Investigation of Thrust Generation Mechanism of Magneto-plasma-sail

1.通过对MHD方程的数值模拟，定量得到了磁帆的推力特性，成功地揭示了太阳风向磁帆线圈的动量传递过程。2.采用全粒子方法对太阳风与磁帆的相互作用进行了数值模拟。阐明了小磁帆周围流场和感应电磁场的基本特征。对太阳风和小尺度磁帆之间的电磁相互作用进行了数值分析，以评估磁帆上的反作用力。采用细胞内颗粒杂交方法。为了模拟太阳风与磁帆航天器周围产生的人工磁场之间的相互作用，在空间内设计并建造了一个实验室模拟器。5.对半径为300m、磁场为0.02T的航天器，磁等离子体帆可以获得25N的推力和540mN/kW的推力比，远远大于离子推进器。模拟结果表明，膨胀磁场强度与初始磁场强度之比既不取决于注入等离子体的动压与磁压之比，也不依赖于偶极磁矩。

1.The thrust characteristics of the Magnetic Sail are quantitatively obtained by numerical simulations of MHD equations, which successfully revealed the momentum transferring process from the solar wind to the coil of the Magnetic Sail.2.Interaction of the solar wind with the magnetic sail is numerically simulated by the full particle method. Fundamental features of the flow field and the induced electromagnetic field around the small magnetic sail are clarified. Force acting upon the magnetic sail is estimated.3.Electromagnetic interaction between the solar wind and sub-scale magnetic sails was numerically analyzed to assess reaction forces on the magnetic sail. The hybrid particle-in-cell method was used. An approximate formula to compute the drag coefficient in a wide range of magnetic sail dimension has been developed.4.In order to simulate the interaction between the solar wind and the artificially deployed magnetic field produced around a magnetic sail spacecraft, a laboratory simulator was designed and constructed inside the space chamber.5.We find that for a spacecraft with a radius of 300m and a magnetic field of 0.02T, the Magneto Plasma Sail can achieve a thrust of 25N and a thrust to power ratio of 540mN/kW, which are much larger than those of ion thrusters.6.The magnetic field inflation by the plasma injection is simulated in three-dimensional space using magnetohydrodynamics. The simulation results show that the ratio of the strength of inflated magnetic field to that of "original' (the initial magnetic field) depends neither on the ratio of the injected plasma dynamic pressure to the magnetic pressure nor on the dipole magnetic moment.