Watch: India’s Skyroot Successfully Tests Dhawan-II, A Fully 3D-Printed Cryogenic Engine

New Delhi: Indian private aerospace company, Skyroot Aerospace, successfully tested an advanced fully 3D-printed cryogenic engine named Dhawan-II. The engine roared to life for 200 seconds as part of the endurance test. This engine is expected to power the Vikram-II rocket of the company in the future.

The test of the Dhawan-II engine was conducted at Solar Industries propulsion test facility in Nagpur. Skyroot’s indigenously developed mobile cryogenic engine test pad was used for the purpose.

“The successful test of Dhawan-II is a landmark achievement for Skyroot and the Indian private space sector. We are proud to be at the forefront in developing cutting-edge cryogenic technologies in the private space sector of India, and pushing the limit with advanced technologies like 3D printing and green propellants,” Pawan Kumar Chandana, Co-founder, and CEO of Skyroot Aerospace said in a statement.

Excited to announce the triumphant 200-second fire-endurance test of our enhanced, fully 3D-printed 'Dhawan-II' Cryogenic engine that will power the upper stage of Vikram-2.

This is a major milestone for our cryogenic program, fuelling the accelerated development of Vikram… pic.twitter.com/LmZOAVqOXQ

— Skyroot Aerospace (@SkyrootA) April 4, 2023

Dhawan-II is a 3.5 Kilo Newton (kN) engine is named after India’s top rocket scientist, Dr. Satish Dhawan. The company said that fully cryogenic engines are ideal for the upper stages of a rocket due to their higher specific impulse, which greatly enhances payload-carrying capabilities.

Skyroot has already conducted the maiden launch of a privately developed rocket in India. The rocket named Vikram-S was successfully launched from the ISRO’s Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota.