Analysis of Fiber-Fed Pulsed Plasma Thruster Performance (2020)

No AccessTechnical NotesAnalysis of Fiber-Fed Pulsed Plasma Thruster PerformanceRodney L. Burton, Curtis A. Woodruff, Darren M. King and David L. CarrollRodney L. BurtonCU Aerospace, LLC, Champaign, Illinois 61822, Curtis A. WoodruffCU Aerospace, LLC, Champaign, Illinois 61822, Darren M. KingCU Aerospace, LLC, Champaign, Illinois 61822 and David L. CarrollCU Aerospace, LLC, Champaign, Illinois 61822Published Online:22 Oct 2020https://doi.org/10.2514/1.B38114SectionsRead Now ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload citationTrack citations About References [1] Burton R. L. and Turchi P. J., "Pulsed Plasma Thruster," Journal of Propulsion and Power, Vol. 14, No. 5, 1998, pp. 716–735. https://doi.org/10.2514/2.5334 LinkGoogle Scholar[2] Benson S. W., Arrington L. A., Hoskins W. A. and Meckel N. J., "Development of a PPT for the EO-1 Spacecraft," AIAA Paper 1999-2276, 2000; also NASA TM-2000-210340, 2000. https://doi.org/10.2514/6.1999-2276 Google Scholar[3] Woodruff C., King D., Burton R. and Carroll D., CU Aerospace, L.L.C., Champaign, IL, U.S. Patent for "Fiber-Fed Advanced Pulsed Plasma Thruster (FPPT)," Docket No.10,570,892, filed 25 Feb. 2020. Google Scholar[4] Woodruff C., King D., Burton R., Bowman J. and Carroll D., "Fiber-Fed Pulsed Plasma Thruster (FPPT) for Small Satellites," 36th International Electric Propulsion Conference, IEPC Paper 2019-899, Sept. 2019. Google Scholar[5] Laystrom J., Burton R. and Benavides G., "Geometric Optimization of a Coaxial Pulsed Plasma Thruster," AIAA Paper 2003-5025, 2003. https://doi.org/10.2514/6.2003-5025 Google Scholar[6] Paccani G., Chiarotti U. and Deininger W. D., "Quasisteady Ablative Magnetoplasmadynamic Thruster Performance with Different Propellants," Journal of Propulsion and Power, Vol. 14, No. 2, March–April 1998, pp. 254–260. https://doi.org/10.2514/2.5275 LinkGoogle Scholar[7] Woodruff C., King D., Burton R., Bowman J. and Carroll D., "Development of a Fiber-Fed Pulsed Plasma Thruster for Small Satellites," Small Satellite Conference, Paper SSC19-WKVIII-06, 2019. Google Scholar[8] Burton R. L., Rysanek F., Antonsen E. A., Wilson M. J. and Bushman S. S., "Pulsed Plasma Thruster Performance for Microspacecraft Propulsion," Micropropulsion for Small Spacecraft, edited by Ketsdever A. D. and Micci M., Vol. 187, Progress in Astronautics and Aeronautics, AIAA, Reston, VA, 2000, pp. 337–352. https://doi.org/10.2514/5.9781600866586.0337.0352 Google Scholar[9] Devillers P. and Burton R. L., "The Importance of Alfven's Critical Velocity for MPD Arcs," AIAA Paper 1970-1096, 1970. Google Scholar[10] Danielsson L., "Experiment on the Interaction Between a Plasma and a Neutral Gas," Physics of Fluids, Vol. 13, No. 9, 1970, pp. 2288–2294. https://doi.org/10.1063/1.1693235 Google Scholar[11] Fahleson U. V., "Experiments with Plasma Moving Through Neutral Gas," Physics of Fluids, Vol. 4, No. 1, 1961, pp. 123–127. https://doi.org/10.1063/1.1706172 CrossrefGoogle Scholar[12] Bushman S. S., Burton R. L. and Antonsen E. L., "Arc Measurements and Performance Characteristics of a Coaxial Pulsed Plasma Thruster," 34th AIAA Joint Propulsion Conference, AIAA Paper 1998-3660, July 1998. https://doi.org/10.2514/6.1998-3660 LinkGoogle Scholar Previous article FiguresReferencesRelatedDetailsCited bySimplified Plasmadynamics Model of a Coaxial Self-Field Plasma AcceleratorRodney L. Burton and David L. Carroll16 March 2023 | Journal of Propulsion and Power, Vol. 0, No. 0Propellant Surface Evolution of a Coaxial Pulsed Plasma ThrusterTiankun Huang, Zhiwen Wu, Junrui Nie, Tianyi Hu and Weijie Hou11 July 2022 | Journal of Propulsion and Power, Vol. 39, No. 1Spectroscopic plasma plume study of a non-volatile liquid-fed pulsed plasma thrusterActa Astronautica, Vol. 198Effects of carbon, graphite, and graphene as propellant dopants in a laser-electric hybrid acceleration systemOptics & Laser Technology, Vol. 151 What's Popular Volume 37, Number 1January 2021 CrossmarkInformationCopyright © 2020 by CU Aerospace, L.L.C. Published by the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Inc., with permission. All requests for copying and permission to reprint should be submitted to CCC at www.copyright.com; employ the eISSN 1533-3876 to initiate your request. See also AIAA Rights and Permissions www.aiaa.org/randp. TopicsAircraft EnginesElectrically Powered Rocket EngineJet EnginesPropellantPropulsion and PowerRocket EngineRocketrySpacecraft Propulsion KeywordsPulsed Plasma ThrusterSolid PropellantsPolytetrafluoroethyleneDegree of IonizationExhaust VelocityPower Processing UnitMagnetoplasmadynamic ThrusterCathode SpotElectromagnetic DevicesAuxiliary PropulsionAcknowledgmentsThis analysis work was supported by CU Aerospace Internal Research and Development funds. The experimental data (including photographs) were funded by NASA Phase I and Phase II Small Business Innovation Research (SBIRs) under contract numbers NNX17CP36P and 80NSSC18C0063, respectively. The Contract Monitor was Richard Hofer of the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory. The authors thank the Department of Aerospace Engineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign for the use of the Electric Propulsion Laboratory thrust stand facility during the SBIR programs.PDF Received18 May 2020Accepted7 September 2020Published online22 October 2020