Abstract This study establishes the performance requirements for an air-breathing electric propulsion device to operate in very low Earth orbit ( < 450 km). We demonstrate that existing electric propulsion architectures, including electrostatic thrusters, fail to generate enough thrust while operating on flow rates of air that can be harvested in orbit. Instead, we develop and characterize a type of electromagnetic pulsed thruster that operates in a magneto-deflagration mode (i.e., forms an expansion wave during the acceleration process) that becomes more efficient as less propellant is used. We show this mode of operation can generate specific impulses up to 1 0 4 s, thrust per power > 2 mN/kW, thrust densities > 100 mN/m 2 , and thrust efficiencies up to 10% while consuming < 100 μ g of air per discharge. We map these performance metrics on a candidate spacecraft to show the deflagration thruster can enable fully air-breathing drag compensation at altitudes ranging from 200 km to 350 km depending on its geometry and is extendable to other altitudes if stored propellant is utilized.

    Highlights Air-breathing electric propulsion (ABEP) systems use harvested air to compensate for drag. ABEP devices cannot generate enough thrust for VLEO with harvestable amounts of air. This study develops a deflagration thruster that operates efficiently in VLEO conditions. The thruster achieves Isp up to 104 s and T/P above 2 mN/kW while operating on air. The deflagration thruster enables air-breathing drag compensation from 200–350 km.


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    Titel :

    Deflagration thruster for air-breathing electric propulsion in very low Earth orbit


    Beteiligte:

    Erschienen in:

    Acta Astronautica ; 216 ; 91-101


    Erscheinungsdatum :

    2023-12-26


    Format / Umfang :

    11 pages




    Medientyp :

    Aufsatz (Zeitschrift)


    Format :

    Elektronische Ressource


    Sprache :

    Englisch




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