The 14-X is a Brazilian scramjet engine in development by the Aerothermodynamics and Hypersonics Laboratory Henry T. Nagamatsu of the Institute of Advanced Studies (IEAv) of the Department of Aerospace Science and Technology as part of the PropHiper (Portuguese: Projeto de Propulsão Hipersônica 14-X).[1][2] The name is a reference to the 14-bis, of the Brazilian inventor and aviation pioneer Alberto Santos-Dumont.[3]
| 14-X | |
|---|---|
| File:14-XW.jpg | |
| Artist's conception of the 14-XW demonstrator | |
| Role | Scramjet engine |
| National origin | Brazil |
| Manufacturer | Department of Aerospace Science and Technology (DCTA) |
| Designer | Institute of Advanced Studies of the DCTA |
| First flight | 14 December 2021 |
| Status | Flight testing |
| Primary users | Brazilian Air Force Brazilian Space Agency |
The Brazilian Air Force conducted the first qualification test flight of the 14-X engine on 14 December 2021 from the Alcântara Space Center.[4][5][6][7]
Development
editBrazil conducts studies in the field of aspirated hypersonics since 1990s,[1] but a development plan was conceived only in 2007, through the PropHiper project, made official by the Air Force in 2008,[8] when the engineer-captain of the Brazilian Air Force, Tiago Cavalcanti Rolim, started a master's degree at the Instituto Tecnológico de Aeronáutica (ITA) and was approved with a thesis on the waverider configuration.[3] The development of the project started with an experimental model by the Institute for Advanced Studies in the same year.[3] Testing of the hypersonic engine started in October 2009.[2]
Project details
edit14-X S
On 2 December 2021, the Air Force's Department of Aerospace Science and Technology (DCTA) announced the beginning of Cruzeiro Operation seeking to conduct the first flight of the 14-X.[9] The flight date was kept confidential.[9]
The first test flight of the 14-X scramjet engine took place at the Alcantara Space Center, using a Hypersonic Technology Demonstrator Vehicle named 14-X S . The vehicle was placed at an altitude of about 30 km by a VSB-30 booster before 14-X activation, which saw the vehicle reach an apogee of 160 km and was monitored by the tracking station of the Barreira do Inferno Launch Center in Rio Grande do Norte as it traversed a distance of roughly 200 km before dropping into a safe spot in the Atlantic Ocean.[4][10]
Development of the 14-X project involves the building of four hypersonic technology demonstrator vehicles, each with its own demonstrational objectives:[1]
- 14-XS: ballistic ascending flight with supersonic combustion;
- 14-XSP: ballistic ascending flight with aspirated hypersonic propulsion;
- 14-XW: Demonstration of glided flight, without propulsion, of a controllable and maneuverable hypersonic vehicle with guidance, navigation and control systems during hypersonic stratospheric flight;
- 14-XWP: autonomous flight of a controllable and maneuverable vehicle with active aspirated hypersonic propulsion.
Purpose
editThe technology is considered by Brazil as one of the most efficient means of accessing space in the near future, and could be used to place satellites in orbit and make suborbital flights.[3][2] It can also be used in other areas such as the development of intercontinental ballistic missiles with a more potent rocket or in civil aviation.[2]
Operation history
editA list with conducted operations of the 14-X:
| Date | Vehicle | Mission | Results | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14 December 2021 | 14-X (XS VSB-30 V32) | Qualification (Cruzeiro Operation) | Success | [4] |
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b c "Propulsão Hipersônica: Projeto 14-X". Brazilian Air Force (in Portuguese). 11 December 2021. Archived from the original on 11 December 2021. Retrieved 11 December 2021.
- ^ a b c d "O 14-X HIPERSÔNICO UM FUTURO PARA A FAB". DEFESABR (in Portuguese). 5 March 2007. Archived from the original on 5 March 2007.
- ^ a b c d "Do 14-bis ao 14-X". ISTOÉ (in Portuguese). 28 March 2013. Archived from the original on 24 September 2020. Retrieved 28 July 2020.
- ^ a b c "FAB realiza primeiro teste de voo do motor aeronáutico hipersônico 14-X". Brazilian Air Force. 16 December 2021. Archived from the original on 16 December 2021. Retrieved 16 December 2021.
- ^ "O CLA e Sua Agenda de Lançamentos Até 2022". Brazilian Space. 21 June 2019. Archived from the original on 9 December 2021. Retrieved 18 June 2021.
- ^ "Concluída mais uma etapa do projeto de desenvolvimento de um veículo hipersônico". Brazilian Air Force (in Portuguese). 21 February 2019. Archived from the original on 23 July 2020. Retrieved 28 July 2020.
- ^ "Brasil pondrá a prueba el 14-X en la Operación Cruzeiro". Infodefensa.com (in Spanish). 3 March 2020. Archived from the original on 23 July 2020. Retrieved 28 July 2020.
- ^ "Projeto 14-X – O Brasil na era da Propulsão Hipersônica". Defesa Aerea e Naval (in Portuguese). 11 December 2021. Archived from the original on 11 December 2021. Retrieved 11 December 2021.
- ^ a b "DCTA envia ao CLA preparativos da Operação Cruzeiro". Brazilian Air Force (in Portuguese). 2 December 2021. Archived from the original on 3 December 2021. Retrieved 6 December 2021.
- ^ "FAB realiza primeiro teste de voo do motor aeronáutico hipersônico 14-X". Revista Tecnologia e Defesa (in Portuguese). 16 December 2021. Archived from the original on 16 December 2021. Retrieved 21 December 2021.