NASA Logo

NTRS

NTRS - NASA Technical Reports Server

Collections About News Help Login
Back to Results
Liquid-Metal-Fed Pulsed Electromagnetic Thrusters For In-Space PropulsionWe describe three pulsed electromagnetic thruster concepts, which span four orders of magnitude in power processing capability (100 W to >100 kW), for in-space propulsion applications. The primary motivation for using a pulsed system is to is to enable high (instantaneous) power operation, which provides high acceleration efficiency, while using considerably less (continuous) power from the spacecraft power system. Unfortunately, conventional pulsed thrusters require failure-prone electrical switches and gas-puff valves. The series of thrusters described here directly address this problem, through the use of liquid metal propellant, by either eliminating both components or providing less taxing operational requirements, thus yielding a path toward both efficient and reliable pulsed electromagnetic thrusters. The emphasis of this paper is to conceptually describe each of the thruster concepts; however, initial test results with gallium propellant in one thruster geometry are presented. These tests reveal that a greater understanding of gallium material compatibility, contamination, and wetting behavior will be necessary before a completely functional thruster can be developed. Initial experimental results aimed at providing insight into these issues are presented.
Document ID
20040076885
Acquisition Source
Marshall Space Flight Center
Document Type
Preprint (Draft being sent to journal)
Authors
Markusic, T. E. (NASA Marshall Space Flight Center Huntsville, AL, United States)
Date Acquired
September 7, 2013
Publication Date
January 1, 2004
Subject Category
Spacecraft Propulsion And Power
Meeting Information
Meeting: JANNAF Conference
Location: Las Vegas, NV
Country: United States
Start Date: May 10, 2004
End Date: May 13, 2004
Sponsors: NASA Headquarters, Department of the Navy, Department of the Air Force, Department of the Army
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Work of the US Gov. Public Use Permitted.

Related Records

There are no records associated with this record.
No Preview Available