High power magnetoplasmadynamic (MPD) thrusters are being developed as cost effective propulsion systems for cargo transport to lunar and Mars bases, crewed missions to Mars and the outer planets, and robotic deep space exploration missions. Electromagnetic MPD thrusters have demonstrated, at the laboratory level, the ability to process megawatts of electrical power while providing significantly higher thrust densities than electrostatic electric propulsion systems. The ability to generate higher thrust densities permits a reduction in the number of thrusters required to perform a given mission, and alleviates the system complexity associated with multiple thruster arrays. The specific impulse of an MPD thruster can be optimized to meet given mission requirements, from a few thousand seconds with heavier gas propellants up to 10,000 seconds with hydrogen propellant. In support of programs envisioned by the NASA Office of Exploration Systems, Glenn Research Center is developing and testing quasi-steady MW-class MPD thrusters as a prelude to steady state high power thruster tests. This paper provides an overview of the GRC high power pulsed thruster test facility, and presents preliminary performance data for a quasi-steady baseline MPD thruster geometry.
High Power MPD Thruster Performance Measurements
2004
24 pages
Report
Keine Angabe
Englisch
Space Launch Vehicles & Support Equipment , Electric & Ion Propulsion , Magnetoplasmadynamic thrusters , Test facilities , Propulsion system performance , Space missions , Electromagnetic propulsion , Cost effectiveness , Electrostatic propulsion , Lunar bases , Mars bases , Cargo , Vacuum chambers , Electric potential , Thrust measurement , Specific impulse , Mass flow rate , Control systems design , Power efficiency
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