Characterisation of a small ring-cusp gridded ion engine using alternative propellants
Characterisation of a small ring-cusp gridded ion engine using alternative propellants
Xenon is the preferred propellant for electric propulsion thrusters, providing high thruster efficiency and long life. However, xenon is extremely expensive and has limited availability, which could impose serious constraints on the use of electric propulsion in some future missions. This report presents the results of the experimental characterization of a small ring-cusp discharge chamber using xenon (as baseline), krypton and a 1:4 Xe/Kr mixture.
These results represent the worst-case scenario for alternative propellants, but it allows the identification of possible modifications (e.g. cathode geometry and ion optics geometry) that could reduce the gap between xenon and the selected alternative propellants.
Gridded Ion Engine, Propellants, Xenon, Krypton, Performance Parameters
Fazio, Nazareno
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Golosnoy, Igor O.
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Gabriel, Stephen B.
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Bosi, Franco
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Guarducci, Francesco
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22 May 2024
Fazio, Nazareno
16e21134-c70e-462a-ab8e-2882b154e89f
Golosnoy, Igor O.
40603f91-7488-49ea-830f-24dd930573d1
Gabriel, Stephen B.
ac76976d-74fd-40a0-808d-c9f68a38f259
Bosi, Franco
d35c0d4b-3472-4961-922a-a9951d6ab96a
Guarducci, Francesco
63d82286-534e-433a-b889-92d5d50adab6
Fazio, Nazareno, Golosnoy, Igor O., Gabriel, Stephen B., Bosi, Franco and Guarducci, Francesco
(2024)
Characterisation of a small ring-cusp gridded ion engine using alternative propellants.
Space Propulsion Conference 2024, Scottish Event Campus, Glasgow, United Kingdom.
20 - 23 May 2024.
9 pp
.
Record type:
Conference or Workshop Item
(Paper)
Abstract
Xenon is the preferred propellant for electric propulsion thrusters, providing high thruster efficiency and long life. However, xenon is extremely expensive and has limited availability, which could impose serious constraints on the use of electric propulsion in some future missions. This report presents the results of the experimental characterization of a small ring-cusp discharge chamber using xenon (as baseline), krypton and a 1:4 Xe/Kr mixture.
These results represent the worst-case scenario for alternative propellants, but it allows the identification of possible modifications (e.g. cathode geometry and ion optics geometry) that could reduce the gap between xenon and the selected alternative propellants.
Text
SP2024-634_FAZIO
- Version of Record
More information
Published date: 22 May 2024
Venue - Dates:
Space Propulsion Conference 2024, Scottish Event Campus, Glasgow, United Kingdom, 2024-05-20 - 2024-05-23
Keywords:
Gridded Ion Engine, Propellants, Xenon, Krypton, Performance Parameters
Identifiers
Local EPrints ID: 491977
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/491977
PURE UUID: 629bbdac-2fe4-4daf-8451-63df0d2d44da
Catalogue record
Date deposited: 10 Jul 2024 16:31
Last modified: 26 Nov 2024 02:53
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Contributors
Author:
Nazareno Fazio
Author:
Igor O. Golosnoy
Author:
Stephen B. Gabriel
Author:
Franco Bosi
Author:
Francesco Guarducci
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