Russian SSBN with LIQUID FUELED missiles.

[gp100man]

I didn't know any of the worlds SSBN had "LIQUID FUELED MISSILES in them. I just wrongly assumed that all modern submarine missiles were solid fuel. Geez, learn something new every day. I would think that the count down is more dangerous and longer for this type of system. I knew the old GOLF class submarines had liquid fuel, and had to surface to launch(if memory serves me right). But in modern times. Interesting.

http://news.yahoo.com/russia-test-fires ... 20128.html

[gp100man]

Re: Russian SSBN with LIQUID FUELED missiles.

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/201 ... medium=RSS

[tom dougherty]

Re: Russian SSBN with LIQUID FUELED missiles.

With only a few exceptions, all Russian (former USSR) SLBMs were/are liquid fueled. The earliest was the R-11FM which used kerosene and as an oxidizer, AK-201, which was 20% nitrogen tetroxide and 80% nitric acid. The R-13 of the Golf I and Hotel I used xylidine and trimethylamine as fuel and AK 271 (similar to AK-201). The Golf II & Hotel II class SSB had R-21 missiles which used similar liquid fuels. The R-27 and R-27 U on the Project 667A (NATO Yankee class) had dimethylhydrazine as fuel and nitrogen tetroxide as oxidizer. Same fuel and oxidizer for the intercontinental range R-29 missile for the Project 667B (NATO Delta class). Project 667AM (Yankee II class) was the first to go to sea with a solid fuel SLBM, the R-31. The MIRVed R-29R was again liquid fueled as the R-29. The R-39, a 10 warhead MIRVed missile was solid fueled, and armed the Project 941 (NATO Typhoon; Russian Akula) class.

The liquid propellants are all ambient temperature storable liquids and are not cryogenic. They were used as Russian solid fuel development lagged and liquids had a higher specific impulse. None of the liquids play well with water, and a leak in a missile tube caused the loss of the Yankee class K-219 in October 1986. The seawater reacted with the fuel to generate clouds of nitric acid, highly corrosive to many things including human lungs, and eventually an explosion in the tube, leading to loss of the ship.

At one point in the 1950's the Navy planned to put liquid fueled Jupiter missiles on submarines. Developments by Thiokol on generating efficient solid fuels along with miniaturization of fusion warheads led to the quickly revised plan to develop Polaris. But the Russians largely stuck with storable liquid propellants,

[gp100man]

Re: Russian SSBN with LIQUID FUELED missiles.

Thanks Tom, Very informative. I'm glad your on our side.

[tom dougherty]

Re: Russian SSBN with LIQUID FUELED missiles.

Что заставляет вас думать, что?