The Raman engine is a bipropellant liquid-fuel rocket engine manufactured by Skyroot Aerospace that will be used in its Vikram family of rockets. It is named after Indian Nobel laureate C. V. Raman.
Description It uses unsymmetrical dimethylhydrazine and hypergolic propellants. Its injector plate is completely 3D printed. The upper stage engine will be used in a cluster of four Raman-1, one Raman-2, and four Raman Mini in the fourth stage of the Vikram-1 rocket, which are capable of producing the total thrust of 5.26 kilonewtons (1,180 lbf) in vacuum. Raman-1 engine is capable of producing 890 newtons (200 lbf) of thrust, which four-engine clustered configuration gave a total thrust of 3.56 kilonewtons (800 lbf), while Raman-2 engine is capable of producing 1.5 kilonewtons (340 lbf) of thrust in vacuum, and Raman Mini engine is capable of producing 50 newtons (11 lbf) of thrust, which four-engine clustered configuration gave a total thrust of 200 newtons (45 lbf). While lower than many other rocket engines, it is required for conducting precise orbit adjustments.
Development and testing On 12 August 2020, Skyroot Aerospace successfully tested the engine for the first time. Skyroot Aerospace tested the Raman-2 engine, designed for vacuum conditions, by firing it for 200 seconds on a ground test stand. The team used water injection to mitigate flow separation in the vacuum-optimized nozzle, allowing accurate testing at sea level. This test provided critical data for the Vikram-1 rocket's fourth stage, advancing India's private space efforts.
List of engines Raman-1 Raman-2 Raman Mini
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