On December 12, 1941, the first diesel engine for Soviet tanks was manufactured in Chelyabinsk at the facilities of a motor enterprise evacuated from Kharkov. In total, during the years of the Great Patriotic War, 48.5 thousand "iron hearts" were produced in the South Urals, with which the T-34, KV, IS and artillery installations of the Red Army were equipped. After the war, the Chelyabinsk Tractor Plant formed its own design school. She created new power units for domestic self-propelled guns, tracked vehicles of the T-72 and T-90 families. The newest large-scale development of Chelyabinsk residents is a diesel engine for the T-14 "Armata" with a capacity of 1500 hp. Experts believe that in terms of a number of characteristics, tank engines from the South Urals can be called the best in the world.
80 years ago, the
first tank diesel engine was assembled
at the Chelyabinsk Kirov Plant (now the Chelyabinsk Tractor Plant, ChTZ-Uraltrak. -
RT
).
This is how the history of the production of "iron hearts" for the needs of domestic armored vehicles began in the South Urals.
The decision to deploy a plant for the production of tank engines in Chelyabinsk was made by the authorities of the USSR in connection with the need to evacuate the production facilities and specialists of the Kharkov Diesel Engine Plant No. 75 to the east.
On September 18, 1941, the first of 26 echelons with equipment and engineers went to the South Urals.
Two months after the completion of the evacuation at ChTZ, 18 engines were assembled from Kharkov components.
By the end of 1942, Chelyabinsk residents supplied the front with more than 9 thousand diesel engines, and in 1944 - more than 15 thousand "iron hearts".
In total, 48.5 thousand power units were produced at ChTZ during the Great Patriotic War.
They were installed on KV (Klim Voroshilov), IS (Joseph Stalin) tanks, the legendary T-34, self-propelled guns and other types of military equipment of the Red Army.
The V-2 diesel engine was produced so massively in the Southern Urals, the state tests of which were completed in 1939.
The creation of this engine took the Soviet industry a lot of time, but the final result was truly impressive.
Order to expand the production of tank motors in Chelyabinsk
© Press Service of ChTZ
It is believed that the B-2 was ahead of its time in terms of the quality of engineering solutions.
In particular, in a number of characteristics, it surpassed foreign counterparts over the next 30 years.
The engine was undemanding to fuel, reliable, light enough, economical, powerful, easy to maintain and maintainable.
The unique domestic diesel engine had modifications for 375, 500 and 600 hp.
“Without a reliable engine, any technique turns into a heap of metal.
The value of B-2, which was produced by Chelyabinsk residents, for the army of our country can hardly be overestimated.
It was this power unit that provided the T-34, our other tanks and self-propelled guns with outstanding driving performance.
Also, B-2 became the progenitor of other domestic diesel engines, including modern ones, "Sergei Suvorov, candidate of military sciences, said in an interview with RT.
Military expert Alexei Khlopotov shares this point of view.
In a commentary on RT, he recalled that in the USSR they perfectly understood the importance of engine-building technologies and did a lot for their development.
"We have no competitors"
Mass production of "iron hearts" laid the foundation for the emergence of the South Ural design school.
After the war, ChTZ engineers modernized the V-2 several times, and in the mid-1970s, based on it, they developed the V-46 multi-fuel diesel engine for the T-72 main battle tank (MBT).
Seven modifications of this diesel engine were created with a capacity of 650 to 780 hp.
The B-46 was a V-shaped 12-cylinder engine.
It allowed the carrier to accelerate on the highway to 60 km / h and gave a cruising range of 500 km.
According to experts, thanks in no small part to the Chelyabinsk "iron heart", the T-72 has become the most massive domestic tank in the last quarter of the 20th century.
Subsequently, improved modifications of this MBT received V-84M units with a capacity of 840 and 880 hp.
Currently in the ranks of the Russian army are deeply modernized versions of the T-72, which are equipped with more advanced V-92S2F diesel engines with a capacity of 1,130 hp.
With.
As stated in February 2021 in an interview with the publication "Independent Military Review" (NVO) and.
O.
Vladimir Lebedev, General Director of ChTZ-Uraltrak, V-92S2F uses a number of new design solutions and materials.
According to the head of the enterprise, the Chelyabinsk specialists have made a ceramic thermal barrier coating for the elements of the combustion chamber and the exhaust route of the engine, integrated multilayer plain bearings, hardened aluminum alloys and high-alloy steels into the diesel engine.
“In addition, we use promising fuels and lubricants (fuel and lubricants. -
RT
), we work with new types of oils intended for the regions of the Far North and the Arctic,” Lebedev said.
As reported in the materials of "Rostec", which now includes ChTZ, with the installation of the V-92S2F, the mobility and operational characteristics of the T-72B3 / T-72B3M significantly increased, and in terms of power density the Russian tank surpassed the best Western models.
Diesel tanks of the RF Armed Forces
© Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation
The V-92S2F is maximally unified with its predecessor, the V-92S2 diesel engine.
The new "iron heart" is made in the same dimensions and is installed in the engine compartment without any modifications to the carrier.
It is produced on the standard equipment of ChTZ-Uraltrak.
The improved MBT T-90M "Breakthrough" was also equipped with this diesel engine, providing it with high maneuverability and high speed qualities.
At the same time, as noted in Rostec, the engine turned out to be quite economical and capable of providing a combat vehicle with a good power reserve.
“The Chelyabinsk engine is one of the best: we have no competitors among domestic manufacturers, moreover, we are ahead of many analogues of foreign manufacturers.
And it is important for us to maintain a leading position and, of course, not to be satisfied with what has already been achieved, ”the press service of ChTZ-Uraltrak quotes Oleg Terentyev, head of diesel engine production at the enterprise.
The plans of the enterprise include an increase in the volume of production of "iron hearts", the development of new, more efficient diesel engines, the development of military-technical cooperation, an increase in export supplies of power units and spare parts for them.
According to experts, in terms of a number of indicators, Chelyabinsk tank engines can really be called the best in the world - they are distinguished by high power density and are well adapted for operation in the most extreme climatic conditions.
True, in Russian realities, a conditional disadvantage of diesel engines is the need for prolonged warming up in frosty weather.
For this reason, military units in the Arctic and a number of other regions of the Russian Federation are armed with "jet" improved tanks of the T-80 family with a single gas turbine engine (GTE).
Such a unit allows you to start moving about a minute after starting the power plant.
At the same time, the gas turbine engine is less economical and tolerates the impact of dust worse than diesel "brothers", Sergey Suvorov explained.
“The peculiarity of the Chelyabinsk design school and, in general, domestic engineering thought is that our engines are unpretentious, including the GTE for the T-80, if we compare it, for example, with the American analogue on the Abrams.
This is our absolute advantage.
Military equipment, in principle, should be on the move in a variety of conditions, "- said Suvorov.
"Strict reliability standards"
In addition to engines for the T-72 and T-90 family, the Chelyabinsk enterprise produces "iron hearts" for the Terminator tank support combat vehicles (BMPT), the Akatsiya self-propelled guns, Msta-S, Malka and the newest self-propelled gun "Coalition -SV ".
Also, according to the ChTZ-Uraltrak press service, the enterprise has mastered the production of a wide range of diesel engines with a capacity of up to 1500 hp.
for Russian armored vehicles.
One of these units received the world's only third-generation T-14 tank on the Armata universal tracked platform.
Tank T-14
© Alexey Zakvasin
The “iron heart” for this unique machine is the 2V-12-3A 12-cylinder diesel turbo-piston engine.
As Vladimir Lebedev admitted in an interview with "Independent Military Review", the creation of this unit has become a difficult task for the enterprise.
The head of ChTZ explained that during the development process, problems were identified, "primarily in the field of fuel and oil consumption, specific heat transfer and some others."
However, the engineers eliminated all the defects that hindered the normal operation of the T-14.
Already at the beginning of August 2020, the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation issued a permit for serial production of the 2V-12-3A engine ... According to foreign experts, "Armata" is capable of starting even on Mars, where the temperatures are extremely cold, "Lebedev said.
According to Sergei Suvorov, the main efforts of ChTZ and other Russian enterprises are aimed at increasing the power of engines and at the same time reducing their "gluttony".
“A lot has always depended on the engine.
In addition, modern armored vehicles have significantly increased their armor, received a significant amount of electronic equipment, which also makes it heavier.
In this regard, current engines should provide more power with moderate appetites.
This is the only way to provide the machines with the necessary mobility and maneuverability, ”says Suvorov.
According to Aleksey Khlopotov, the foundation of Russia's technological leadership in the field of engines for armored vehicles is strict reliability requirements due to extreme operating conditions.
“The Russian Federation traditionally has very strict reliability standards, taking into account sharp temperature fluctuations and a wide variety of weather conditions.
There is an understanding that the quality of the engine plays a key role, without this there is no point in creating new equipment.
Therefore, the work on improving the power plants in our country, in fact, never stopped and continues today, "Khlopotov summed up.
