SBIR Phase I: High Efficiency, Water-Vapor-Fueled Plasma Propulsion Thruster for Low-Power Satellite Attitude Control and Station-Keeping

这个小型企业创新研究(SBIR)第一阶段项目建议开发一种紧凑、高效、全固态的气体馈电脉冲等离子推进器(GF-PPT)，该推进器可以执行近地轨道和中轨卫星的关键轨道相变或平面(倾斜)变化。基于固态功率调制器，GF-PPT技术提供了接近100%的燃料质量利用效率，允许推进器等离子体放电的高重复频率(10 KHz)脉冲。这是通过在气体输送系统的整个运行周期中向推进器输送多个微脉冲来实现的。在该项目中，任务将包括设计和制造GF-PPT推进器，将电源与GF-PPT推进器集成，然后对推进器硬件的电气性能进行表征和优化。将与喷气推进实验室一起制定详细的计划，在适当的空间舱中测试拟议的高效率GF-PPT。在商业上，该计划中开发的GF-PPT将在政府和私营部门的广泛空间任务中得到应用。与化学推进器相比，使用电动推进器可以将推进剂质量降低三倍或更多，从而显著节省燃料。此外，GF-PPT可以与包括水蒸气和联氨在内的多种推进剂一起工作，而且GF-PPT的固态电子能力可以延长站位卫星的使用寿命1-3年，从而延长任务寿命。拟议的GF-PPT的成功开发可以导致发射成本和轨道机动成本的大幅降低(10%-20%)。考虑到目前NASA用于太空运输的预算超过20亿美元/年，而国防部每年在发射卫星方面的投资约为40亿美元，这每年可以为联邦政府节省数亿美元。

This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project proposes to develop a compact,efficient, all-solid-state Gas-Fed Pulsed Plasma Thruster (GF-PPT) that can performcritical orbit phase changes or plane (inclination) changes for near- and intermediate earthorbit satellites. The GF-PPT technology provides fuel-mass utilization efficiency close to 100%, based on solid-state power modulators that allows high repetition rate (10 kHz) pulsing of the thruster plasma discharge. This is achieved by delivering multiple micropulses to the thruster during the entire operating cycle of the gas delivery system. In the project the tasks will consist of designing and fabricating the GF-PPT thruster, integrating the power supply with the GF-PPT thruster and then characterizing and optimizing the electrical performance of the thruster hardware. A detailed plan will be developed with the Jet Propulsion Laboratory to test the proposed high efficiency GF-PPT in an appropriate space chamber. Commercially, the GF- PPT developed in this program will have applications to a broad range of space missions in both the government and private sectors. Significant fuel savings will result from reduced propellant mass, which can be lowered by a factor of three or more using an electric thruster, as compared with chemical thrusters. Furthermore, the GF-PPT can operate with a wide range of propellants, including water-vapor and hydrazine, and the solid-state electronics capability of GF-PPTs can extend the useful life in station-keeping satellites 1-3 years, thereby prolonging mission lifetime. The successful development of the proposed GF-PPT can result in substantial (10-20%) reductions in launch costs and orbit maneuvering costs. This can save the Federal Government hundreds of millions of dollars per year, when one considers that the current NASA budget for space transportation is over $2 billion/year, and the DoD invests approximately $4 billion per year launching satellites.