At 20:59 on April 25, 2024, the Long March-2F carrier rocket carried the Shenzhou-18 manned spacecraft carrying three astronauts, Ye Guangfu, Li Cong, and Li Guangsu, and set off at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center to meet the "Tiangong" and the "Shen-17" crew.
China's space station will witness the rotation of the fourth batch of astronauts in orbit, marking another solid step in our journey of "exploring the vast universe, developing the aerospace industry, and building a space power".
Chang 2F rocket launch site (photo by Wang Letian)
During the launch mission, the Sixth Academy of Aerospace Science and Technology Group developed and delivered a total of 58 main engines and attitude and orbit control engines, as well as key equipment such as thermal control subsystems and life support system pumps and valves for the Long March-2F carrier rocket and the Shenzhou-18 spacecraft.
The manned space engineering task is a systematic project, a complete manned space flight, requires a variety of types, high reliability of the main engine, booster engine, high-altitude engine, attitude control engine and orbit transfer engine, the function from the main power unit of the launch vehicle to the aircraft orbit transformation and correction, attitude control, the application range is very wide. As the only professional research institute in mainland China that integrates the research, design, production and testing of the main power system of the launch vehicle, the orbital attitude control power system and the propulsion system of the space vehicle, the full range of power systems of the Sixth Academy of Aerospace not only provides a stable and reliable strong push, but also escorts the new batch of "space trio" to the "Tiangong" through precise attitude control and intimate life support system.
Astronauts Ye Guangfu (middle), Li Cong (right), Li Guangsu (left) (photo by Wang Letian)
Design improvement, excellence
The R&D team of the Sixth Academy always maintains the mentality of walking on thin ice and approaching the abyss, always tightens the quality chord and state chord of the engine, holds the "magnifying glass" to find problems, and completes all the inspection, testing, installation operation, quality confirmation and review of the engine in strict accordance with the plan. Every improvement of the power products of the Long March-2F launch vehicle is very cautious, and each technology must be repeatedly polished and verified before being used, so as to ensure that the product structure is more reasonable, the performance is more optimized, and the reliability of the engine is further ensured on the basis of ensuring safety and redundancy, so as to achieve safe and reliable astronauts into space. In addition to completing the specified actions in strict accordance with the technical requirements and processes, it also focuses on the problems related to the engine or abnormal situations, deals with technical problems in a timely manner according to the quality control requirements, solves incurable diseases, controls technical risks, transforms every worry into measures to further improve quality, and finds and solves risks on the ground to ensure that the engine does not carry any hidden dangers.
The quality of the product is repeatedly checked
The R&D team of the Sixth Academy has always adhered to the work style of "strict, prudent, meticulous and practical", implemented the management measures of "selecting the best of the best, and stricter on the strictest", strictly controlled the whole process of production and manufacturing, carried out 100% re-inspection of all raw materials, strictly controlled the performance indicators of key raw materials and forging and casting products, and optimized the parts and components in the production and assembly process to ensure that the performance data of the same batch was optimal. Selectively allocate production personnel, set up quality confirmation checks in key links, innovate and carry out quality confirmation work, and determine the mode of combining "on-site confirmation + process confirmation + result confirmation" to carry out the whole process of quality confirmation. Targeted quality control measures have been taken in various aspects of the test, further standardizing the quality confirmation and internal acceptance and release of aerospace products, and exploring a new model that meets the requirements of high-quality development of China's aerospace industry.
Sampling inspection and test run are strictly tested
Before the delivery of the LM-2F carrier rocket's first- and second-stage main power room temperature liquid rocket engines, they must first undergo the "test" of sampling and commissioning in the test area of the Sixth Academy. In recent years, the R&D team of the Sixth Academy has continued to promote digital construction with the "Excellent Product Action" as the starting point, and has made technological breakthroughs in the rapid docking and installation of engines, closed-loop pressure control, rapid interpretation and processing of data, rapid switching of multi-model test systems, and parallel test preparation of a single measurement system for multiple test benches. On the basis of the requirements of the sampling test process document system, every detail such as the filling volume and pressurization rate, as well as the length and fixed position of the auxiliary pipeline, must be continuously solidified to reduce the impact of the state change of the test system on the sampling task. After continuous iterative optimization, the test system has the characteristics of high efficiency, high reliability, high stability and high accuracy, which provides quality assurance for the sampling test data of the main power engine of the launch vehicle, the accuracy and measurement of the test data, and the high reliability of installation and docking.
The ship is safe and reliable
In this launch mission, the research and development team of the Sixth Academy developed and delivered the propulsion subsystem for the Shenzhou-18 manned spacecraft, including 48 space engines, high-pressure gas cylinders, storage tanks, valves, electronic stand-alone and other products, and undertook all the power required for spacecraft attitude control, orbital maneuvering, return and reentry, etc., to ensure that the Shenzhou-18 manned spacecraft can pitch and move freely in space, and accurately arrive at the "Tiangong". During the development of the spacecraft, the heating acquisition system was upgraded, and the software measurement and control program was rewritten to make the positioning of the temperature control point more accurate and the dynamic intelligent temperature control more accurate. It not only effectively improves the heat utilization rate of the heating and harvesting system, but also makes the spacecraft propulsion system more "healthy".
Huashang Daily Gale News reporter Ma Huzhen (courtesy of the Sixth Academy of Aerospace Science and Technology Group)
Source: Huashang Net-Huashang Daily