AbstractDuring the decade 1967–1977, the U.K. developed a highly efficient Kaufman-type ion thruster specifically for the north-south station-keeping role on geostationary communications satellites, although many other applications of this device were feasible. With a design thrust of 10 mN using mercury propellant, throttling between 7 mN and 17 mN was possible at an exhaust velocity of 30 km/s. At the selected operating point, the fully corrected mass utilisation efficiency was 87.6%, the electrical efficiency 70.4%, the specific impulse 2730 s, and the input power 223 W. Although discontinued in 1977, the market opportunities for such devices have improved since that date, so the project was restarted in 1985, using rare gas propellants to avoid potential problems caused by the contamination of spacecraft surfaces with mercury. It has been found that the performance with xenon is outstanding, matching the high levels set earlier and providing a much wider throttling range, especially at increased beam accelerating voltages. Thrusts of up to 34.5 mN have been achieved. In addition to the results of this new work, the paper also reports progress with the design and test of a larger, 200 mN thruster intended for primary propulsion
The U.K. ion propulsion programme
Past status and new results
Acta Astronautica ; 15 , 6-7 ; 353-365
1986-12-18
13 pages
Aufsatz (Zeitschrift)
Elektronische Ressource
Englisch
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