The YF-115 is a
Chinese
Chinese can refer to:
* Something related to China
* Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity
**''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation
** List of ethnic groups in China, people of va ...
liquid
A liquid is a nearly incompressible fluid that conforms to the shape of its container but retains a (nearly) constant volume independent of pressure. As such, it is one of the four fundamental states of matter (the others being solid, gas, a ...
rocket engine
A rocket engine uses stored rocket propellants as the reaction mass for forming a high-speed propulsive jet of fluid, usually high-temperature gas. Rocket engines are reaction engines, producing thrust by ejecting mass rearward, in accordanc ...
burning
LOX
Liquid oxygen—abbreviated LOx, LOX or Lox in the aerospace, submarine and gas industries—is the liquid form of molecular oxygen. It was used as the oxidizer in the first liquid-fueled rocket invented in 1926 by Robert H. Goddard, an applica ...
and
kerosene
Kerosene, paraffin, or lamp oil is a combustible hydrocarbon liquid which is derived from petroleum. It is widely used as a fuel in aviation as well as households. Its name derives from el, κηρός (''keros'') meaning "wax", and was regi ...
in an oxidizer-rich
staged combustion
Staged combustion is a method used to reduce the emission of nitrogen oxides ( NOx) during combustion. There are two methods for staged combustion: air staged supply and fuel staged supply. Applications of staged combustion include boilers and ro ...
cycle.
A high efficiency/high thrust environmental friendly rocket engine was always an objective within
Programme 863. Development began in the 2000s, along with its sibling, the bigger
YF-100
The YF-100 is a Chinese liquid rocket engine burning LOX and kerosene in an oxidizer-rich staged combustion cycle.
Development of the engine began in the 2000s, along with its sibling, the smaller YF-115, which would power the LM-6 and LM-7 u ...
, which would power the
LM-5,
LM-6 and
LM-7 boosters and first stages.
Testing was directed by the China National Space Administration (CNSA) commencing in 2005. Development works are mainly carried out by the Xi'an Aerospace Propulsion Institute. It will be used as upper stage engine for China's next generation of medium and light environmental-friendly launch vehicles, namely the
Long March 6
The Long March 6 () or Chang Zheng 6 as in pinyin, abbreviated LM 6 for export or CZ 6 within China, is a Chinese liquid-fuelled launch vehicle of the Long March family, which was developed by the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corpor ...
and the
Long March 7
, stages = {{plainlist,
* CZ-7: Two
* CZ-7A: Three {{cite web, url=https://www.space.com/china-space-program-new-long-march-rockets.html, last=Jones, first=Andrew, title=China prepares to launch new rockets as part of push to boost spac ...
.
During early 2012, the engine system successfully passed vacuum testing.
It is China's first upper stage rocket engine to adopt the staged-combustion cycle.
In the
LM-6 upper stage it will use a single YF-115 with
gimbaled
A gimbal is a pivoted support that permits rotation of an object about an axis. A set of three gimbals, one mounted on the other with orthogonal pivot axes, may be used to allow an object mounted on the innermost gimbal to remain independent of ...
mount. While the
LM-7 upper stage will use four such engines. But in this latter case, two engines will be fixed and two will be gimbaled.
See also
*
LM-6 – Rocket family that uses the YF-115.
*
LM-7 – Rocket family that uses the YF-115.
*
YF-100
The YF-100 is a Chinese liquid rocket engine burning LOX and kerosene in an oxidizer-rich staged combustion cycle.
Development of the engine began in the 2000s, along with its sibling, the smaller YF-115, which would power the LM-6 and LM-7 u ...
– First stage Chinese rocket engine which is the technological base of the YF-115.
References
Rocket engines of China
Rocket engines using kerosene propellant
Rocket engines using the staged combustion cycle
{{rocket-stub