Energomash: RD-181 rocket engines can be reused

The other day, the chief designer of NPO Enregomash PS Levochkin said that the RD-181 rocket engines can be used several times. The statement was made due to the fact that engines of this type for the first stage of the Antares launch vehicle, which was launched on May 21, were previously used in the firing test as part of the first stage of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

During the test, all systems and the engine were involved, the duration was about 30 seconds. Engine testing was performed at the launch site of the Mid-Atlantic Regional Space Center (MARS) in Virginia, USA. After testing, engineers performed an analysis of the operating parameters of all launch vehicle systems, including engines. A diagnosis of the condition of the material part was also performed. The analysis showed that the stage can be used for starting.

“We carried out this work as part of our contractual obligations with Orbital ATK. So thanks to our foreign partners and the launch vehicle Antares, the whole world was able to visually see the possibility of reusable use of our engines. And although we have experience in creating reusable engines (RD-170 was certified for 10-fold use), today this was first demonstrated as part of a launch vehicle, ”said the chief designer of the NPO Energomash P.S. Levochkin.

RD-181 - single-chamber liquid-propellant rocket engine with afterburning of oxidizing generator gas. The main fuel is kerosene, liquid oxygen acts as an oxidizing agent. In May 2015, engine certification was completed.

In the same year, the first RD-181 were delivered to the United States, and the following year, the Antares-230 launch vehicleWith engines RD-181 successfully launched from the cosmodrome on the island of Wallops. Three successful launches of the launch vehicle with Russian engines have been carried out now. With its help, the spacecraft Cygnus is sent to space as part of servicing the ISS.