The linkage test mainly tests the control ability and comprehensive adjustment ability of each engine.
Especially when the number of rocket engines increases, the attitude control system of the entire system becomes more difficult.
For example, it is very easy for a person to do one thing and do one thing at a time. It is also easier for some people to do two things at once. Most people can do it after a little training. A small number of people can still do it with a little training.
But it is almost impossible for a person to do eleven things at once and control eleven things at the same time.
And now the control system that Zhang Xingyang and the others are going to build is equivalent to the human brain. This brain needs to control eleven things at the same time.
You can imagine how difficult it is here.
And these eleven things are not simple things, but rocket engines that can be called industrial pearls.
The propulsion force of each machine reaches hundreds of tons, which can truly be regarded as a feat of power that can lift mountains. This is a miracle of human industry and the crystallization of human wisdom.
The linkage test of two engines and the linkage test of four rocket engines were all relatively smooth.
Because the linkage ignition test of four rocket engines is not particularly different from the various types of rockets that have been developed by the Rocket Research Institute before.
But starting from the linkage test of five rocket engines, the whole thing became complicated.
Because from this time on, the location of the rocket engine has also become a key issue that everyone at the Rocket Research Institute needs to consider.
There are mainly two different solutions, center layout and surround layout.
The central layout arranges one or more rocket engines in the center of the rocket, and the remaining rocket engines are arranged in a ring around the surroundings.
The biggest difference between the orbital layout and the central layout is that there is no rocket engine placed on the central satellite of the rocket. All engines are arranged in an annular shape on the outer ring of the bottom of the rocket.
Both options have their own advantages and disadvantages.
Using a central layout plan, the rocket mainly relies on the engine in the center to provide thrust and decelerate during recovery. The other engines generally will not start unless they are adjusted at a large angle.
In this way, it can effectively reduce the working time of other rocket engines and improve the overall service life. Moreover, the control system required to decelerate a single rocket engine is also simpler.
With the surround layout, the rocket needs to turn on three different rocket engines to decelerate and adjust its attitude during recovery.
In comparison, the control of the entire recycling process will be more difficult, and the service life of the engine will be shorter.
You must know that the use time of rocket engines is different from that of aircraft engines.
Aircraft engines usually use hours to calculate usage time. Taking the newly developed WS-10 engine as an example, the first-generation aircraft generally has a usage time of three to four hundred hours.
The time of a rocket engine is usually calculated in seconds. The working time of an ordinary rocket engine usually does not exceed 200 seconds.
Taking the first-stage engine of the Changsanyi rocket as an example, during the entire launch process, from ignition to the separation of the first-stage rocket, the total time does not exceed 130 seconds.
During the recycling process, every extra second used means one second less time the next time it is used.
The cost issue here is something that everyone has to consider.
Of course, in this linkage test, various scheme designs must be tested.
Whether it is a central layout or a surrounding layout, engine linkage testing must be carried out.
After all, practice is the only criterion for testing truth.
Only after actual testing can everyone know the pros and cons of these two different solutions.
Although Zhang Xingyang knew that there were some big pitfalls in some of the plans, he still did not speak out.
I am not an omnipotent god. There are pits that you have to fall into by yourself. Only after the fall hurts can you remember that you cannot step on these pits again.
The power of an individual is limited, but the power of the collective is infinite. If you want to bring the entire country into the Star Sea Age, it is never enough to rely on yourself alone. You must have enough people with you.
"Seven rocket engines were tested in a central layout and a malfunction occurred. Engineers at the test center are making emergency repairs."
Geng Bo told Zhang Xingyang about the problems that occurred during the test just conducted.
Because it received compensation from the International Insurance Fund for the "226" rocket accident, plus some other miscellaneous income, the Rocket Research Institute is now extremely rich.
But when you have more money, you spend it faster.
For this multi-engine linkage test, Zhang Xingyang directly asked the 112 Factory to rush to manufacture more than 100 engines. The manufacturing cost of the engines alone exceeded 100 million.
Not to mention the manpower and material resources spent during testing, which is also a lot of money.
"Have you found the cause of the fault?" Zhang Xingyang asked.
Because rocket engine layouts of different plans are being carried out on several test platforms at the same time, it is impossible for Zhang Xingyang to take care of all the test platforms by himself.
Therefore, Geng Bo was in charge of the test bench for the seven-engine central layout linkage test plan.
Zhang Xingyang was not surprised at all when the failure occurred, although the rocket engine itself no longer had problems due to the adoption of the double-reset system.
However, because the entire control system is newly designed, various problems will not be unexpected.
"It's still under investigation, but judging from the situation at the time, it was probably caused by multiple engine jets interfering with each other."
Geng Bo tiredly expressed his current guess.
Because the accident had just occurred and the investigation of the fault had just begun, Geng Bo could not completely determine the cause of the problem.
Hearing Geng Bo's conjecture, Zhang Xingyang frowned.
The jet disturbance problem involves fluid mechanics. Given the complexity of the rocket engine jet problem, we want to thoroughly study and understand the issues involved.
We must rely on supercomputers to solve the problem, but the number of domestic supercomputers is currently limited, and only a few domestic supercomputers are needed for ballistic missile research and development, weather forecasting, etc.
If you want to apply to use it, you don’t know that you have to wait in line until the Year of the Monkey to use it.
As for the imported supercomputer, let’s not talk about it. There is a special word these days to describe it, glass house.
Especially for an industry with a special nature like the Rockets, you basically don’t even think about it.
"Do I need to solve the supercomputing problem first?"
Zhang Xingyang thought silently in his heart.
In fact, even if he wanted to do supercomputing, it would be too late and time would not allow it.
"You can put aside the issue of jet disturbance for now, and I'll think of a solution."
Hearing this, Geng Bo also looked a little sad.
This is almost a dilemma faced by this generation of scientific researchers. The poor scientific research conditions have curbed their research capabilities, and they can only rely on their own continuous efforts to close the gap with others.
However, it is precisely because of the efforts of this generation that it has taken off later.
