1. Dave McGrath ACM Chief Engineer February 18, 2010
Saturn V Propulsion
Dave McGrath
ACM Chief Engineer
February 18, 2010

2. Presentation Outline The Saturn V Vehicle Stage 1 Propulsion
Abort Propulsion
Stage 3 Propulsion
Lunar Module Propulsion
Command Module Propulsion
Saturn V in Comparison with Shuttle, Ares I and Ares V
Future Directions in Exploration

3. The Saturn V Vehicle
Formally approved as a project in 1961 (studies for certain parts as early as 1957)
First flight in 1967 – Apollo 4 - unmanned
Last all-up flight 1972 for Apollo 17
14 total missions (3 unmanned, plus Skylab launch)
79 total rocket propulsion engines/motors
Some references indicate additional attitude control engines on S-IVB stage (up to 8) – NASA manual does not list
10.1 M total pounds of thrust for all systems
1.072 M total pounds of thrust for all solids (21 motors total – “ATK” 19 motors)

4. Stage 1 – S1C - Boeing Prime contractor – Boeing
Primary Propulsion – 5 F-1 engines from Rocketdyne
LOX – RP-1 (kerosene)
~1.5M lbf thrust each
33 feet diameter by 138 feet long
Staging propulsion – 8 TE-M retro from Thiokol Elkton

5. S1C Technical Details Dry weight: 288,650 lbm
Loaded weight: 5,022,262 lbm
Operating Time: 2 min 42 seconds
Separation conditions: 38 miles altitude, 6,000 mph

6. The F-1 Engine - Rocketdyne
Manufacturer: Rocketdyne
Largest LOX/RP-1 single chamber engine ever made – 1.5M lbf thrust
First full-up development test in 1959
Development started in 1957 for the Air Force
Significant instability issues overcome in injector design

7. Additional F1 Photos
F-1 testing at AFRL
Dr. Von Braun in Front of SI stage on display in Huntsville
F-1 Engines at Rocketdyne

8. S1C Retro – Thiokol Elkton
TE-M-424-6
15.2 inch diameter X 84.3 inches long
~82,000 lb of thrust for 0.67 seconds
278 lbm of propellant (78% solids, 2% aluminum, polysulfide binder)
12 point star grain
506 lbm total motor weight
Fully submerged steel nozzle
Nozzle extensions put on by Boeing at installation
Mounted in pairs under each outboard F-1 engine fairing
Eight total used per flight
21 motor qualification program completed in 1965

9. Position of Stage 1 Retro Motors

10. Stage 2 – SII – North American Rockwell
Prime contractor – North American Rockwell (started as North American Aviation)
Primary Propulsion – 5 J-2 engines from Rocketdyne
LOX – LH2
230,000 lbf thrust each
33 feet diameter by 81 feet long
Staging propulsion – 4 TE-M-29-X retro from Thiokol Elkton
Ullage propulsion – 4 RS-U-601 from Rocketdyne MacGregor, TX, later Hercules, then ATK

11. SII Technical Details Dry weight: 80,220 lbm
Loaded weight: 1,060,415 lbm
Operating Time: 6 min 30 seconds
Separation conditions: 117 miles altitude, 15,300 mph

12. The J-2 Engine - Rocketdyne
Manufacturer: Rocketdyne
Largest LOX/LH2 space-restartable engine
Isp = 421 sec, 230,000 lb thrust
Development started in 1960
Design updated by the Ares program as the J-2X

13. Additional J-2 Engine Pictures

14. SII Retro – Thiokol Elkton
TE-M-29-4
9 inch diameter X 107 inches long
36,250 lb of thrust for 1.52 seconds
270 lbm of propellant (76% solids, 0% aluminum, polysufide binder)
5 point star grain
380 lbm total motor weight
Mounted at the base of the stage
Steel nozzle
Four total used per flight
Nozzle canted 9.2 degrees versus straight baseline Recruit design
11 motor qualification program completed in 1965

15. SII Ullage – Rocketdyne MacGregor
RS-U-601
12.6 inch diameter X 89 inches long
23,000 lb of thrust for 3.75 seconds
337 lbm of CTPB propellant
4 point star grain
488.4 lbm total motor weight
Phenolic exit cone with metal shell
Four total used per flight

16. Launch Abort Propulsion

17. Main Abort Propulsion
Contractor: Lockheed Propulsion in San Bernardino, CA
Abort motor:
26 in dia, 186 in long
3,162 lb prop, 4,794 lb total
138,300 lb thrust, 3.3 sec
76% TS, 2% Al, polysulfide
Pitch Motor:
8.75 in dia, 22 in long
8.9 lb prop, 49 lb total
2,420 lb thrust, 0.62 sec

18. Tower Jettison Propulsion
TE-M-380
26 inch diameter X 55.6 inches long
31,500 lb of thrust for 1.1 seconds
205 lbm of propellant (78% solids, 2% aluminum, polysulfide binder)
10 point star grain
528 lbm total motor weight
Dual steel canted, scarfed nozzle
One total used per flight – normal operation or abort
21 motor qualification program completed in 1965

19. Stage 3 – SIVB – McDonnell Douglas
Prime contractor – McDonnell Douglas (started as Douglas Aircraft)
Primary Propulsion – 1 J-2 engine from Rocketdyne
LOX – LH2
230,000 lbf thrust each
22 feet diameter by 59 feet long
Ullage propulsion – 2 TX-280 from Thiokol Huntsville
Used for LEO insertion burn and translunar injection burn

20. SIVB Ullage Motor – Thiokol HuntsvilleTX
8.3 inch diameter X 36.3 inches long
3,420 lb of thrust for 3.81 seconds
58.7 lbm of propellant (81% solids, 2% aluminum, polysulfide binder)
5 point star grain
88.4 lbm total motor weight
Steel nozzle
Two total used per flight
13 motor qualification program completed in 1965

21. Lunar Module Propulsion
Prime contractor – Grumman
Primary Propulsion :
1 descent engine from TRW
NTO/AZ50
10,500 lbf thrust
Isp 305 sec
1 ascent engine from Rocketdyne
3,500 lbf thrust
Isp 311 sec
16 RCS engines (4 pods of 4)
Marquardt
100 lb thrust
Isp 290 sec
Height ~21 feet, width ~14 feet, 31 feet diagonal on pads
Weight 33,000 lb

22. Pictures of Lunar Module Propulsion
TRW Descent Engine
10,500 lbf thrust , 10:1 throttle
6 degree gimbal
Ablative nozzle to 16:1, radiative to 48:1
Isp = 305
Propellant: NTO/AZ50
Rocketdyne RS-18 Ascent Engine
3,500 lbf thrust
Ablative nozzle
Isp = 311 sec
Propellant NTO/AZ50
Marquardt R4D RCS Engine 100 lbf thrust
16 on Lunar Module
16 on Service Module
Propellants: NTO/AZ50
Isp = 290 sec

23. Command Module Propulsion
Prime Contractor: North American Aviation (later Rockwell, now Boeing)
Propulsion: Rocketdyne Canoga Park, CA
12 thrusters for pitch, roll, and yaw control of the capsule during re-entry
Rocketdyne SE-8 Command Module Thruster 93 lb thrust Propellants: NTO/MMH, Isp ~230 sec

24. Service Module Propulsion
Prime Contractor: North American Aviation
Primary Propulsion :
1 primary engine from Aerojet AJ10-137
NTO/AZ50
21,900 lbf thrust
Isp 312 sec
16 RCS engines (4 pods of 4)
Marquardt
100 lb thrust
Isp 290 sec
Height 22.5 feet, width ~13 feet
Weight 50,000 lb

25. Payload to LEO Comparison of the Saturn V with Shuttle and Ares I and Ares V

26. Future Directions in Exploration
Back to the Moon?
Initial target of the Constellation program
Competition from China and India – both of which have stated manned mission goals to the moon
Water found
Helium 3 for fusion energy (~$1B per pound)
Other resources
Asteroids?
Potentially easier to get to
Potential resources for water and minerals
Mars?
Part of the new NASA/administration long term goals
Congress will have a say
Strong bi-partisan support for Constellation

27. References
AIAA Thiokol Solid Rocket Motors on the Saturn V Launch Vehicle, McGrath
Wikipedia
Various NASA websites
NASA Apollo manuals – vehicle, spacecraft, Lunar Module, etc
Rocketdyne web site
Rocket Propulsion Elements, Sutton and Ross, 4th ed.
Boeing web site
Aerojet web site
National Air and Space Museum web site
CPIAC – Rocket Motor Electronic Data (RMED) Base

28. Skylab Launch

29. Apollo 15 Photo

30. Apollo 17 – The last mission to the Moon – December 1972

31. Little Joe II – Altitude Abort Testing
Little Joe II flown at White Sands One mission was a real abort Cluster of Algol motors provided main thrust