The engine passed its first
powerpack test including the
turbopump, valves,
ignition components, and the
gas generator at a LandSpace facility in
Huzhou on March 25, 2019. The engine's first full assembly was delivered in May 2019, and a
hot fire test was successfully conducted the same month. The engine passed its first 200 second duration variable thrust test on October 26, 2019. A series of 400s hot fire tests were conducted in January 2021 and the first-stage engine assembly for LandSpace's Zhuque-2 rocket was completed in February 2021. The Zhuque-2 launch vehicle first stage has four TQ-12 engines providing a takeoff thrust of 268 tons. The 2nd stage has a single TQ-12 engine. 37 TQ-12 family engines had been built by LandSpace as of July 2022, with cumulative hot fire test duration of more than 20,000 seconds. A record-breaking 3357 seconds of hot fire time were accumulated by one engine over 11 firings.
Flight history On December 14, 2022, Zhuque-2 completed its maiden flight. Four TQ-12 engines powered the first stage, which performed normally during the flight. However, the
TQ-11 vernier engines used in the second stage failed, and the rocket was lost. In July 2023, the 2nd launch of
Zhuque-2 was successful and the payload reached orbit. In December 2023, the 3rd and final launch of Zhuque-2 was successful. The subsequent Zhuque-2E uses
TQ-15 engines. ==References==