Chapter 232 Technical Development of Nuclear Submarines

“This is the P-700 anti-ship missile!” Wu Shengli and other navy and related technical personnel, accompanied by Qin Tao, came to the warehouse and saw the missile inside. Wu Shengli was shocked.

This is an anti-ship missile? This is simply a drone without a cockpit! Compared with this missile, those domestic anti-ship missiles are just like children's toys!

The size of this kind of missile is really too big, and the weight is extremely huge, so in Lao Maozi's place, only warships or submarines of 10,000 tons or more can carry it. As for aircraft? It's better to stop dreaming, it's impossible, this is a big guy weighing seven tons.

"Yes, this is a sample bomb that Lao Maozi's Ruby Design Bureau used as a reference when designing." Qin Tao said: "Although it is a sample bomb, everything inside is complete."

Wu Shengli nodded: "In other words, if we have an idea, we can imitate this powerful anti-ship missile?"

“If we concentrate all the power and resources of relevant parties, we should be able to imitate it, but I don’t think this kind of anti-ship missile is suitable for us.”

Hearing Qin Tao's words, everyone was stunned: "Isn't it the most suitable for us?"

The navy's weapon system is very poor. Whether it is air defense or anti-submarine, they are all shortcomings. However, anti-ship is not completely capable. If it is to attack targets such as enemy destroyers, then the Haiying 8 anti-ship Missiles can meet the needs, but what if they want to attack the enemy's aircraft carrier formation? That's absolutely impossible.

With this kind of weapon, the navy's anti-ship range can be increased from 40 to 50 kilometers to 400 to 500 kilometers. This is of great significance to the navy. Why does Qin Tao still say that it is not suitable for our own side?

"This thing is too big and can only be carried by warships of 10,000 tons or more." Qin Tao said: "At least in the past ten years, the navy will not have a warship of this level. Even if we do in the future, The quantity will not be particularly large. In this case, there is no use for us to imitate this anti-ship missile."

Wu Shengli continued to nod: "Yes, the navy still has to be patient for now."

"On the other hand, even with this kind of missile, it does not mean that we will have the strength to confront the aircraft carrier formation." Qin Tao said: "Lao Maozi's method is to use a large number of missiles to attack the enemy's aircraft carrier with a saturation attack." The formation launched an attack. Their cruisers, aircraft carriers, and nuclear submarines were launched together, and in conjunction with the Backfire bombers, it was common for hundreds of anti-ship missiles to attack together. They relied entirely on numerical superiority to win. But we will not have this. A kind of strength."

Even if they are imitations, the quantity is very small, and it is impossible to play according to Lao Maozi's tactics.

 Everyone is a little reluctant, but what Qin Tao said is true. It is impossible to imitate such a weapon system alone.

“Then what do you want to do with it?” Wu Shengli asked.

 Qin Tao also put a lot of thought into getting this missile.

"Of course it's for its technology." Qin Tao said: "Although we can't mass-produce equipment now, we can study the technology used on it, and then integrate it with the Sunburn anti-ship missile technology, and then develop our Advanced anti-ship missiles need to be reduced in size so that they can be easily inserted into our future vertical launch systems."

 When the warship develops to 055, you will be surprised to find that the anti-ship missile launcher is gone!

This is of course because it uses a universal vertical launcher with a caliber of 850 mm, which can launch various missiles. The small ones have two or four bombs in one pit, and the large ones put one in it. Not only Haihongqi 9, Even anti-ship missiles are out of the question.

Not to mention big guys like the YJ-18, even powerful ballistic missile carriers like the YJ-21 can be stuffed into it.

“Put it into our future vertical launch system?” Everyone expressed surprise at Qin Tao’s statement.

"Yes, although we only started to develop a vertical launch system for the first time on the 051C, in the future, we will definitely have a more advanced vertical launch system that can be loaded with various missiles. By then, we will be able to eliminate the need for specialized anti-ship weapons The missile launcher is ready." Qin Tao described the future prospects and was very excited.

"Although supersonic anti-ship missiles are fast and powerful, they fly at a high altitude and have high air resistance, so they are not the most suitable choice. In the future, we may be able to combine these characteristics and use them after launch. The sea-skimming ultra-low-altitude flight method, when it reaches the target, then switches to supersonic flight, which can not only reduce the size and increase the range, but also reduce the probability of being discovered.”

˜A combination of subsonic and supersonic speeds is the most appropriate solution.

Everyone nodded.

  Have a thorough understanding of Lao Maozi’s supersonic anti-ship missile technology, and then combine it with subsonic missiles to create a brand new anti-ship missile!

"If that's the case, can we make the missile into two parts?" Someone has already opened up their imagination: "A small turbine engine is installed in the back for subsonic cruise, and a ramjet engine is in the front. When it flies over at subsonic speed, The rear half falls off, and the front half ignites and starts, making it a two-stage rocket."

Qin Tao nodded repeatedly: "That's right, that's it. You are so smart!"

 This is the idea of ​​YJ-18! The technical data of this missile has not yet been declassified, but it can be launched from the 055 universal vertical launcher, then fly hundreds of kilometers, and finally enter the supersonic attack stage.

 It is the most suitable choice for our side to develop this kind of anti-ship missile. The big guy in front of us is for our own technical research.

Of course, if big guys like the Glory class are brought back in the future, we can also build a batch of them to suppress the scene. And the Varyag, which is idle anyway, can also be stuffed with imitations.

 The technology of anti-ship missiles has been discussed here.

 “What’s in the other boxes?” someone asked curiously.

“MBP-110S nine-axis five-linkage CNC milling machine.”

Hearing Qin Tao's words, everyone opened their eyes wide.

What?

CNC milling machine? Nine-axis five-linkage? This seems to be... the one that Lao Maozi imported, right? In the famous Toshiba machine tool incident a few years ago, Qin Tao could actually get this thing?

 It’s incredible!

“In other words, we can have high-performance submarine propellers in the future!”

"After they are no longer in use, we can soon replace the propellers of our nuclear submarines in service." Qin Tao said: "I can help with the design and production, but this project must be contracted by our Mingzhou Shipbuilding Industry Group! "

They not only want to build propellers, but also replace propellers for submarines. In other words, Mingzhou Shipbuilding Industry Group will have access to the Navy’s nuclear submarines for the first time!

Of course, their general contracting is also the most convenient because there is a floating dock! Therefore, there is no need to drive the submarine over. The floating dock can be driven over and it can be replaced on site!

Wu Shengli swallowed and said, "When?"

"It takes about a month to install the machine and purchase key parts. During this process, we can also design a new propeller for our nuclear submarine at the same time, and then use a month to trial-produce the new propeller. At most In three months, we can replace our nuclear submarines with new propellers."

 “Okay!” Wu Shengli nodded: “The navy must spend this money!”

As a five-member country, it is necessary to have its own underwater nuclear force. Back then, when the motherland was in poverty and poverty, it endured hardships and worked hard to develop its own underwater nuclear force. The attack nuclear submarine code-named Type 091 and The 092 ballistic missile nuclear submarines have officially entered the navy sequence.

  Among them, the first Type 091 attack nuclear submarine was started in 1968, launched in 1970, and entered service in 1974. It is the first-generation attack nuclear submarine designed and built by the motherland. It was designed and built completely independently without external assistance. Although various problems occurred during the trial, they were eventually overcome and are now considered mature. .

A total of five nuclear submarines of this kind have been produced, with hull numbers from 401 to 405, and are also called Long March 1 to Long March 5. (These are all secrets. We are just writing casually based on public information. There may be more in number. For example, there are several No. 405 nuclear submarines.)

The first two ships were experimental in nature, but it was the 403rd that became more mature and appeared on many occasions. The subsequent 404 and 405 were further improved models with stronger performance.

 However, no matter how powerful it is, the basic power system has not changed much. It is still the most mature pressurized water reactor. Of course, it is also very noisy and can be detected by Western anti-submarine forces from a distance.

(Personally, I think it is normal for the first-generation nuclear submarines to make loud noises, and there is nothing to be embarrassed about. Although we can give examples like No. 403, submarines can wait silently underwater. When technology is not enough, we rely on The command ability is quite good. After all, our captains are quite smart.)

Yang Xi, who had been silent, his face was full of excitement. Although he got so many good things, what he cared about most was still the CNC milling machine, because this thing can make propellers!

Now, Yang Xi is finally relieved. He knows that the superior leaders will definitely improve the submarine propulsion system first. For our own side, this is the most important priority!

“However, we have never made a seven-blade large inclined propeller. I guess it will take a while to find the most suitable shape, right?” Yang Xi suddenly became worried again.

 What shape of propeller is most suitable? This is a complex subject.

 Propellers in the past were all in the shape of electric fan blades, thinking that this method was the best. As a result, some masters in China invented the Guandao propeller, and found that the propulsion efficiency was improved!

 This is a complex knowledge of fluid mechanics. In many cases, it cannot be calculated with data at all and can only be verified with experiments.

 This is the first time I have come into contact with this kind of thing in China. I have to experiment first. If I start making it directly and find that it is not suitable, it will cause a serious waste. It will not only delay time, but also spend money, and the gain is not worth the loss.

 So, it is best to do experiments first.

 However, if you do an experiment, it will take a long time.

 Hearing Yang Xi's words, everyone present was thoughtful. Yes, you can't take risks with this kind of thing.

"In this CNC machine tool, there is propeller data left by Lao Maozi." Qin Tao said: "We only need to follow the shape they designed and scale it down, and it will be the best solution. This is no problem. I I am worried that the propeller and transmission system will not match, and the reducer will have to be modified in the end.”

 No matter what kind of engine it is, the rotation speed is not low, often several thousand revolutions per minute. Therefore, if you want to drive the propeller, you must add a reducer in the middle.

 The larger the diameter of the propeller, the slower the speed must be, and the larger the reduction ratio of the reducer must be.

 So, it is easy to modify the propeller now, but I am afraid that the reducer must be modified together, because to modify this thing, you have to cut the steel plate, otherwise it will not be put in at all!

 In this case, it is a big project.

After all, even Qin Tao has never done this job, so now that he talks about it, Qin Tao is still a little worried. Although their Mingzhou Shipyard already has a large number of skilled welders, waxing the aircraft carrier , I have never done anything like operating on a submarine.

"In this case, we can test it on No. 401 first. First, it will be used to verify the technology." At this moment, a man who had been silent beside Wu Shengli suddenly spoke up: "If the changes are too big, then Only change No. 401, forget about the rest, but the proven technology can be used in..."

His words were not finished, but Qin Tao felt his eyelids twitching. He had just introduced everyone to visit for so long, and Qin Tao did not pay attention to this person. Now he finally came out.

 Lao Zhang!

He was born in 1936 and graduated from Harbin Institute of Technology in Turbine in August 1960. After that, he entered the shipbuilding industry and studied shipbuilding all his life. If you look at his resume, it seems ordinary, because many of his resumes cannot be released to the public. .

 For example, he is the chief designer of the second-generation nuclear submarine!

 At the beginning, Mr. Peng took the lead and was the designer of the first-generation nuclear submarine, while Mr. Huang was responsible for researching the most important power system on the submarine. With the cooperation of the two, they finally completed the development of 091 and 092.

However, everyone in the know knows that the first-generation nuclear submarines only solved the problem of whether or not they have nuclear submarines. The second-generation nuclear submarines are moving towards a higher level. After the first-generation nuclear submarine is launched, the second-generation nuclear submarine should enter the research and development state.

 The early research and development was not smooth. From the establishment of the project in 1980 to 1988, it was all in the theoretical research stage and had a theoretical foundation. From 1988 to 1996, there was a breakthrough, the development goals were clarified, and substantial results were produced. For example, in 1990, a 1:24 model of a 3,500-ton submarine was even produced. However, due to the serious backwardness of relevant technologies, the development of nuclear submarines still has not entered the fast lane. After 1996, under certain stimulation and military exchanges with Lao Maozi, coupled with significant progress in the development of core components, the project That’s when it’s officially launched.

Now, with the various equipment on the two Type 705 submarines brought back by Qin Tao, domestic related technologies can achieve many breakthroughs, so the second-generation nuclear submarine is expected to be launched soon.

Propeller processing will also reach a new level. First, we will build a seven-blade large side-inclined propeller and try to install it on the 401 nuclear submarine. Anyway, that nuclear submarine was originally used for experiments. If you want to disassemble and replace the reducer, it will not work. Feeling distressed. But there is no need for such a major project for the other several ships. After the technology is verified on the No. 401 nuclear submarine, it can be used on the second-generation nuclear submarine.

  In any case, the two nuclear submarines have similar displacements. They are both five to six thousand tons. They have similar shapes and can be driven by the same propeller.

Although Mr. Zhang did not finish speaking, Qin Tao knew that it would be used in second-generation nuclear submarines when he heard it, and he was also excited. He just planned to get some titanium alloy to make a fortune, but he did not expect that it would also promote the domestic nuclear submarines. It has many functions!

But how to get into the topic?

After thinking for a while, Qin Tao said: "I heard that our domestic Tsinghua University is researching high-temperature gas-cooled reactors. I wonder if this kind of reactor can be used in our new generation of submarines?"

 China is still advanced in some technologies, and high-temperature gas-cooled reactors are one of them. In 1994, Tsinghua University held a special demonstration, which shocked nuclear reactor experts around the world.

 Its security is unparalleled.

 No matter what kind of nuclear power plant or nuclear submarine it is, it is essentially a boiler that slowly releases the energy generated by nuclear fission. The energy it generates is mainly heat. This heat can easily boil the water in the boiler and then drive the steam turbine.

 The transmission of this energy is very particular.

In the beginning, water was used. After all, water is what humans have been exposed to the most since industrialization. Research has begun since the steam engine era. Of course, depending on the water used, there can be heavy water, light water, or ordinary water reactors.

These are all mature, and almost all commercial power stations today use this structure.

In order to increase the energy density of the reactor, Lao Maozi developed a more special metal reactor, which heated the metal into liquid, flowed inside the reactor, and brought out the heat generated inside. Facts have proved that this kind of reactor is immature.

 Now Lao Maozi has given up on this type of reactor and continues to use mature and reliable pressurized water reactors.

 In addition to these, there is another way, which is the gas-cooled reactor.

 Helium is directly used as a coolant, flows through the granular fuel, and turns into high-temperature gas. The high-temperature gas then passes through the steam generator to generate steam, and then the steam drives the turbine to output energy.

 This method has many advantages. For example, helium, which serves as a coolant and transfers heat, has better chemical inertness and thermal properties, and will not corrode equipment and pipelines at high temperatures. Therefore, the core outlet temperature of a high-temperature gas-cooled reactor can reach thousands of degrees or even higher. The maximum temperature of an ordinary pressurized water reactor is only 360 degrees.

Since it uses granular fuel with a large surface area and uses high-temperature resistant graphite material as a moderator, it consumes very little fuel. When outputting the same heat, the fuel consumed is a fraction of that of a pressurized water reactor.

More importantly, it is safe. In the event of an accident, it will automatically shut down for cooling and will never cause a serious accident. Therefore, this reactor has become a recognized fourth-generation nuclear reactor in the world.

The high-temperature gas-cooled reactor has a series of advantages such as the large surface area of ​​the granular fuel, the stable heat transfer of helium, and the high-temperature resistance of the core material. The thermal efficiency of the reactor is very high, easily exceeding 40%, while the pressurized water reactor has only About thirty percent.

However, since helium gas is required to pass through to cool the core, the volume of this thing is very large. A 100,000-kilowatt core requires a "large furnace" with a length, width and height of 10 meters. Therefore, nuclear submarines must use If not, the aircraft carrier will be difficult to use, and ordinary pressurized water reactors will have to be used.

Of course Qin Tao is aware of these shortcomings, he just wants to talk about the topic.

Sure enough, Mr. Zhang shook his head: "This kind of reactor is not suitable for our nuclear submarines. The current trend is to reduce the noise of nuclear submarines. Natural cycle nuclear reactors are the trend of our research, but now, this technology has yet to be broken through."

Ordinary pressurized water reactors have two circuits. The nuclear reactor heats the cooling water, then passes through the steam generator, and then re-enters the nuclear reactor. The steam generator is a secondary circuit. The heated steam enters the steam turbine and then comes back to be reheated.

 This operation is to avoid radiation. The primary circuit and the secondary circuit carrying nuclear radiation are isolated. There is no radiation in the secondary circuit, so if there is a problem with the steam turbine or the like, it can be repaired directly.

There is a water pump in the primary circuit, which is responsible for circulating the cooling water inside. This water pump is the loudest noise maker on the nuclear submarine besides the propeller.

If the water inside can circulate naturally, the water pump can be removed, so that the quietness can be greatly improved.

“I went to Lao Maozi this time and visited their Oscar nuclear submarine. Their nuclear submarine reactor can achieve self-circulation at low power.”

Ever been to an Oscar?

Countless people cast envious glances, and Yang Xi straightened his chest: "Yes, we have been there."

Yang Xi is very proud.

We have been on the Kuznetsov aircraft carrier and the Oscar nuclear submarine. This trip is really worth it!

At this time, the topic finally came up. Qin Tao continued: "I think that many of the designs on the Oscar nuclear submarine are worth learning from, such as its weapons and equipment."

 Oscar’s weapons and equipment? Of course it's the P-700 missile next to them, but it's useless to talk about this. It's impossible for us to produce this kind of missile in our country!

“Although we currently only have the Haiying 8 missile, we can also think of ways to install it on nuclear submarines to become a new weapon in addition to torpedoes.” Qin Tao began to give pointers again.

Torpedoes are outdated, let’s also try submarine-launched anti-ship missiles!

 (End of this chapter)