Chemical Automatics Design Bureau
Encyclopedia
Chemical Automatics Design Bureau (CADB), also KB Khimavtomatika is a Russian Design Bureau founded by the NKAP (People’s Commissariat of the Aircraft Industry) in 1941 and led by Semyon Kosberg
until his death in 1965. Its origin dates back to a 1940 Moscow carburetor factory, evacuated to Berdsk
in 1941, and then relocated to Voronezh
in 1945, where it now operates. Originally designated OKB-296 and tasked to develop fuel equipment for aviation engines, it was redesignated OKB-154 in 1946.
In 1965 A.D.Konopatov took over leadership. He was succeeded by V.S.Rachuk in 1993. During this time the company designed a wide range of high technology products, including liquid propellant rocket engines, a nuclear reactor for space use, the first Soviet gas laser with an output of 1 MW and the USSR's only operational nuclear rocket engine. The company has designed more than 60 liquid propellant engines with some 30 having entered production.
, Siberia
, where Kosberg and his team of about 30 specialists developed direct injection
fuel systems, eventually implemented on the La-5, La-7
, Tupolev Tu-2
and Tu-2D. The new fuel systems provided a significant increase in performance over conventional gasoline fuel systems and eliminated carburetor float problems caused by aggressive combat flying. They competed with direct injection systems developed by Daimler Benz at the time. After the end of the war, the design bureau was moved to Voronezh where it continued to design fuel systems for piston, turboprop and jet aircraft.
and E-50A, and from 1957-1962 they designed engines for anti-aircraft guided missiles. By the early 60's the bureau was designing Liquid Propellant Rocket Engines (LPREs) for man-rated space launch vehicles.
Over several decades, the CADB became one of the Soviet Union's premier developers of LPREs, designing engines for the SS-11
, SS-18 and SS-19 and ballistic missiles, among others. In one unique design, the engine is submerged in the UDMH
propellant tank to save space (SS-N-23
submarine launched ballistic missile). They also designed upper stage engines for the Soyuz and Proton space launch vehicles, along with the core engines for the Energia
. The large volume of design work and continuous refinement led to a high degree of technical capability. During this same period in the United States (late 60s - early 70s), liquid engines on missiles were dropped in favor of solids, and the only LPRE being developed was the Space Shuttle Main Engine
. The Kosberg design bureau parlayed their experience into the RD-0120 - the Soviet's first cryogenic engine with over 40 tonnes thrust. Despite designing mostly LOX/Kerosene or N2O4/UDMH engines, the LOX/LH2 RD-0120 had similar ratings and performance as the SSME, but with a lower cost due to the choice of technology.
CADB is currently offering the RD-0146 to the international market as an alternative to the RL-10
. With a reduction in the market for LPRE's, the company has expanded into related fields, designing products for oil and gas, agricultural and medical industries.
Semyon Kosberg
Semyon Ariyevich Kosberg was a Jewish Soviet engineer, expert in the field of aircraft and rocket engines, Doctor of Technical Sciences , Hero of Socialist Labor .In 1931, Semyon Kosberg graduated from the Moscow Aviation Institute...
until his death in 1965. Its origin dates back to a 1940 Moscow carburetor factory, evacuated to Berdsk
Berdsk
Berdsk is a town in Novosibirsk Oblast, Russia, a satellite of Novosibirsk, situated on a bank of the Berd River. Population: It was founded in 1716 as a fortress. Town status was granted to it in 1944...
in 1941, and then relocated to Voronezh
Voronezh
Voronezh is a city in southwestern Russia, the administrative center of Voronezh Oblast. It is located on both sides of the Voronezh River, away from where it flows into the Don. It is an operating center of the Southeastern Railway , as well as the center of the Don Highway...
in 1945, where it now operates. Originally designated OKB-296 and tasked to develop fuel equipment for aviation engines, it was redesignated OKB-154 in 1946.
In 1965 A.D.Konopatov took over leadership. He was succeeded by V.S.Rachuk in 1993. During this time the company designed a wide range of high technology products, including liquid propellant rocket engines, a nuclear reactor for space use, the first Soviet gas laser with an output of 1 MW and the USSR's only operational nuclear rocket engine. The company has designed more than 60 liquid propellant engines with some 30 having entered production.
WWII
KB Khimavtomatika's original mandate was to develop aviation fuel systems for Soviet military during World War II. Kosberg had spent ten years working at the Central Institute of Aircraft Engine Construction on fuel systems and was tapped to run the new bureau. Approaching German armies required the group to relocate to BerdskBerdsk
Berdsk is a town in Novosibirsk Oblast, Russia, a satellite of Novosibirsk, situated on a bank of the Berd River. Population: It was founded in 1716 as a fortress. Town status was granted to it in 1944...
, Siberia
Siberia
Siberia is an extensive region constituting almost all of Northern Asia. Comprising the central and eastern portion of the Russian Federation, it was part of the Soviet Union from its beginning, as its predecessor states, the Tsardom of Russia and the Russian Empire, conquered it during the 16th...
, where Kosberg and his team of about 30 specialists developed direct injection
Gasoline direct injection
In internal combustion engines, gasoline direct injection , also known as petrol direct injection or direct petrol injection, is a variant of fuel injection employed in modern two-stroke and four-stroke gasoline engines...
fuel systems, eventually implemented on the La-5, La-7
LA-7
LA-7 or LA 7 can refer to:*Television series L.A. 7*WW2 Soviet aircraft La-7*Italian Television channel La7*Louisiana's 7th congressional district*Louisiana Highway 7...
, Tupolev Tu-2
Tupolev Tu-2
|-See also:-References:NotesBibliography* Bishop, Chris. The Encyclopedia of Weapons of WWII: The Comprehensive Guide to Over 1,500 Weapons Systems, Including Tanks, Small Arms, Warplanes, Artillery, Ships, and Submarines. New York: Sterling, 2002. ISBN 1-58663-762-2.* Ethell, Jeffrey L. Aircraft...
and Tu-2D. The new fuel systems provided a significant increase in performance over conventional gasoline fuel systems and eliminated carburetor float problems caused by aggressive combat flying. They competed with direct injection systems developed by Daimler Benz at the time. After the end of the war, the design bureau was moved to Voronezh where it continued to design fuel systems for piston, turboprop and jet aircraft.
Liquid Propellant Rocket Engines
By 1954 the bureau was designing liquid-propellant rocket engines for super performance and experimental aircraft, the Yak-27VYakovlev Yak-25
The Yakovlev Yak-25 was a swept wing, turbojet-powered interceptor aircraft and reconnaissance aircraft built by Yakovlev and used by the Soviet Union.-Design and development:...
and E-50A, and from 1957-1962 they designed engines for anti-aircraft guided missiles. By the early 60's the bureau was designing Liquid Propellant Rocket Engines (LPREs) for man-rated space launch vehicles.
Over several decades, the CADB became one of the Soviet Union's premier developers of LPREs, designing engines for the SS-11
SS-11
SS-11 may refer to:* SS-11 Sego - Soviet intercontinental ballistic missile UR-100* SS.11 - French anti-tank missile...
, SS-18 and SS-19 and ballistic missiles, among others. In one unique design, the engine is submerged in the UDMH
UDMH
Unsymmetrical dimethylhydrazine is a toxic volatile hygroscopic clear liquid, with a sharp, fishy, ammoniacal smell typical for organic amines. It turns yellowish on exposure to air and absorbs oxygen and carbon dioxide. It mixes completely with water, ethanol, and kerosene. In concentration...
propellant tank to save space (SS-N-23
SS-N-23
The R-29RM Shtil is a liquid propellant, submarine-launched ballistic missile in use by Russia. It has the alternate Russian designations RSM-54 and 3M27...
submarine launched ballistic missile). They also designed upper stage engines for the Soyuz and Proton space launch vehicles, along with the core engines for the Energia
Energia
Energia was a Soviet rocket that was designed by NPO Energia to serve as a heavy-lift expendable launch system as well as a booster for the Buran spacecraft. Control system main developer enterprise was the NPO "Electropribor"...
. The large volume of design work and continuous refinement led to a high degree of technical capability. During this same period in the United States (late 60s - early 70s), liquid engines on missiles were dropped in favor of solids, and the only LPRE being developed was the Space Shuttle Main Engine
Space Shuttle main engine
The RS-25, otherwise known as the Space Shuttle Main Engine , is a reusable liquid-fuel rocket engine built by Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne for the Space Shuttle, running on liquid hydrogen and oxygen. Each Space Shuttle was propelled by three SSMEs mated to one powerhead...
. The Kosberg design bureau parlayed their experience into the RD-0120 - the Soviet's first cryogenic engine with over 40 tonnes thrust. Despite designing mostly LOX/Kerosene or N2O4/UDMH engines, the LOX/LH2 RD-0120 had similar ratings and performance as the SSME, but with a lower cost due to the choice of technology.
CADB is currently offering the RD-0146 to the international market as an alternative to the RL-10
RL-10
The RL10 was USA's first liquid hydrogen fueled rocket engine. An updated version is used in several current launch vehicles. Six RL10 engines were used in the S-IV second stage of the Saturn I rocket. One or two RL10 engines are used in the Centaur upper stages of Atlas and Titan rockets...
. With a reduction in the market for LPRE's, the company has expanded into related fields, designing products for oil and gas, agricultural and medical industries.
Notable engine designs
| Engine | Other Designations | Thermodynamic Cycle | Thrust, kN (vacuum) | Specific Impulse Specific impulse Specific impulse is a way to describe the efficiency of rocket and jet engines. It represents the derivative of the impulse with respect to amount of propellant used, i.e., the thrust divided by the amount of propellant used per unit time. If the "amount" of propellant is given in terms of mass ,... , s (vacuum) |
Propellants Liquid rocket propellants The highest specific impulse chemical rockets use liquid propellants. This type of propellant has a long history going back to the first rockets and is still in use, for example in the Space Shuttle and Ariane 5.-Early development:... |
Engine Mass, kg | Development period | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| RD-0110 | 11D55, RD-461 | Gas Generator Gas-generator cycle (rocket) The gas generator cycle is a power cycle of a bipropellant rocket engine. Some of the propellant is burned in a gas-generator and the resulting hot gas is used to power the engine's pumps. The gas is then exhausted... |
298 | 326 | LOX/Kerosene | 408 | 1963–1967 | Soyuz, Molniya Molniya (rocket) Molniya 8K78 was a modification of the well-known R-7 Semyorka rocket and had four stages.This derivative of the original three stage Vostok rocket was especially designed to bring high flying satellites into orbit or to launch probes to other planets. The first launch of this rocket was on... , 3rd stage, http://www.astronautix.com/engines/rd0110.htm |
| RD-0120 | 11D122, RO-200 | Staged Combustion Staged combustion cycle (rocket) The staged combustion cycle, also called topping cycle or pre-burner cycle, is a thermodynamic cycle of bipropellant rocket engines. Some of the propellant is burned in a pre-burner and the resulting hot gas is used to power the engine's turbines and pumps... |
1962 | 455 | LOX/LH2 | 3450 | 1967–1983 | Energia Energia Energia was a Soviet rocket that was designed by NPO Energia to serve as a heavy-lift expendable launch system as well as a booster for the Buran spacecraft. Control system main developer enterprise was the NPO "Electropribor"... , core, http://www.astronautix.com/engines/rd0120.htm, http://www.buran.ru/htm/11-3.htm, http://www.buran.ru/htm/rd0120.htm |
| RD-0124 RD-0124 The RD-0124 is a rocket engine burning liquid oxygen and kerosene in a staged combustion cycle. RD-0124 engines are used on the Soyuz-2.1b. A modification of the engine will also be used on the second stage of some rockets in the planned Angara rocket family... |
14D451M, 14D23 | Staged Combustion | 294 | 359 | LOX/Kerosene | 450 | 1996–1999 | Soyuz, 3rd stage, http://www.astronautix.com/engines/rd0124.htm |
| RD-0146 RD-0146 The RD-0146 is a Russian cryogenic rocket engine. It is said to be the Russian version of the Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne RL10 engine. The RD-0146 engine was developed by KBKhA design bureau in Voronezh, Russia, in cooperation with the American Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne company... |
Expander Expander cycle (rocket) The expander cycle is a power cycle of a bipropellant rocket engine meant to improve the efficiency of fuel delivery.In an expander cycle, the fuel is heated before it is combusted, usually with waste heat from the main combustion chamber. As the liquid fuel passes through coolant passages in the... |
98 | 451 | LOX/LH2 | 242 | 2000- | Replacement for the RL10A-4-1 RL-10 The RL10 was USA's first liquid hydrogen fueled rocket engine. An updated version is used in several current launch vehicles. Six RL10 engines were used in the S-IV second stage of the Saturn I rocket. One or two RL10 engines are used in the Centaur upper stages of Atlas and Titan rockets... , http://www.pw.utc.com/vgn-ext-templating/v/index.jsp?vgnextrefresh=1&vgnextoid=e3b90030296eb010VgnVCM1000000881000aRCRD, http://www.astronautix.com/engines/rd0146.htm |
|
| RD-0210 | 8D411K, RD-465, 8D49 | Staged Combustion | 598 | 326 | N2O4/UDMH | 565 | 1963–1967 | Proton, 2nd stage http://www.astronautix.com/engines/rd0210.htm |
| RD-0410 RD-0410 RD-0410 was a Soviet nuclear thermal rocket engine developed from 1965 through the 1980s using liquid hydrogen propellant... |
11B91 | Expander | 35.3 | 910 | Nuclear/LH2 | 2000 | 1965–1994 | The only operational nuclear engine in the USSR/Russia, http://www.astronautix.com/engines/rd0410.htm, http://www.novosti-kosmonavtiki.ru/content/numbers/218/58.shtml, http://www.fplib.org/partners/mwade/articles/sovermal.htm |
| RD-0243 | Staged Combustion | 825 | 300 | N2O4/UDMH | 853 | 1977–1985 | SS-N-23 submarine launched ballistic missile, http://www.astronautix.com/engines/rd0243.htm, http://www.astronautix.com/engines/rd0244.htm, http://www.astronautix.com/engines/rd0245.htm | |