Unibo Team Leader: Dott. Fabrizio Piergentili, Dip. di di Ingegneria delle Costruzioni Meccaniche, Nucleari, Aeronautiche e di Metallurgia-DIEM – Polo di Forlì
The objective of the research program is to design, optimize and develop a space plasma thruster based on helicon-radio-frequency technology and its application to a nano-satellite for attitude and position control. Moreover a detailed feasibility study will be also conducted to evaluate the possibility of using the plasma thruster to heat and decompose hydrazine. The feasibility study will asses the possibility of building up a combined-two-mode-thruster able to operate in the low-thrust high-efficiency plasma-mode and high-thrust low-efficiency hydrazine mode. Only the plasma thruster will be developed and fully tested during this study. The main characteristics of the thruster are: Power 50 W Weight within 1.5 kg
Thrust 2 mN Specific Impulse (Isp) 1600 s The program will develop thought the following steps:
a) Deep numerical-theoretical investigation through dedicated plasma-simulation tools.
b) Extensive experimental campaign to validate codes, to investigate the physics phenomena involved and to proof thruster performance.
c) The development of a thruster-prototype to be mounted on board of a nano-satellite to demonstrate technology feasibility,
d) The study of all the critical issues related to the application to a nano-satellite
e) the design and manufacturing of the nano-satellite mock up including all critical components
f) analysis of scaling low to lower and higher power. As a final results of the project, a detailed analysis will be conducted in order to evaluate the possible application of the thruster in space missions requiring low thrust accurate attitude and position control.
Coordinator
UNIVERSITA’ DEGLI STUDI DI PADOVA (Italy)
Other participants
Office National d’Etudes et de Recherches Aerospatiales (France)
Università degli Studi di Roma "La Sapienza" (Italy)
Thales Alenia Space Italia S.p.A. (Italy)
Ente per le Nuove Tecnologie l'Energia e l'Ambiente (Italy)
National Aerospace University Kharkiv Aviation Institute (Ukraine)
Universitad Politecnica de Madrid (Spain)
ALMA MATER STUDIORUM – UNIVERSITA’ DI BOLOGNA
- Dip. di di Ingegneria delle Costruzioni Meccaniche, Nucleari, Aeronautiche e di Metallurgia-DIEM – Polo di Forlì
- Resp. Scientifico: Dott. Fabrizio Piergentili
Keldysh Institute of Applied Mathematics of the Russian Academy of Sciences (Russia)
Advanced Operations and Engineering Services Group BV (Netherlands)
LMS IMAGINE SA (France)
Rovsing A/S (Denmark)
Bradford Engineering NV (Netherlands)
Studio Progettazione e Realizzazione di Apparati Elettronici di Selmo Antonio (Italy)
Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique – Laboratoire de Physique
des Gaz et Plasmas-LPGP (France)
Start date 01/12/2008
End date 30/11/2011
Duration 36 months
Project cost 4.900.545 Euro
Project Funding 3.572.11 Euro
Contract type Collaborative Project