SRB-A

Last updated

SRB-A is a series of Japanese solid-fueled rocket booster manufactured by IHI Corporation for use on the H-IIA, H-IIB, and Epsilon rockets.

Contents

Design

SRB-A is 2.5 meters in diameter, and 15.1 meters in length. Its casing is a carbon-fiber-reinforced polymer filament-wound composite. Two-axis attitude control is provided by electrically-actuated thrust vectoring. [1]

IHI led the development and production of the SRB-A, and various companies also participated in its development and production. For example, the composite fuel is BP-208, developed and manufactured by NOF Corporation (ja), and the carbon fiber, one of the components of the motor case, is T1000GB, developed and manufactured by Toray. [2]

On the other hand, in order to shorten the development time of the SRB-A, foreign technology was used for the molding process of the motor case. [3] The composite motor case design is based on technology used on the Castor 120 motor by Alliant Techsystems, itself based on the first stage motor for the LGM-118 Peacekeeper MIRV-capable intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM). [4]

Versions

SRB-A

The original SRB-A was developed for the H-IIA rocket, and was used on its first 6 flights. It was derived from the SRB used on H-II. During the sixth launch of an H-IIA, one of the boosters failed to separate due to a leak of hot gasses eroding the detachment points, causing the rocket to fail to reach orbit. [1] [5]

SRB-A2

SRB-A2 was a planned upgrade, intended to replace SRB-A on H-IIA. Following the 2003 failure, it was cancelled and its design improvements were merged into the SRB-A Improved.

SRB-A Improved

An improved version of SRB-A was developed following the 2003 incident. The nozzle was changed from a conical to a bell shape, to reduce thermal loading and erosion. Its thrust was also reduced slightly, and its burn time lengthened, to further decrease heating. This version was flown on the seventh through the thirteenth H-IIA. However, the nozzle erosion problem was still not fully solved, leading to the development of the SRB-A3 [1]

SRB-A3

SRB-A3 is the current version, redesigned to provide higher performance and improve reliability. It is available in two variants, one producing high thrust at a short duration burn, and the other with a longer duration lower thrust burn. [1] It has been used on all H-IIA flights past the thirteenth mission, as well as the H-IIB and as the first stage of Epsilon. [1] [6] [7]

Successor

SRB-3

Unlike the SRB-A, the composite motor case of the SRB-3 is manufactured using Japan's own technology, without using ATK's technology. [3]

The SRB-3 used in the H3 and Epsilon S rockets has one ton more propellant than the SRB-A series to increase its launch capability. To improve reliability and reduce cost, the separation mechanism of the SRB-3 has been greatly simplified compared to the SRB-A series, and the nozzle has been changed from a variable type to a fixed type. In the SRB-A series, the burn pattern was different when two or four boosters were used in the H-IIA/B and when used as the first stage of the Epsilon, but in the SRB-3, the burn pattern is the same when two or four boosters are used in the H3 and when the SRB-3 is used as the first stage of the Epsilon S. [8] [3]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Solid-propellant rocket</span> Rocket with a motor that uses solid propellants

A solid-propellant rocket or solid rocket is a rocket with a rocket engine that uses solid propellants (fuel/oxidizer). The earliest rockets were solid-fuel rockets powered by gunpowder; they were used in warfare by the Chinese, Indians, Mongols and Persians as early as the 13th century.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Expendable launch system</span> Launch system that uses a single use launch vehicle

An expendable launch system is a launch vehicle that can be launched only once, after which its components are either destroyed during reentry or discarded in space. ELVs typically consist of several rocket stages that are discarded sequentially as their fuel is exhausted and the vehicle gains altitude and speed. As of 2022, most satellites and human spacecraft are currently launched on ELVs. ELVs are simpler in design than reusable launch systems and therefore may have a lower production cost. Furthermore, an ELV can use its entire fuel supply to accelerate its payload, offering greater payloads. ELVs are proven technology in widespread use for many decades.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Space Shuttle Solid Rocket Booster</span> Solid propellant rocket used to launch Space Shuttle orbiter.

The Space Shuttle Solid Rocket Booster (SRB) was the first solid-propellant rocket to be used for primary propulsion on a vehicle used for human spaceflight. A pair of these provided 85% of the Space Shuttle's thrust at liftoff and for the first two minutes of ascent. After burnout, they were jettisoned and parachuted into the Atlantic Ocean where they were recovered, examined, refurbished, and reused.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">JAXA</span> Japans national air and space agency

The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) is the Japanese national air and space agency. Through the merger of three previously independent organizations, JAXA was formed on 1 October 2003. JAXA is responsible for research, technology development and launch of satellites into orbit, and is involved in many more advanced missions such as asteroid exploration and possible human exploration of the Moon. Its motto is One JAXA and its corporate slogan is Explore to Realize.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">H-II Transfer Vehicle</span> Uncrewed cargo spacecraft developed by JAXA

The H-II Transfer Vehicle (HTV), also called Kounotori, is an expendable, automated cargo spacecraft used to resupply the Kibō Japanese Experiment Module (JEM) and the International Space Station (ISS). The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) has been working on the design since the early 1990s. The first mission, HTV-1, was originally intended to be launched in 2001. It launched at 17:01 UTC on 10 September 2009 on an H-IIB launch vehicle. The name Kounotori was chosen for the HTV by JAXA because "a white stork carries an image of conveying an important thing, therefore, it precisely expresses the HTV's mission to transport essential materials to the ISS". The HTV is very important for resupplying the ISS because after the retirement of the Space Shuttle it is the only vehicle that can transfer new 41.3 in (105 cm) wide International Standard Payload Racks (ISPRs) and dispose old ISPRs that can fit the 51 in (130 cm) wide tunnels between modules in the US Orbital Segment.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">H-IIA</span> Expendable medium-lift launch vehicle

H-IIA (H-2A) is an active expendable launch system operated by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) for the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency. These liquid fuel rockets have been used to launch satellites into geostationary orbit; lunar orbiting spacecraft; Akatsuki, which studied the planet Venus; and the Emirates Mars Mission, which was launched to Mars in July 2020. Launches occur at the Tanegashima Space Center. The H-IIA first flew in 2001. As of December 2021, H-IIA rockets were launched 45 times, including 39 consecutive missions without a failure, dating back to 29 November 2003.

Delta III was an expendable launch vehicle made by McDonnell Douglas. The vehicle was developed from the highly-successful Delta II to help meet the launch demand of larger satellites. The first Delta III launch was on August 26, 1998. Of its three flights, the first two were failures, and the third, though declared successful, reached the low end of its targeted orbit range and carried only a dummy (inert) payload. The Delta III could deliver up to 3,810 kg (8,400 lb) to geostationary transfer orbit, twice the payload of its predecessor, the Delta II. Under the four-digit designation system from earlier Delta rockets, the Delta III is classified as the Delta 8930.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tanegashima Space Center</span> Rocket-launch complex in Japan

The Tanegashima Space Center (TNSC) is the largest rocket-launch complex in Japan with a total area of about 9.7 square kilometers. It is located on the southeast coast of Tanegashima, an island approximately 40 kilometers (25 mi) south of Kyushu. It was established in 1969 when the National Space Development Agency of Japan (NASDA) was formed, and is now run by JAXA.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">H-IIB</span> Expendable launch system

H-IIB (H2B) was an expendable space launch system jointly developed by the Japanese government's space agency JAXA and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries. It was used to launch the H-II Transfer Vehicle cargo spacecraft for the International Space Station. The H-IIB was a liquid-fueled rocket, with solid-fuel strap-on boosters and was launched from the Tanegashima Space Center in southern Japan. H-IIB made its first flight in 2009, and had made a total of nine flights through 2020 with no failures.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Castor (rocket stage)</span> Solid-fuel orbital vehicle component

Castor is a family of solid-fuel rocket stages and boosters built by Thiokol and used on a variety of launch vehicles. They were initially developed as the second-stage motor of the Scout rocket. The design was based on the MGM-29 Sergeant, a surface-to-surface missile developed for the United States Army at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LE-7</span> Japanese hydrolox staged combustion rocket engine

The LE-7 and its succeeding upgrade model the LE-7A are staged combustion cycle LH2/LOX liquid rocket engines produced in Japan for the H-II series of launch vehicles. Design and production work was all done domestically in Japan, the first major (main/first-stage) liquid rocket engine with that claim, in a collaborative effort from the National Space Development Agency (NASDA), Aerospace Engineering Laboratory (NAL), Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, and Ishikawajima-Harima. NASDA and NAL have since been integrated into JAXA. However, a large part of the work was contracted to Mitsubishi, with Ishikawajima-Harima providing turbomachinery, and the engine is often referred to as the Mitsubishi LE-7(A).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LE-5</span> Japanese hydrolox rocket engine used on the H3 upper stage

The LE-5 liquid rocket engine and its derivative models were developed in Japan to meet the need for an upper stage propulsion system for the H-I and H-II series of launch vehicles. It is a bipropellant design, using LH2 and LOX. Primary design and production work was carried out by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries. In terms of liquid rockets, it is a fairly small engine, both in size and thrust output, being in the 89 kN (20,000 lbf) and the more recent models the 130 kN (30,000 lbf) thrust class. The motor is capable of multiple restarts, due to a spark ignition system as opposed to the single use pyrotechnic or hypergolic igniters commonly used on some contemporary engines. Though rated for up to 16 starts and 40+ minutes of firing time, on the H-II the engine is considered expendable, being used for one flight and jettisoned. It is sometimes started only once for a nine-minute burn, but in missions to GTO the engine is often fired a second time to inject the payload into the higher orbit after a temporary low Earth orbit has been established.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Japanese space program</span> Space program of Japan

The Japanese space program originated in the mid-1950s as a research group led by Hideo Itokawa at the University of Tokyo. The size of the rockets produced gradually increased from under 30 cm (12 in) at the start of the project, to over 15 m (49 ft) by the mid-1960s. The aim of the original research project was to launch a man-made satellite.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Epsilon (rocket)</span> JAXA small-lift rocket family

The Epsilon Launch Vehicle, or Epsilon rocket, is a Japanese solid-fuel rocket designed to launch scientific satellites. It is a follow-on project to the larger and more expensive M-V rocket which was retired in 2006. The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) began developing the Epsilon in 2007. It is capable of placing a 590 kg payload into Sun-synchronous orbit.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">H3 (rocket)</span> Japanese expendable launch system

The H3 Launch Vehicle is a Japanese expendable launch system. H3 launch vehicles are liquid-propellant rockets with strap-on solid rocket boosters and are launched from Tanegashima Space Center in Japan. Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) and JAXA are responsible for the design, manufacture, and operation of the H3. The H3 is the world's first rocket to use an expander bleed cycle for the first stage engine.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">AJ-60A</span>

AJ-60A is a solid rocket booster produced by Aerojet Rocketdyne. Up to 2020 they were used as strap-on boosters on the United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">OmegA</span> Canceled US launch vehicle

OmegA was a medium-lift to heavy-lift launch vehicle concept that spent several years in development by Northrop Grumman during 2016–2020, with that development substantially funded by the U.S. government. OmegA was intended for launching U.S. national security satellites, as part of the U.S. Department of the Air Force National Security Space Launch (NSSL) replacement program.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Solid Rocket Motor Upgrade</span> American solid propellant rocket motor

The Solid Rocket Motor Upgrade (SRMU) was a solid rocket motor that was used as a booster on the Titan IVB launch vehicle. Developed by Hercules, it was intended to be a high-performance, low-cost upgrade to the UA1207 boosters previously used on Titan IV. Wound from carbon-fibre-reinforced polymer and burning a hydroxyl-terminated polybutadiene-bound ammonium perchlorate composite propellant, it was an ambitious upgrade building on Hercules' experience developing a filament-wound case for the Space Shuttle SRB. Originally intended to fly in 1990, it instead first flew in 1997 due to a protracted development and lack of demand. The SRMU performed successfully on all of its flights.

RAISE-3 is a smallsat for technology demonstration developed by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI). Part of the Japanese space agency JAXA's Innovative Satellite Technology Demonstration Program, RAISE-3 carried multiple technologies that were selected for in-orbit demonstration. RAISE-3 was launched on 12 October 2022 by an Epsilon rocket as the main satellite of Innovative Satellite Technology Demonstration-3, but the launch resulted in a failure and the satellite was lost.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "SRB-A Engine Overview". JAXA . Retrieved 14 February 2016.[ permanent dead link ]
  2. ↑ "JAXA、H-IIB ロケットで宇宙ステーション補給機７号機(HTV7 「こうのとり」)を打上げ". Tokyo Express. 28 September 2018. Archived from the original on 2 October 2022. Retrieved 18 February 2023.
  3. 1 2 3 "宇宙に吼えろ! 新型固体ロケットブースター「SRB-3」燃焼試験取材 第2回 カギは国産化と簡素化 - 先代から大きく進化を遂げた「SRB-3」". マイナビニュース. 7 September 2018. Archived from the original on 17 February 2023. Retrieved 17 February 2023.
  4. ↑ "ATK Composite Technology Supports Maiden Flight of Japan's H-IIA Space Launch Vehicle". ATK. August 29, 2001. Archived from the original on 2013-12-26.
  5. ↑ Stephen Clark; Justin Ray (29 November 2003). "Japanese launch fails". Spaceflight Now. Retrieved 14 February 2016.
  6. ↑ "H-IIB Launch Vehicle" (PDF). JAXA. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 26, 2014. Retrieved 14 February 2016.
  7. ↑ "Epsilon Launch Vehicle" (PDF). JAXA. Retrieved 14 February 2016.
  8. ↑ "H3プロジェクト前進へ" (PDF). 宇宙航空の最新情報マガジン JAXA's. JAXA. 74: 10. 1 October 2018. Archived from the original (PDF) on 18 March 2022. Retrieved 17 February 2023.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.