RD-58 explained

RD-58M
Country Of Origin:USSR
First Date:1967
Designer:OKB-1, V. M. Melnikov
Manufacturer:Voronezh Mechanical Plant
Purpose:Upper Stage
Associated:N-1, Proton-K, Proton-M, Zenit
Predecessor:S1.5400
Status:In Production
Type:liquid
Oxidiser:LOX
Fuel:RG-1
Cycle:Oxidizer Rich Staged Combustion
Combustion Chamber:1
Thrust(Vac):79.46kN
Specific Impulse Vacuum:353 s
Burn Time:up to 600 s
Used In:Block D

The RD-58 (manufacturer designation 11D58) is a rocket engine, developed in the 1960s by OKB-1, now RKK Energia. The project was managed by Mikhail Melnikov, and it was based on the previous S1.5400 which was the first staged combustion engine in the world. The engine was initially created to power the Block D stage of the Soviet Union's abortive N-1 rocket. Derivatives of this stage are now used as upper stages on some Proton and Zenit rockets. An alternative version of the RD-58 chamber, featuring a shorter nozzle, was used as the N-1's roll-control engine.

The RD-58 uses LOX as the oxidizer and RG-1 as fuel in an oxidizer rich staged combustion cycle. It features a single gimbaled chamber, radial centrifugal pumps with auxiliary booster pumps, and an oxygen-rich preburner. Recent modifications include a lightweight carbon-composite nozzle extender developed by NPO Iskra.

The Buran spacecraft used two of an evolution of the RD-58M, called 17D12, as its main orbital correction engines. Instead of RG-1, it burned Syntin, and could be ignited 15 times. It is assumed that it was the base for the RD-58S, which had practically the same specifications and powered the Blok DM-2M. But the manufacturer states that the engine is compatible with both propellants.

The current version of the engine is the RD-58M (manufacturer designation 11D58M), which has slightly reduced thrust, but increased isp. An even newer version is under development and is known as the RD-58MF (manufacturer designation 11D58MF). It will reduce thrust to 49.03kN to keep the same length but increase expansion ratio to 500:1. This will enable it to gain 20s of isp (to an expected 372s). It will eventually fly on the Blok DM-03. This new version of the engine will be built in the Krasnoyarsk Machine-Building Plant. During a November 2014 interview, Vladimir Kolmykov, the Deputy General Director of the Chemical Division of Krasnoyarsk Machine-Building Plant, stated that the production of Block-DM was suspended during that year, but work on the stage and development of the RD-58MF will resume during 2015.

Versions

This engine has had many versions through the years:

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "RD-58".

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RD-58 Family of Engines
NameRD-58RD-58MRD-58M
(Carbon Composite Nozzle)
RD-58SRD-58ZRD-58MF17D12
Index11D58 11D58M 11D58S 11D58Z 11D58MF
Development years1964-1968 1970-1974 2000-2004 1986-1995 1981-1990 2002-2009 1981-1987
Engine TypeOrbital correction liquid rocket engine
PropellantSyntin/LOX
O/F2.48 2.48 2.82 ? 2.6 2.82 ?
Chamber Pressure7.8MPa 7.75MPa 7.9MPa 7.94MPa 7.8MPa 7.9MPa 7.94MPa
Thrust (Vac)83.4kN 83.4kN 85kN 86.3kN 71kN 49.03kN 86.24kN
Isp (Vac)349isp 356isp 361isp 361isp 361isp 372isp 362isp
Nozzle Expansion189 189 280 189 189 500 189
Ignitions4 4 7 5 5 ? 15
Burntime600 seconds 720 seconds 1200 seconds 680 seconds 660 seconds ? seconds 680 seconds
Length2.27m (07.45feet) 2.27m (07.45feet) 2.72m (08.92feet) 2.27m (07.45feet) 2.27m (07.45feet) 2.27m (07.45feet)
Diameter1.17m (03.84feet) 1.17m (03.84feet) 1.4m (04.6feet) 1.17m (03.84feet) 1.17m (03.84feet) 1.17m (03.84feet)
Weight300kg (700lb) 310kg (680lb) 340kg (750lb) 310kg (680lb) 300kg (700lb) 230kg (510lb)
Used onBuran
First Launch1967-03-10 1974-03-26 2003-06-10 1994-10-13 1999-03-28 ? 1988-11-15
StatusRetired Retired In Production Retired Retired In Production Retired
References