The United Engine Corporation of Rostec has completed the first stage of testing a demonstrator of a ramjet pulsating detonation engine, which in the future will be able to be used in advanced rocket and space systems, hypersonic aircraft and orbital aircraft. The power plant in certain operating modes demonstrated an increase in specific thrust of up to 50% in comparison with the engines of traditional schemes.
Pulsating detonation engine – a new type of power plant for aviation. It implements a more economical thermodynamic cycle, in contrast to the one used in existing gas turbine engines. The Design Bureau named after A. Lyulka (a branch of PJSC UEC-UMPO) has formed a separate direction for the development of such power plants.
"The first stage of testing of the pulsating detonation engine demonstrator has been successfully completed. The demonstrator gave the required indicators. In some operating modes, the specific thrust is up to 50% higher than that of traditional power plants. In the future, this will allow for a 1.3–1.5-fold increase in the maximum range and payload weight of aircraft. The development can be used, for example, on orbital aircraft, super-and hypersonic aircraft, and advanced rocket and space systems, " the Rostec aviation cluster said.
Equipped with pulsating detonation engines, the aircraft will have better flight dynamics and maneuverability. This type of engine can be used in the development of traditional rocket and air-jet power plants or as an addition to them.
"The simplicity of the design and the relatively low requirements for the values of gas-dynamic parameters allow us to use technologies developed on previous generations of engines when creating it. This gives a great commercial and economic advantage in comparison with the advanced engines of traditional schemes being developed, " said Yevgeny Marchukov, General Designer and Director of the A. Lyulka Design Bureau.
In 2016, the author's team of the project "Pulsating Detonation Engine" became the winner of the competition "The best innovative project in the areas of critical technologies in the Russian Federation" in Skolkovo. The model of the pulsating detonation engine was first presented at the International Military-Technical Forum "Army-2017".
As previously reported, this year the United Engine Corporation of Rostec began mass production of the latest domestic PD-14 engines for the MS-21 aircraft, and will also produce prototypes of the VK-650V engine for light helicopters of the Ka-226T type.
