Private space players test key engine part

In the wake of emerging opportunities in the commercial space sector, private Chinese space enterprises have been racing each other in the research and development of the engine, the most crucial part in a carrier rocket.

On Thursday, i-Space, a space industry startup in Beijing, conducted the first ignition test on the gas generator of its indigenously designed methane rocket engine in Beijing. The engine will have 15 metric tons of thrust and be used to power i-Space rockets, according to the company.

The test was successful and verified the design and reliability of the gas generator that was made by 3D printing technology, said the chief technology officer at i-Space, who wished to be identified only as Wei.

A methane rocket engine is a liquid-propellant engine that uses liquid methane as a fuel and liquid oxygen as an oxidizer. Such an engine is reusable and has been adopted by major reusable launch vehicles around the world, he said, noting that a gas generator is the most important component of a reusable engine.

The success of the test means the company has moved onto a fast track toward building its own liquid-propellant rocket engine, Wei said. He added that i-Space plans to assemble a prototype of the methane-fueled engine before year’s end for systems tests that are scheduled to conclude by the end of 2020.

Xing Qiang, a rocket technology researcher in Beijing, explained that a gas generator is like a miniature rocket engine inside a real rocket engine and is tasked with igniting the whole engine.

The apparatus is so powerful that it is capable of thrusting a certain amount of water from sea level to plateaus, he said, adding that the successful development of a gas generator marks the completion of one-third of a rocket engine’s construction.

In another development, LandSpace, another Beijingbased, privately owned space company, announced on Thursday that it has recently produced a batch of rocket engine nozzles to be used on the firm’s 100-ton thrust methane-based engine, which is being developed.

Wang Minghang, chief engineer at LandSpace, was quoted in a statement as saying the company has performed successful ignition tests on the engine’s gas generator and thrust chamber.

Zhang Changwu, LandSpace’s CEO, said in the statement that his company is the first privately owned Chinese entity to have core methane rocket engine technologies. He added that the company has finalized the design of a 100-ton thrust methane-based engine, whose mass production is set to start in 2019. In 2020, a LandSpace rocket propelled by the engine will conduct its first flight, he said.

Xing said private Chinese space companies are enthusiastic about methane rocket engines because they are more efficient, friendlier to the environment and cheaper than other engines. They have become the choice of propulsion for next-generation rockets around the world, he said.

Inspired by Elon Musk and his SpaceX rocket firm, at least four private Chinese companies — LandSpace, i-Space, OneSpace and LinkSpace — have announced plans to develop, make and launch carrier rockets. So far, OneSpace and i-Space have fulfilled that goal.