Performance of pulsed plasma thruster at low discharge energy

As the size of satellites scales down, low-power and compact propulsion systems such as the pulsed plasma thruster(PPT) are needed for stabilizing these miniature satellites in orbit. Most PPT systems are operated at 2 J or more of discharge energy. In this work, the performance of a PPT with a side-fed, tongue-flared electrode configuration operated within a lower discharge energy range of 0.5-2.5 J has been investigated. Ablation and charring of the polytetrafluoroethylene propellant surface were analyzed through field-effect scanning electron microscopy imaging and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy. When the discharge energy fell below 2 J, inconsistencies occurred in the specific impulse and the thrust efficiency due to the measurement of the low mass bit. At energy ≥2 J, the performance parameters are compared with other PPT systems of similar configuration and discussed in depth.

Application and development of the pulsed plasma thruster

The application and development of pulsed plasma thrusters(PPTs)in recent years are reviewed in this paper.The advantages of PPTs are discussed.The schematics,propulsion performance parameters and key physical processes of PPTs are described.Some representative PPT products and flight systems developed in recent years are presented to show the performance of the PPT.Studies about how electrode structures,discharge circuits,propellant materials,energy discharge method,propellant feed method,ignition method and number of thruster heads influence the PPT performance are presented and analyzed.The ignitor design method,ignition process and propellant carbonization are introduced to discuss the reliability and lifetime issues in PPTs.The modeling methods of the discharge circuit,as well as ablation,ionization and acceleration in PPTs are presented.Finally,the application of PPTs in the future is analyzed and some suggestions for PPT development are proposed.

Study on the Discharge Characteristics of a Coaxial Pulsed Plasma Thruster

A new coaxial pulsed plasma thruster （PPT） laboratory model is designed and employed in this study. A Teflon sleeve is connected with the anode, which is shaped as a nozzle, and a cathode is mounted in the cavity of the Teflon sleeve and kept in close contact with it. A thread is then designed in the internal surface of the Teflon sleeve, and because of the strong field strength of the cathode triple junction （CTJ）, vacuum flashover occurs and a plasma jet is acquired behind the anode. The electric field distribution of the designed coaxial PPT laboratory model is simulated by MAXWELL 3D simulation software, and the plasma density and thrust are measured by a Langnmir probe and a piezoelectric thin-film sensor, respectively. Through a series of comparative experiments, we discuss the impact of optimal designs, such as the thread and the nozzle-shaped anode, on the discharge characteristics of the coaxial PPT. The experimental and simulation results indicate that the designed coaxial PPT laboratory model presents better discharge characteristics in view of its higher plasma density and greater thrust.

Numerical Simulation for One Dimensional Steady Quasineutral Hybrid Model of Stationary Plasma Thruster

Based on the analysis of the physical mechanism of the Stationary Plasma Thruster （SPT）, an integral equation describing the ion density of the steady SPT and the ion velocity distribution function at an arbitrary axial position of the steady SPT channel are derived. The integral equation is equivalent to the Vlasov equation, but the former is simpler than the latter. A one dimensional steady quasineutral hybrid model is established. In this model, ions are described by the above integral equation, and neutrals and electrons are described by hydrodynamic equations. The transferred equivalency to the differential equation and the integral equation, together with other equations, are solved by an ordinary differential equation （ODE） solver in the Matlab. The numerical simulation results show that under various circumstances, the ion average velocity would be different and needs to be deduced separately.

Parameters Distribution Along the Channel Axis in the Scaling Designed Stationary Plasma Thruster

The study of the parameters＇ distribution along the channel axis in a stationary plasma thruster（SPT） helps One to understand the physical characteristics of the SPT＇s operation. In this paper, the axial distribution of the desired SPT parameters are predicted by combining the improved scaling theory and a one-dimensional hybrid model. The simulation indicates that the SPT parameters＇ distribution along the channel axis changes with scaling index variable ~. If ~ is set properly, the similarity of the parameters~ axial distribution between the model and a desired thruster can be ensured. In addition, the operation characteristics of the desired thruster, such as the ionization and acceleration processes, are also similar to those of the model. When ζ is set, the improved SPT scaling theory and the one-dimensional hybrid model can be used to predict the axial distribution of the desired SPT parameters with the same propellant （such as Xe）.

Volumetric Langmuir probe mapping of a transient pulsed plasma thruster plume

The triple Langmuir probe enables measurements of the transient plasma parameters over time at a point of interest.We demonstrate how these measurements can be easily combined to obtain a visualization of the overall plasma behavior of a pulsed plasma thruster.Through this,it is possible to identify features in the expansion of the plasma such as the canting angle of the plume.We also identified the early arrival of a negatively canted low-density plasma plume.The 2D profiles also reveal data that would otherwise be obscured by other planes in optical measurements.

Characteristics of plasma in a novel laser-assisted pulsed plasma thruster

A novel laser-assisted pulsed plasma thruster(LA-PPT)is proposed as an electric propulsion thruster,which separates laser ablation and electromagnetic acceleration.It aims for a higher specific impulse than that achieved with conventional LA-PPTs.Owing to the short-time discharge and the novel configuration,the physical mechanism of the discharge is unclear.Time and spatial-resolved optical emission spectroscopy was applied to investigate the variation in the plasma properties in the thruster discharge channel.The plasma species,electron temperature,and electron density were obtained and discussed.Our investigation revealed that there were H_(α),H_(β),H_(γ),H_(ε) atoms,CⅠ,CⅡ,CⅢ,CⅣ,ClⅠ,ClⅡparticles,and a small amount of CH,C_(3),C_(2),H_(2) neutral molecular groups in the plasma.The electron temperature of the discharge channel of the thruster was within 0.6–4.9 e V,and the electron density was within(1.1–3.0)×10^(18)cm^(-3),which shows that the optical emission spectroscopy method is to measure the electron excitation temperature and electron density in heavy particles.But the Langmuir probe method is to measure the temperature and density of free electrons.The use of laser instead of spark plug as the ignition mode significantly changed the plasma distribution in the discharge channel.Unlike the conventional PPT,which has high electron density near the thruster surface,LAPPT showed relatively large electron density at the thruster outlet,which increased the thruster specific impulse.In addition,the change in the ignition mode enabled the electron density in the LA-PPT discharge channel to be higher than that in the conventional PPT.This proves that the ignition mode with laser replacing the spark plug effectively optimised the PPT performance.

Effect of Pressure Level on the Performance of an Auto-Initiated Pulsed Plasma Thruster

Pulsed plasma thrusters （PPT） are micro-propulsion devices used in satellites for station keeping. Conventionally the plasma discharge in a PPT is initiated by a spark plug. The primary objective of the present work was to develop and characterize a PPT that does not need a spark plug to initiate the plasma discharge. If the spark plug is eliminated, the size of the thrusters can be reduced and arrays of such thrusters can be manufactured using micro electro mechanical systems （MEMS） techniques, which can provide tremendous control authority over the satellite positioning. A parallel rail thruster was built and its performances were characterized inside a vacuum chamber to elucidate the effect of vacuum level on the performance. The electrical performance of the thruster was quantified by measuring the voltage output from a Rogowski coil, and the thrust produced by the developed thruster was estimated by measuring the force exerted by the plume on a light weight pendulum, whose deflection was measured using a laser displacement sensor. It was observed that the thruster can operate without a spark plug. In general, the performance parameters such as thrust, mass ablation, impulse bit, and specific impulse per discharge, would increase with the increase in pressure up to an optimum level due to the increase in discharge energy as well as the decrease in the total impedance of the plasma discharge. The thrust efficiency is found to be affected by the discharge energy.

Experimental investigation on the plasma morphology of ablative pulsed plasma thruster with tongue-shaped and flared electrodes

Ablative pulsed plasma thrusters(APPTs)are considered as an attractive propulsion option for station-keeping and drag makeup purposes for mass-and power-limited satellites.In order to understand the physical mechanism of APPTs,high-speed camera and optical emission spectroscopy are utilized to investigate the plasma characteristics including the spatial distribution and composition between the electrodes.The plume images and spectra at different times and positions are experimentally recorded,and the spatial distribution,composition,and trajectory of plasmas can be concluded through analyzing them.With the increase of the distance from the ablation surface,two clusters of plasmas near the anode and cathode meet downstream,and the species and density of plasmas tend to be uniform.

Experimental investigation on the evolution of plasma properties in the discharge channel of a pulsed plasma thruster

Pulsed plasma thrusters(PPTs)are an attractive form of micro-thrusters due to advantages such as their compactness and lightweight design compared to other electric propulsion systems.Experimental investigations on their plasma properties are beneficial in clarifying the complex process of plasma evolution during the micro-second pulse discharge of a PPT.In this work,the multi-dimensional evolutions of the light intensity of the PPT plasma with wavelength,time,and position were identified.The plasma pressure was obtained using an iterative process with composition calculations.The results show that significant ion recombination occurred in the discharge channel since the line intensities of CII,CIII,CIV,and FII decreased and those of CI and FI increased as the plasma moved downstream.At the center of the discharge channel,the electron temperature and electron density were in the order of 10000 K and 1017 cm-3,respectively.These had maximum values of 13750 K and 2.3?×?1017 cm-3 and the maximum temperature occurred during the first half-cycle while the maximum number density was measured during the second half-cycle.The estimated plasma pressure was in the order of 105 Pa and exhibited a maximum value of 2.69?×?105 Pa.

The ablation characteristics of laser-assisted pulsed plasma thruster with metal propellant

In this study,a laser-assisted pulsed plasma thruster(LA-PPT)with a novel configuration is proposed as an electric propulsion thruster which separates laser ablation and electromagnetic acceleration.Owing to the unique structure of the thruster,metals can also be used as propellants,and a higher specific impulse is expected.The ablation quality,morphology,and plume distribution of various metals(aluminium alloy,red copper,and carbon steel)with different laser energies were studied experimentally.The ablation morphology and plume distribution of red copper were more uniform,as compared to those of other metals,and the ablation quality was higher,indicating its greater suitability for LA-PPT.The plume generated by nanosecond laser ablation of aluminium alloy expanded faster,which indicated that the response time of the thruster with aluminium alloy as the propellant was shorter.In addition,when the background pressure was 0.005 Pa,an obvious plume splitting phenomenon was observed in the ablation plume of the pulsed laser irradiating aluminium alloy,which may significantly reduce the utilisation rate of the propellant.

Study on the plasma generation characteristics of an induction-triggered coaxial pulsed plasma thruster

At present,spark plugs are used to trigger discharge in pulsed plasma thrusters（PPT）,which are known to be life-limiting components due to plasma corrosion and carbon deposition.A strong electric field could be formed in a cathode triple junction（CTJ） to achieve a trigger function under vacuum conditions.We propose an induction-triggered electrode structure on the basis of the CTJ trigger principle.The induction-triggered electrode structure could increase the electric field strength of the CTJ without changing the voltage between electrodes,contributing to a reduction in the electrode breakdown voltage.Additionally,it can maintain the plasma generation effect when the breakdown voltage is reduced in the discharge experiments.The induction-triggered electrode structure could ensure an effective trigger when the ablation distance of Teflon increases,and the magnetic field produced by the discharge current could further improve the plasma density and propagation velocity.The induction-triggered coaxial PPT we propose has a simplified trigger structure,and it is an effective attempt to optimize the micro-satellite thruster.

Different Ablation Models for the Wall-plasma Interaction Process in Pulsed Plasma Thruster

Ablation excited by current pulses is a very critical physical process in pulse plasma thrusters(PPT).Its effects on wall-plasma interaction directly determine the PPT performances.In order to reveal the process of the ablated wall interaction with the discharge plasma in PPT,ablation models formulated by three different boundary conditions at the wall-plasma interface are studied.These are the two widely used high-speed evaporation models(Model-L and Model-M),and the recently developed Keida-Zaghloul model(Model-K)of the Knudsen layer that takes into account the internal degrees of freedom on the energy flux conservation.First,fundamental mechanisms of the three ablation models are clarified by comparative analysis in order to gain a comprehensive understanding of the wall-plasma interaction.Then,the applicability of different ablation models with the numerical solutions of LES-6 PPT is investigated in detail using magnetohydrodynamic(MHD)modeling.Results show that Model-L and Model-M are actually special cases of Model-K when a simplified jump conditions limited by high velocity at the vapor/plasma interface is used;A ratio of ablation rate in Model-L to that in Model-M is about 0.8at the same wall surface temperature,while it rises to 1 at different surface temperature determined by Model-L and Model-M in PPT.Even though Model-K solution requires significant computational time,it shows more accurate ablation feature for the wall-plasma interaction and possesses better computing precision of impulse bit during post-pulse which is useful for future studies of the late time ablation.

PIC simulation of plasma properties in the discharge channel of a pulsed plasma thruster with flared electrodes

Plasma in the discharge channel of a pulsed plasma thruster(PPT) with flared electrodes is simulated by a self-developed two-dimensional code. The fully particle-in-cell method with Monte Carlo collision is employed to model the particle movement and collisions and investigate the plasma properties and acceleration process. Temporal and spatial variations of the electron density distribution and the ion velocity between electrodes are calculated and analyzed in detail.The computational results of the electron number density, which is in the order of 1023 m-3,show good agreements with experimental results of a PPT named ADD SIMP-LEX. The ion velocity distributions along the center line of the channel lead to a comprehensive understanding of ions accelerated by electromagnetic field. The electron distributions of PPT with discharge voltages varying from 1300 to 2000 V are compared. The diffusion of electrons presents strong dependency on discharge voltage and implies higher degree of ionization for higher voltage.

Bi-Directional Excitation of Radio Frequency Waves Using a Helical Antenna in Non-Uniform Plasmas towards a Compact Magnetoplasma Thruster

Magnetoplasma thruster is one of the attractive plasma engines for space propulsion in future manned deep space exploration. Usually two helical antennas are equipped to produce and heat plasmas with separate radio frequency sources. It is presented in this paper that a helical antenna, which is used to launch one wave mode in one direction so far, exhibits bi-directional nature, where the waves with different mode numbers are launched and couple with electrons and ions selectively in opposite directions. A two-dimensional numerical calculation is performed to predict wave propagation and power absorption in a non-uniform hydrogen plasma immersed in a non-uniform external static magnetic field, based on the hot plasma theory. It is confirmed that appropriate choice of the excitation condition of the antenna can select axial propagation direction of specific wave modes and consequently select a species that absorbs power from generated waves. A small-scale experiment is performed to confirm the prediction of the calculation. By measuring a change in electron and ion temperatures due to the wave launch from the helical antenna, it is found that both the production and heating at different axial positions are accomplished simultaneously by one antenna showing that another type of the radio frequency driven magnetoplasma thruster would be achieved.

A brief review of alternative propellants and requirements for pulsed plasma thrusters in micropropulsion applications

Technological miniaturization has enabled the development of small satellites weighing as little as 1 kg.Unfortunately,there is still a lack of suitable efficient micropropulsion systems at these scales.The pulsed plasma thruster is a structurally simple form of electric propulsion.This simplicity also makes it ideally suited for miniaturization.Its history can be traced back to applications in satellites that are much larger than micro/nano-satellites.The vast majority of modern pulsed plasma thrusters use solid polytetrafluoroethylene(PTFE)as a propellant.Unfortunately,at lower discharge energy levels such as those necessitated by the power limitations of micro/nano-satellites,PTFE has a tendency to exhibit carbon deposition,which can ultimately lead to thruster failure.In this new era of small satellites,it is important to consider alternative propellants in the miniaturization of pulsed plasma thrusters.This brief review discusses the needs and limitations of small satellites and alternative propellants that may be able to meet these needs.Such propellants may be able to offer advantages such as a longer thruster lifetime,a higher specific impulse,or a higher thrust-topower ratio.This would enable the development of different types of pulsed plasma thrusters that can be tailored towards specific mission requirements.

Design and fabrication of a full elastic sub-micron-Newton scale thrust measurement system for plasma micro thrusters

In this work,a force measurement system is proposed to measure the thrust of plasma microthruster with thrust magnitude ranging from sub-micro-Newtons to hundreds micro-Newtons.The thrust measurement system uses an elastic torsional pendulum structure with a capacitance sensor to measure the displacement,which can reflect the position change caused by the applied force perpendicular to the pendulum axis.In the open-loop mode,the steady-state thrust or the impulse of the plasma micro-thruster can be obtained from the swing of the pendulum,and in the closed-loop mode the steady-state thrust can be obtained from the feedback force that keeps the pendulum at a specific position.The thrust respond of the system was calibrated using an electrostatic weak force generation device.Experimental results show that the system can measure a thrust range from 0 to 200μN in both open-loop mode and closed-loop mode with a thrust resolution of 0.1μN,and the system can response to a pulse bit at the magnitude of 0.1 m N s generated by a micro cathode arc thruster.The background noise of the closed-loop mode is lower than that of the open-loop mode,both less than 0.1 m N/Hz in the range of 10 mHz to 5 Hz.

The effect of easily ionized elements Na and K on the performance of pulsed plasma thruster using water propellant

In view of the low thrust power ratio caused by the high resistance of pulsed plasma thruster using water propellant,the paper argues that the easily ionized elements Na and K with low ionic potentials are added in the water propellant to improve its performance. The measurement of the discharging current and plasma emission spectrographic analysis prove the improvement. The experiments show that the elements Na and K have certain effect on the improvement of the performance of pulsed plasma thruster: In comparison with water propellant,the NaCl and KCl water propellant has a lower total resistance and a higher ratio of thruster power and specific impulse,and the NaCl water propellant has a slightly stronger effect on pulsed plasma thruster than the KCl. The plasma emission spectrographic analysis is in consistent with the experiment of measuring the discharging current: The elements Na and K can intensify the plasma emission spectrographic signal.

Nonequilibrium modeling study on plasma flow features in a low-power nitrogen/hydrogen arcjet thruster

Gasdynamic flow features in an electrothermal arcjet thruster with a mixture of 1：2 nitrogen/hydrogen as the working gas have been studied by a two-temperature numerical simulation.Seven species and 17 kinetic processes are included in the chemical kinetic model used to represent dissociation, ionization, and the corresponding recombination reactions in this nitrogen/hydrogen mixture system. Based on the gas flow characteristics inside the arcjet nozzle,a new method is introduced to define the edge of the cold boundary layer, which is more convenient to analyze the evolution and development of plasma flow in an arcjet thruster. The results show that the arcjet thruster performance is determined largely by the exchange of energy and momentum between the low-density, high-temperature arc region and the high-density, coolflow region near the nozzle wall. A significant thermal nonequilibrium is found in the cold boundary layer in the expansion portion of the nozzle. The important chemical kinetic processes determining the distribution of hydrogen and nitrogen species in different flow regions are presented. It has been shown that the reaction rate of hydrogen species ionization impacted by electrons is much higher than that of nitrogen species ionization in the center of the constrictor of the arcjet thruster. This indicates that hydrogen species is very important in the conversion of applied electric energy into thermal energy in the constrictor region of the arcjet thruster.

Correlation Method of Average Plasma Velocity Measurement in Hall-Effect Thrusters

A new method to measure the average plasma velocity in a Hall-effect thruster is presented. The method is brought forward in virtue of the characteristics of low frequency oscillation induced by the propellant ionization in the channel and the oriented movement feature of the plasma density out of the channel. The method, equivalent to the correlation method generally used in the signal processing field, provides a solution to the problem of specific impulse measurement on a timescale of hundreds of microseconds and makes the time evolution of average plasma velocity clear. The comparison between the measured value and the calibrated value shows that the relative error is about 3%.