The RD-214 (

GRAU The Main Missile and Artillery Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation (), commonly referred to by its transliterated acronym GRAU (), is a department of the Russian Ministry of Defense. It is subordinate to the Chief of ...

Index 8D59) was a

liquid Liquid is a state of matter with a definite volume but no fixed shape. Liquids adapt to the shape of their container and are nearly incompressible, maintaining their volume even under pressure. The density of a liquid is usually close to th ...

rocket engine A rocket engine is a reaction engine, producing thrust in accordance with Newton's third law by ejecting reaction mass rearward, usually a high-speed Jet (fluid), jet of high-temperature gas produced by the combustion of rocket propellants stor ...

, burning AK-27I (a mixture of 73%

nitric acid Nitric acid is an inorganic compound with the formula . It is a highly corrosive mineral acid. The compound is colorless, but samples tend to acquire a yellow cast over time due to decomposition into nitrogen oxide, oxides of nitrogen. Most com ...

and 27% N₂O₄ +

iodine Iodine is a chemical element; it has symbol I and atomic number 53. The heaviest of the stable halogens, it exists at standard conditions as a semi-lustrous, non-metallic solid that melts to form a deep violet liquid at , and boils to a vi ...

passivant and TM-185 (a

kerosene Kerosene, or paraffin, is a combustibility, combustible hydrocarbon liquid which is derived from petroleum. It is widely used as a fuel in Aviation fuel, aviation as well as households. Its name derives from the Greek (''kērós'') meaning " ...

and

gasoline Gasoline ( North American English) or petrol ( Commonwealth English) is a petrochemical product characterized as a transparent, yellowish, and flammable liquid normally used as a fuel for spark-ignited internal combustion engines. When for ...

mix) in the

gas generator A gas generator is a device for generating gas. A gas generator may create gas by a chemical reaction or from a solid or liquid source, when storing a pressurized gas is undesirable or impractical. The term often refers to a device that uses a ...

cycle. As was the case with many

V-2 The V2 (), with the technical name '' Aggregat-4'' (A4), was the world's first long-range guided ballistic missile. The missile, powered by a liquid-propellant rocket engine, was developed during the Second World War in Nazi Germany as a " ven ...

influenced engines, the single turbine was driven by steam generated by

catalytic Catalysis () is the increase in reaction rate, rate of a chemical reaction due to an added substance known as a catalyst (). Catalysts are not consumed by the reaction and remain unchanged after it. If the reaction is rapid and the catalyst ...

decomposition of

hydrogen peroxide Hydrogen peroxide is a chemical compound with the formula . In its pure form, it is a very pale blue liquid that is slightly more viscosity, viscous than Properties of water, water. It is used as an oxidizer, bleaching agent, and antiseptic, usua ...

. It also had four combustion chambers and

vector control Vector control is any method to limit or eradicate the mammals, birds, insects or other arthropods (here collectively called " vectors") which transmit disease pathogens. The most frequent type of vector control is mosquito control using a varie ...

was achieved by refractory vanes protruding into the nozzle's exhaust.

Development

For the requirements to have storable propellants and higher thrust, Glushko's OKB-456 developed the RD-211, which had four combustion chambers, each having twice the thrust of the RD-100, a Russian adaptation of the V-2 A-4 engine. The four chambers were fed from a single

turbopump A turbopump is a fluid pump with two main components: a rotodynamic pump and a driving gas turbine, usually both mounted on the same shaft, or sometimes geared together. They were initially developed in Germany in the early 1940s. The most co ...

powered by steam generated from catalytic decomposition of hydrogen peroxide. When then came the requirement for the Buran

cruise missile A cruise missile is an unmanned self-propelled guided missile that sustains flight through aerodynamic lift for most of its flight path. Cruise missiles are designed to deliver a large payload over long distances with high precision. Modern cru ...

project, a version for that application was developed in the RD-212. Both RD-211 and RD-212 proved too weak for the application and the project were abandoned for the RD-213 for Buran. When Yangel's

OKB-586 The ''Pivdenne'' Design Office (), located in Dnipro, Ukraine, is a designer of satellites and rockets, and formerly of Soviet Union, Soviet intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs), established by Mikhail Yangel. During the Soviet era, the bu ...

was tasked with developing the first storable propellant

ballistic missile A ballistic missile is a type of missile that uses projectile motion to deliver warheads on a target. These weapons are powered only during relatively brief periods—most of the flight is unpowered. Short-range ballistic missiles (SRBM) typic ...

in the Soviet arsenal, the RD-211 proved too weak. Thus, the project was definitely abandoned and the more powerful RD-214 was developed. While Korolev's refusal to use toxic propellants basically left him out of the ballistic missile development race, the basic design of the RD-211 also served as basis for the

RD-107 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 (each with ...

RD-108 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 (each with ...

engine, which went to be the most flown rocket engines in history. The initial R-12 was a pad launched missile. It had significant operative issues on readiness and vulnerability. Thus, the silo launched R-12U was developed. For this development the RD-214U was developed. When Yangel used the R-12U as the basis for the

Kosmos-2 The Kosmos (also spelled Cosmos, Russian: ) rockets were a series of Soviet and subsequently Russian rockets, derived from the R-12 and R-14 missiles, the best known of which is the Kosmos-3M, which has made over 440 launches. The Kosmos fami ...

63S1, the RD-214F was developed and fire tested, but in the end the stock R-12U was used as first stage. So it was for all subsequent 63S1M and 11K63.

Versions

This engine many versions: *RD-211:

Index 8D57. Original design for the R-12. Based on the RD-100, itself an adaptation of the V-2 A4 engine. This engine already had four separate combustion chambers, an H₂O₂ steam driven turbine and required vanes in the exhaust to control the rocket. *RD-212:

Index 8D41. Originally developed from the RD-211 for the Buran

project. Project drop in favor of RD-213 due to insufficient thrust. *RD-213:

Index 8D13. Similar to the RD-214. Developed for the Buran

project. Cancelled with the project. *RD-214:

Index 8D59. Original version of the engine designed for the R-12 (8K63). *RD-214U:

Index 8D59. Improved version of the engine. Flew on the R-12U (8K63S) and

(11K63) launch vehicle. *RD-214F:

Index 11D45. Project for the initial version of

(63S1).

References

External links

NPO Energomash official site.
{{Rocket engines Rocket engines of the Soviet Union Rocket engines using the gas-generator cycle Rocket engines using hypergolic propellant Energomash rocket engines

Development

Versions

See also

References

External links