On September 1, An Yi left Xuan Huong City and took a special plane to the southern tip of Ca Mau Peninsula in southern Wujiang Province to inspect the situation of nuclear submarines under construction there.
Ding Molan, deputy director of the Xufu Research Institute, received the task of designing a nuclear submarine from An Yi as early as last year.
After making a breakthrough in the miniaturization technology of the nuclear power research pressurized water reactor, Ding Molan consulted Tesla on many problems and stayed at the Nuclear Research Institute for a week, and then decided on a rough design for the ship research and development department.
The direction is: produce nuclear energy from nuclear reactors, and then use ordinary devices to propel submarines.
Specifically, a nuclear reactor using natural uranium as fuel is started to perform a nuclear fission reaction, releasing a large amount of heat energy, and then using water with a certain pressure or other heat transfer agent to "carry" out this large amount of heat energy.
It is loaded into the evaporator, and the heat transfer agent in the evaporator transfers the carried heat to the non-radioactive flowing water, causing the water to evaporate into steam, which then drives the steam turbine unit to generate electricity. Under the action of electricity, the submarine can
Move forward and retreat freely underwater.
Although the theory is so simple, actual development is much more difficult than imagined.
For example, there are five layers of processing systems around a general nuclear reactor, including core coolant system, emergency core cooling system, coolant purification system, containment and emission line waste treatment system. The structure is complex and bloated, but it is obviously miniature.
It is impossible for a modernized ship-based nuclear reactor to adopt such a complex design. It must have a metal that can withstand high temperatures and does not absorb or rarely absorbs neutrons.
Ding Molan searched the Metal Research Institute and the Special Materials Research Institute, personally participated in several experiments, and finally decided to use a metal called "zirconium" to build a nuclear reactor.
This "zirconium" metal was not first discovered and put into use by Nanhua. In fact, it had been discovered as early as the 18th century. "Zirconium" was obtained from the laboratory in the early 19th century, but it was not pure enough. At the beginning of this century,
Two researchers at a metal incandescent lamp manufacturing plant in the Netherlands filled an empty ball with anhydrous zirconium tetrachloride and excess metallic sodium, and used current heating to obtain pure metallic zirconium, but the yield was extremely low.
The Institute of Metal Research and the Institute of Special Materials have long studied zirconium. As early as the year before last, it was confirmed in metallurgical experiments that adding one thousandth of zirconium to steel will increase the hardness and strength astonishingly. Steel containing zirconium will
Steel materials such as armor steel, cannon forging steel, stainless steel and heat-resistant steel are important materials for manufacturing weapons such as armored vehicles, tanks, cannons and ballistic plates.
The most important natural zircon producing areas in the world are in the four provinces of Caiyun, Tiannan, Hedong, and Shannan in South China. In addition, they are also distributed in large quantities in northern Myanmar. They are the main component of gemstones such as rubies, emeralds, and cat's eyes. Another
Zircon is produced as an accessory mineral in various igneous rocks, and is more abundant in alkaline rocks and alkaline pegmatites.
After more than a year of research on the project, the Institute of Special Materials has improved the industrial extraction method of zirconium. Zircon reacts with coke in an electric furnace to produce zirconium hydrocarbon, which is then chlorinated or oxidized to produce zirconium tetrachloride or zirconium tetrachloride.
Zirconium tetroxide. The next step is to reduce the tetrachloride with magnesium
Zirconium or zirconium tetroxide is to put magnesium in an inert gas and obtain sponge-like zirconium metal through a series of chemical reactions. After improving the smelting method, it costs about 10,000 US dollars to obtain one kilogram of metallic zirconium.
Far lower than the market price of one million US dollars per kilogram.
But even so, to build a 30,000-horsepower nuclear submarine, zirconium and zirconium alloys are used as nuclear fuel cladding and pressure tubes, and the amount used is as high as 30 tons. In this way, a submarine will have to spend at least 3,000 yuan on "zirconium" alloy.
Ten thousand U.S. dollars. If a few more ships are built, it will cost hundreds of millions of dollars. Of course, since all production is in Nanhua, you only need to pay Chinese dollars, and there is no need to use foreign exchange or gold.
Ding Molan is responsible for too many projects. For example, now, another research team she leads is studying how satellites fly in space, navigation, spacecraft rendezvous, ultra-long distance spacecraft remote control, and human beings in a vacuum environment.
How to survive in the environment, how to move in weightlessness, methods of lunar exploration and other issues, and there are plans to launch an experimental satellite into space again in the near future. It is impossible to keep an eye on the manufacture of nuclear submarines at all times.
Therefore, Ding Molan suggested to An Yi to set up a department under the military committee and hire a shipbuilding expert to deal with matters related to nuclear submarine research and development. If difficulties were encountered, Ding Molan would provide guidance. An Yi did not hesitate.
, after careful inspection by the political and intelligence departments, Lieutenant Colonel Bai Ye, a ship manufacturing expert of the General Logistics Department studying at the New York Maritime Academy in the United States, came into An Yi's sight.
After having a half-day exchange with Bai Ye in person, An Yi officially appointed him as the director of the Naval Division of the Nuclear Power Development Department of the Military Commission's Research and Development Commission, with a promotion to the rank of colonel, and concurrently as the chief engineer of the nuclear submarine project. In order to ensure the smooth development of the project, he was also assigned to work in the nuclear energy department.
The research institute and the ship research and development department have temporary positions, and Chinese researchers can be transferred with the consent of the heads of the two departments.
When Bai Ye took office, he immediately visited Ding Molan and received specific guidance from her. Later, with the help of Ding Molan, he transferred nearly two hundred experts from the Nuclear Research Institute and the Ship R&D Department to form four specialized research groups.
, each researching pressurized water nuclear power devices. These four groups are respectively responsible for the design and construction of nuclear power devices by four military industrial enterprises under the Sichuan South Group.
The four military-industrial companies attached great importance to this, and established a special research and development institution. They hired Jewish nuclear physics experts as project team consultants and worked closely with the research team. As a result, the Syrian military factory was the first to come up with a nuclear power device. Because it was
For the first construction, they decided to build a land model reactor for experiments. The Syrian Army
Experts in charge of this project at the factory suggested that they first build an experimental factory near the Laizhou Institute of Nuclear Physics in North Vietnam, and conduct experiments on various parts of the machine in the same factory. After the various parts are completely put together and the experiment is successful,
Then according to the original design, build a practical machine and install it in the submarine engine room.
Bai Ye firmly opposed this suggestion. He demanded that the machine be installed directly into the engine room of the submarine to be built. Bai Ye emphasized to the contractor that according to An Yi and Ding Molan's requirements, Nanhua now cannot afford to wait for repeated tests.
, so after obtaining Ding Molan's consent, he decided to build two sets of nuclear facilities at the same time, one as a land experimental model, and the other directly installed in the submarine engine room, which could save a lot of time.
The next troublesome thing is where to choose the site for the nuclear submarine manufacturing plant. Although there is zirconium metal protection, the nuclear device will not have a big explosion, but if any small accident occurs, the emitted nuclear material may endanger the safety of the people.
After many discussions and personal approval from An Yi, Bai Ye finally located the nuclear submarine manufacturing base in Damen Port in the southern part of the Ca Mau Peninsula.
The Ca Mau Peninsula is located at the southernmost tip of the Mekong Plain, facing the Malay Peninsula across the sea. The huge bay formed between Ca Mau Point in the southern part of the Ca Mau Peninsula and the Malay Peninsula was previously called the Gulf of Siam by the great powers and was later called the Gulf of Thailand.
, but now there is only one resounding name - Nanhua Bay. In a sense, Nanhua Bay is under the protection of the Anjia Army Air Force deployed on the Malay Peninsula and Ca Mau Peninsula, and has become the inland sea of Nanhua.
In the 1930s, the Ca Mau Peninsula was entirely covered by mangroves and freshwater swamp forests, and thousands of square kilometers were uninhabited. It was not until last year that radar and missile bases were built in the southern part of the peninsula, breakwaters were built along the coast, ports were dredged, and roads were built.
Gradually there are people. The real history
After World War II, most of the vast and sparsely populated area was controlled by the Viet Minh and Vietcong guerrillas. The Ca Mau Peninsula was gradually developed and utilized. However, this episode obviously no longer exists because the entire southern part of the Ca Mau Peninsula has been cleared.
It is a military-administered area and it is difficult for ordinary people to step outside the boundaries.
Damen Port was originally just a small fishing village, but the hydrological environment is quite suitable for the construction of large military ports and docks. Since the end of last year, after the nuclear submarine construction base was established in Damen Port, the Nam Hwa government immediately organized construction and used dredging equipment to build a dock.
, breakwaters, loading and unloading equipment, docks, shipyards and ports at naval bases.
In early June this year, the No. 1 Dockyard of the Nuclear Submarine Manufacturing Plant officially started construction of the first nuclear submarine.
When selecting the site for the nuclear submarine manufacturing plant, the Luzhou Iron and Steel Company's nuclear power plant was also successfully developed. Although both used pressurized water reactors, there were significant differences in details. In order to distinguish the two, the Military Commission assigned the government
The onshore experimental model built by the military factory is named Unit 1, and the one installed in the submarine engine room is named Unit 2; the onshore experimental model responsible for Luzhou Iron and Steel Company is named A reactor, and the one installed in the engine room is named B reactor.
After two nuclear submarines were put into construction, the No. 3 and No. 4 submarine devices designed by Diannan Electric Company and Taiyuan Heavy Machinery Factory were also confirmed, officially approved, and construction began. As a result, the entire southern Ca Mau Peninsula became the nuclear submarine of the Nanhua Navy.
The base camp for development.
According to the usual construction procedures for submarines, there should be a wooden model in addition to the land model pile. All parts need to be installed on the wooden model. The factory that makes the parts and the wooden model are both together, so it does not seem troublesome. The only difficulty is
The problem is the processing and transportation of these parts after they are confirmed. The usual method is that after each part is designed, it is first installed on a wooden model, and then sent by freighter to Haiphong Port by sea, and then sent by rail to the manufacturing factory for manufacturing.
After testing, they are then sent to the nuclear submarine manufacturing plant for assembly by rail or sea.
In order to give the nuclear submarine its unique advantages as soon as it was built, Bai Ye insisted on conducting high-heat and shock-resistant tests on every part. In order to test the combat performance of the entire submarine, the ship's R&D department manufactured a six-month-long nuclear submarine in accordance with the formal design.
Meter, one meter in diameter, a submersible equipped with small machinery
Put the submarine in a bay with a diving bomb. After diving, the submarine is hit by a bomb and explodes. Then it is quickly fished out of the water and studied. Then the submarine is put into the bay and the bomb explosion experiment is carried out again... This way
Try again and again until all problems are discovered and solved.
Even so, Bai Ye still felt uneasy, and installed a camera inside the experimental submarine, aiming at the predetermined parts to take pictures. When the submarine entered the water and the bomb exploded, the camera clearly recorded the reaction of the parts when they were shocked. If something was found
If there is a problem with a mechanical part, it requires redesign and construction.
...
On the plane, An Yi and Gong Qian sat side by side.
Gong Qian asked curiously: "Of the several fighter jets that were tested at Datang Airport yesterday, which one do you like best? Why did you let the General Logistics Department place the same order in the end?"
An Yi sniffed the faint fragrance emanating from Gong Qian and said softly: "Relatively speaking, what I admire most is the jet fighter that was unveiled at the end. Although it did not receive an order, it represents the development of aviation in the future.
direction. Do you know? On the 27th of last month, the German He178 aircraft using a jet engine had a successful test flight. This means that the aircraft has officially entered the jet age. The next step is to see who can really grasp and own it.
."
Gong Qian was stunned for a moment, then quickly picked up the relevant information and looked at it carefully.
That was a fighter jet with the serial number A31. Unlike current piston fighter jets that rely on the pulling force generated by propellers to propel the aircraft into flight, it used a jet engine developed by the Rocket Research Institute, which relied on a large amount of high-temperature and high-pressure gas produced by the combustion of air and fuel.
Jetting backward propels the aircraft forward.
This jet fighter is a research project under the personal leadership of Wang Gongyun, director of the Second Aeronautical Power Research Institute. Both the research institute and the Air Force have high hopes for it, but so far, the answers they have given remain the same.
Unsatisfactory.
You know, the current one and three institutes have successively made breakthroughs in the research of air-cooled and liquid-cooled engines, making the first and third institutes prominent. The fourth institute, dominated by Russians, also has a new type of fighter aircraft that has been recognized. Under the leadership of Wang Gongyun
After developing a 1,450-horsepower air-cooled engine, the Second Institute of Science and Technology turned to the research of jet fighters. Up to now, this fighter jet is still not perfect. One can imagine the pressure that Wang Gongyun and the researchers he led are under.
Gong Qian recalled every bit of the development of the jet fighter and shook her head: "There were indeed many twists and turns during the development of this fighter. At least I have never seen an example where four consecutive prototypes failed to take off successfully.
, I also specially retrieved the relevant information and read it again. To be honest, I think you should have placed some appropriate orders yesterday, just as encouragement!"
An Yi raised his head in surprise: "Is there such a thing?"
Gong Qian sighed and frowned slightly: "Yes, the four prototypes all used the traditional three-point wheel support with two in the front and one in the rear. As a result, during takeoff, the horizontal tail was blocked by the main wing and engine and failed.
The aircraft could not be pulled up. However, after careful study, experts from the Second Institute finally switched to a front three-point wheel layout with one front and two rear on the fifth prototype, and the problem was finally solved."
"This is it!"
An Yi was relieved upon hearing this and said with a smile: "This is an unprecedented new model. Mistakes of one kind or another will inevitably occur during the exploration. We are not afraid of mistakes. As long as we overcome them and solve them, there is hope for success."
A coward who shrinks away from difficulties will never succeed!"
Gong Qian turned her head and looked at An Yi: "Speaking of which, I admire Professor Wang Gongyun's perseverance. Since the establishment of the jet fighter project, this fighter aircraft has had many twists and turns, including just the wind tunnel experiment.
One model was eliminated, and later in the actual experiments, there were many obstacles that were almost impossible to overcome, but in the end they were able to overcome them."
"It's nothing, let's talk about it!"
An Yi couldn't help but kiss Gong Qianfang on the lips, and then looked at her with a smile.
"good!"
Gong Qian's face turned red. She looked around and saw that no one was paying attention to her. Then she rested her head on An Yi's shoulder and said softly:
"The first test flight of the A31 was in February last year. Due to concerns about jet engine failure, the prototype was specially equipped with a piston engine so that if the jet engine stalled, the test pilot could switch to the piston engine for landing. As a result, the aircraft was unable to do anything.
The takeoff was successful until the fifth wheel layout change.
"On March 12 last year, the test pilot took off the No. 5 prototype equipped with a jet engine. Shortly after takeoff, the two jet engines suddenly stalled. The test pilot was not allowed to start the backup piston engine to bring the prototype from stall.
He was rescued from danger and landed safely.
"On May 26 last year, in order to reduce the weight of the aircraft, the No. 6 aircraft only carried two jet engines and was driven by a test pilot to take off from Simao Airport in southern Yunnan. Unfortunately, the engine failed again and the test pilot had to parachute to escape.
The plane fell straight to the ground and exploded before disintegrating. As a result, the two institutes behind closed doors re-developed a new jet engine suitable for fighter jets. After thousands of tests and tens of thousands of computer simulation experiments, the engine problem was solved.
.
"During the test flight in January this year, there was no problem with the engine of the No. 7 aircraft. However, when the test pilot was doing a dive test, the aircraft suddenly lost control. The jet engine drove the aircraft downward. As the dive became steeper, the speed increased.
It also increased, and finally the plane exploded and disintegrated in the air, and the test pilot died on the spot.
"The Second Aerodynamics Research Institute continued to look for problems under pressure, and found that the tail wing of the aircraft may have caused the out-of-control situation, so it adopted the swept wing concept proposed by German aerodynamicist Adolf Bussmann four years ago.
To maintain the aircraft's center of gravity. After a new design, the new model adopts a streamlined cockpit, traditional tail and 45-degree swept wing design, and the jet engine is installed in the wing root.
"After wind tunnel testing and multiple test flight inspections, the safety of this No. 8 aircraft was fully confirmed, so after obtaining my approval, thirty-two prototypes were produced for final evaluation. I originally thought it would
After takeoff, it quickly accelerates to 800 kilometers per hour, with a maximum speed of 890 kilometers per hour, which is more than 200 kilometers per hour faster than the current average aircraft. This absolute advantage will impress you, but I didn’t expect that you still haven’t placed an order.”
Speaking of this, Gong Qian patted the back of An Yi's hand with some annoyance.
"This fighter has many designs that are ahead of its time. I was worried that appearing early would cause unnecessary trouble, so I deliberately suppressed them to stimulate its designers to invest in research and development with a more serious and diligent attitude and create a better
jet fighter!"
An Yi's expression became more and more serious: "It is undeniable that this fighter does have many advantages, but it is not perfect. For example, it consumes too much fuel and has a pitiful range of only 800 kilometers. In other words, God can't hold on to half of it.
hours, they have to return, which completely defeats the purpose of close protection of the bombers.
"As a twin-engine heavy jet fighter, the A31 is actually not much different from the A29 fighter in performance, but it consumes about two to three times more resources, manpower and material resources than the A29 fighter. The requirements for workers are particularly strict. At present,
Look, I don't think there is a need to equip troops on a large scale for the time being.
"However, after hearing what you said, I asked the General Armament Department to purchase two hundred aircraft as training aircraft for the first jet fighter and give them to aviation schools for practice use, but they must be kept confidential. No matter what, I
The city will order continued funding to increase the research and development of jet fighters so that they can be fully dominant in all aspects. After all, jet engines still have great potential to be tapped. Compared with propeller-driven fighters at a speed of 890 kilometers per hour, the advantage is not very obvious.
"At the same time, given that jet fighter technology has gradually matured, the Second Institute will undertake the task of researching single-engine light jet fighters, jet attack aircraft, and bombers! In the future, the two institutes will be leading the pack!"
Gong Qian nodded, then thought of something and asked in surprise: "Do you think so highly of a29?"
An Yi affirmed: "Not only the a29, but also the gii, I am very satisfied!"
An Yi's words are indeed not polite. In his opinion, the A29 fighter almost represents the pinnacle level of Nanhua piston propeller fighter design. The aircraft has an all-metal load-bearing skin structure, with an I-shaped main wing spar running across the wing.
There is an almost equally thick rear wing spar parallel to it, which also bears the load of the ailerons and flaps.
There is enough distance between the two wing spars to accommodate a 12.7mm caliber machine gun, and the gun barrel protrudes from the main wing spars. The left and right wings are installed under the fuselage as a whole, with dihedral angles starting from the centerline of the belly, and the front and rear wings.
The edges are kept as straight as possible. These features make the A29 easy to produce and cheap.
The a29 adopts a revolutionary laminar flow airfoil, powerful flaps, wide-span landing gear and retractable tailwheel design. Different from the air-cooled engine of the a28, its heart is a 1695-horsepower liquid-cooled engine with strong power.
, and can spray water or alcohol at an altitude of 6,000 meters and above, generating an emergency power of 1,900 horsepower. The speed can instantly exceed 750 kilometers per hour, and the maximum flight speed is below 4,000 meters.
It can also reach 690 kilometers/hour. These two data are the fastest speeds that an aircraft can achieve in history. They are faster than any fighter currently in service in the Anjia Army Air Force. Its climb rate, acceleration, dive speed, stability,
The controllability, roll speed and turning radius under various configurations are all excellent and very satisfactory. At the same time, after adding an auxiliary fuel tank, the A29 has a range of up to 4,000 kilometers, which is almost twice that of single-engine fighters currently in service.
The weapon system of the A29 includes six 12.7mm caliber aviation machine guns built into the wings and four 25mm cannons in the outer wing sections, plus 10 external 5-inch rockets and two 1,000-pound bombs. The firepower is so powerful that it
An Yi, who saw its power with his own eyes at the test flight ground, was stunned.
The GII fighter was designed by the Fourth Aerodynamic Research Institute led by Soviet aviation experts. It uses an 1,800-horsepower air-cooled radial engine, has a wingspan of 9.8 meters, a length of 8.67 meters, and a height of 2.0 meters.
Eight meters, when the height is 6250 meters,
Its maximum speed is 677 kilometers per hour, its ceiling is 10,750 meters, and its maximum range is 1,300 kilometers. Its weapon system is three 25mm cannons with 150 rounds of ammunition per door. It can carry 250 kilograms of aerial bombs under its wings for ground attack operations.
attack.
Except for the slightly shorter range, all other data of the GII fighter can be said to be perfect. It has an absolute upper hand against the A26 and A27. It is only slightly inferior to the A29, but it can compete with the A28 which adopts unique tactics.
Any country that owns any of the three fighter jets, A28, A29 and GII, will probably laugh out loud. Now that Nanhua has suddenly acquired three types of fighter jets, no wonder it will temporarily put aside the jet fighter that represents the future direction.
To the side.
However, An Yi also has selfish motives. Now the British are frequently in contact with the United States, trying to obtain fighter supply channels from the United States. An Yi has decided to open up the technology of advanced fighter aircraft to Longan Aircraft Company, which is controlled by the American Huaqing Society, and strive for
Get orders from British people.
As the time for the United States to join the war draws closer, a large number of new technologies, new weapons, and equipment will continue to emerge. Within a year at the latest, Nanhua's advantage in piston aircraft aviation technology will be replaced by the United States.
If there is no gain, it is better to change the left hand to the right hand and let the peripheral Chinese consortiums in Nanhua continue to make huge profits.
When the whole world's eyes are fixed on Nanhua's new piston fighter and trying to surpass it, the technology of Nanhua's jet fighter will become more and more mature. By then, Nanhua Air Force will be equipped with new jet fighter and once again lead the world.
A big step, and it will not be so easy for European and American countries to catch up!
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