Saturn H-1 Engine Design Features
Dave Christensen's personal collection includes a memo entitled "Saturn H-1 Engine Design Features." This document, dated 21 September 1959, details features of early H-1 rocket engines, including the engines for use with the SA-T (static test) stage, H-1001 through H-1009.
As an early memo, it discusses a number of matters which never came to be: It refers to the Block I Saturn Is as SA-1 through SA-3, with the Block II vehicles being SA-4 through SA-6 (the Block Is were actually comprised of SA-1 through SA-4, with SA-5 through SA-10 rounding out the Block II vehicles).
It also discusses a later (188,000 pound) block of H-1 engines, referred to as Engine "X". This engine was to incorporate a number of advanced features, including the "desirable features" of the H-2 rocket engine (an engine of which I'd never before heard):
- The turbine exhaust was to be disposed into the thrust chamber exhaust (perhaps like the J-2 engine "cat eyes"???).
- Driving the turbine via gases tapped off from the thrust chamber, rather than from a liquid propellant gas generator.
- Lubricating the gearbox using only fuel, rather than using fuel blended with Oronite via the fuel additive blender unit (FABU).
- The original plan was to eventually replace the Mark 3 turbopump (used on several early Rocketdyne engines, including the S-3D engine, used on the Thor and Jupiter, in addition to the H-1) with a Mark XIV turbopump. However, given the Mark III's reliability, "less emphasis" would be placed on its replacement. As points of reference, the F-1 used a Mark X turbopump and the J-2 used a Mark XV.
This memo consists entirely of text, without any photos or diagrams.
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