Jane Edwards
Aerojet Rocketdyne has conducted
a hot-fire test of an engine technology the company built for NASA’s Space Launch System rocket.
The company said Tuesday it performed the RS-25 engine test at the agency’s Stennis Space Center in Mississippi and assessed the performance of the main combustion chamber during the 319-second engine fire test attended by NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine.
MCC is an RS-25 engine component developed through the hot isostatic pressing bonding technique designed to speed up the manufacturing process and reduce cost.
“HIP bonding is also an extremely robust and predictable process, which greatly reduces process variation,†said Eileen Drake, CEO and president of Aerojet Rocketdyne.
The hot-fire test also marked the testing of a flight controller and the fifth demonstration of a 3D-printed engine component – Pogo Accumulator Assembly – that works to lessen propellant pressure oscillations that can potentially affect the rocket’s stability during flight.
The company is under contract to build the first set of six RS-25 engines for the NASA rocket’s future missions.
Each SLS rocket will have four RS-25 engines and NASA has 16 engines that could support four SLS missions.
