29 October 2013. Retrieved 3 January 2014.
  11. 1 2 "NK-33". Mark Wade (Encyclopedia Astronautica). Archived from the original on 25 June 2002. Retrieved 25 March 2006.
  12. "Space Propulsion | Development of U.S. Closed-loop Kerolox Engine Stuck in 2nd Gear - SpaceNews.com". 12 July 2013. Retrieved 17 September 2016.
  13. "MODIFICATION AND VERIFICATION TESTING OF A RUSSIAN NK-33 ROCKET ENGINE FOR REUSABLE AND RESTARTABLE APPLICATIONS" (PDF). Aerojet and N.D. Kuznetsov SSTC. Archived (PDF) from the original on 9 March 2019. Retrieved 17 August 2020.
  14. "NASA selects crew, cargo launch partners". Spaceflight Now. 18 August 2006.
  15. "NASA Selects Crew and Cargo Transportation to Orbit Partners". SpaceRef. 18 August 2006. Archived from the original on 26 May 2012.
  16. Alan Boyle (18 August 2006). "SpaceX, Rocketplane win spaceship contest". NBC News. Archived from the original on 4 November 2013.
  17. "RpK's COTS Contract Terminated" (Press release). Aviation Week. 10 September 2007. Archived from the original on 12 May 2011. Retrieved 10 September 2007.
  18. "Antares" (PDF). Orbital.
  19. 1 2 Clark, Stephen (15 March 2010). "Aerojet confirms Russian engine is ready for duty". Spaceflight Now. Archived from the original on 13 August 2013. Retrieved 18 March 2010.
  20. Bill Chappell (21 April 2013). "Antares Rocket Launch Is A Success, In Test Of Orbital Supply Vehicle". NPR.
  21. Dan Leone (24 June 2013). "Orbital Sues ULA, Seeks RD-180 Engines, $515 Million in Damages". Space News. Archived from the original on 30 October 2013.
  22. Amy Butler (24 June 2013). "Orbital Frustrated By Lack Of Antares Engine Options". Aviation Week and Space Technology. Archived from the original on 29 October 2013.
  23. Clark, Stephen (1 November 2015). "Two Antares failure probes produce different results". Spaceflight Now. Retrieved 1 November 2015.
  24. Morring, Frank Jr. (16 December 2014). "Antares Upgrade Will Use RD-181s In Direct Buy From Energomash". Aviation Week. Retrieved 28 December 2014.
  25. "S.P.Korolev RSC Energia - LAUNCHERS". Energia. Archived from the original on 27 May 2008. Retrieved 15 January 2008.
  26. "The Soyuz 1 (Soyuz 2-1v) Rocket". Russian Space Web. November 2010.
  27. Zak, Anatoly. "The Soyuz-1 rocket". Russian Space Web. Retrieved 7 March 2010.
  28. "NK-33 Engine Test Successful" (in Russian). Samara Today. 15 January 2013. Retrieved 3 March 2013.
  29. "Kosmonavtika - par Nicolas Pillet".