dsc79618.jpg

Overall view of the injector baffle display.

The sign reads

F-1 Injector Baffle

Challenge

For a "big, dumb" engine, the F-1 was surprisingly fussy. If fuel and oxidizer didn't enter its combustion chamber in the right way, dangerous pressure fluctuations resulted. This "combustion instability" could rip the metal right off the walls of the chamber.

Solution

MSFC and Rocketdyne outfitted the F-1 with a custom-designed injector plate to control the spray of propellants into the chamber. The teams experimented with many designs for the injector — varying the size, angle, and arrangement of the holes. Baffles like the one on display were added to further reduce combustion instability.