Full-flow Staged Combustion Cycle
Full-flow staged combustion (FFSCC) is a variation on the staged combustion cycle where all of the fuel and all of the oxidizer pass through their respective power turbines. A small amount of fuel and oxidizer is swapped and combusted to supply power for the turbines.
The turbines run cooler in this design since more mass passes through them, leading to a longer engine life and higher reliability. The design can provide higher chamber pressures and therefore greater efficiency. An intrapropellant turbine seal is also eliminated. Full gasification of components leads to faster chemical reactions in the combustion chamber and, as compared to the partial staged combustion cycle, it results in an increase of specific impulse up to 10–20 seconds (e.g., RD-270 and RD-0244).
A current version under development is the integrated powerhead demonstrator. This scheme was applied in the Russian experimental RD-270 engine in the late 1960s, which was designed for several Soviet lunar rockets.
Read more about this topic: Staged Combustion Cycle (rocket)
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