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Vasimr

The document discusses two types of electric propulsion thrusters - the Variable Specific Impulse Magnetoplasma Rocket (VASIMR) and the Hall-effect thruster. VASIMR uses radio waves to ionize propellant and accelerate it with magnetic fields, allowing adjustable specific impulse. Hall thrusters use magnetic fields to accelerate ionized propellant to produce thrust up to 83mN. Both thruster types have higher specific impulse than chemical rockets but require significant power. VASIMR requires 200kW for 5N thrust while Hall thrusters have lower thrust but higher efficiency. Thermal management and interactions with magnetic fields present challenges for both.

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Rishikesh Dinesh
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87 views

Vasimr

The document discusses two types of electric propulsion thrusters - the Variable Specific Impulse Magnetoplasma Rocket (VASIMR) and the Hall-effect thruster. VASIMR uses radio waves to ionize propellant and accelerate it with magnetic fields, allowing adjustable specific impulse. Hall thrusters use magnetic fields to accelerate ionized propellant to produce thrust up to 83mN. Both thruster types have higher specific impulse than chemical rockets but require significant power. VASIMR requires 200kW for 5N thrust while Hall thrusters have lower thrust but higher efficiency. Thermal management and interactions with magnetic fields present challenges for both.

Uploaded by

Rishikesh Dinesh
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PPTX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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VARIABLE SPECIFIC

IMPULSE MAGNETOPLASMA
THRUSTER

BY:-

RISHIKESH DINESH
INTRODUCTION
 The Variable Specific Impulse Magneto plasma Rocket (VASIMR) is an electro

thermal thruster under development for possible use in spacecraft propulsion.

 The VASIMR is a plasma propulsion engine, one of several types of spacecraft

electric propulsion systems.

 It uses radio waves to ionize and heat an inert propellant(usually Xe or Ar),

then a magnetic field to accelerate the resulting plasma, generating thrust.

 VASIMR is intended to bridge the gap between high thrust, low specific

impulse chemical rockets and low-thrust, high-specific impulse electric


propulsion, but has not yet demonstrated high thrust.

 The Ad Astra Rocket Company has been studying this technology for years.
PRINCIPLE OF OPERATION
1) Propellant(neutral gas) is injected in the ionization chamber.

2) The Helicon antenna ionizes the propellant, which becomes a plasma.

3) Superconducting coils confine the plasma. The plasma is heated to about 1


MK by an Ion Cyclotron Heating section frequency antenna.

4) The hot plasma drifts toward the lower magnetic region away from the
thruster which contains an expanding magnetic field that ejects the ions
and electrons from the engine at velocities as great as 50,000 m/s
(110,000 mph).

5) The reaction is felt on the structure as thrust.


MERITS OF VASIMR
 Very high power density compared with DC discharges by coupling RF power

to excite naturally occurring plasma waves.

 No DC bias is applied so, no cathodes or anodes are needed.

 Specific impulse which is measure of how fast the propellant is ejected out of

the back of the rocket, can be varied at constant power by adjusting the
balance between the plasma source and the ion cyclotron heating (ICH)
booster sections.

 Wide range of operating power supported without loss of efficiency

 Very efficient conversion of input power to jet power (75% thruster

efficiency, >65% system efficiency) allows more thrust and less propellant
usage.

 Wide range of propellant choices including xenon, krypton, argon, and neon.
DEMERITS OF VASIMR
 It has been observed by Ad Astra that the VASIMR engine requires 200 kW

electric power to produce 5 N of thrust or 40 kW/N.

 New problems also emerge with VASIMR, such as interaction with strong

magnetic fields and thermal management.

 The superconducting electromagnets necessary to contain hot plasma

generate high range magnetic fields that can cause problems with other
onboard devices and produce unwanted torque by interaction with
the magnetosphere.

 The required power generation technology for fast interplanetary travel does

not currently exist and is not feasible with current state-of-the-art


technology.
HALL-EFFECT THRUSTER
INTRODUCTION
 A Hall effect thruster is a small rocket engine that uses a powerful magnetic
field to accelerate a low density plasma and so produce thrust.
 The Hall effect thruster, also called a plasma thruster, is a form of electrostatic
propulsion, which in turn is a form ion propulsion.
 It utilizes an inert gas, commonly xenon, as the propellant.

 Two types of Hall thrusters were developed: the stationary plasma thruster (SPT)
at the Kurchatov Institute and the anode layer thruster (ALT) at the Central
Research Institute for Machine Building (TsNIIMASH).
 The thrust produced depends on the power level. Devices operating at 1.35 kW
produce about 83 mN of thrust. Power levels up to 100 kW have been
demonstrated for xenon Hall thrusters.
PRINCIPLE OF OPERATION
 Electrons are generated by a hollow cathode (negative electrode) at the downstream end of
the thruster.
 The anode (positive electrode) is charged to a high potential by the thruster's power
supply. The electrons are attracted to the anode walls and accelerate in the upstream
direction.
 As the electrons move toward the channel, they encounter a magnetic field produced by
the powerful electromagnets. This magnetic field traps the electrons, causing them to form
into a circling ring at the downstream end of the thruster channel.
 The propellant, which consists of a inert gas such as xenon at low pressure, is injected into
the anode.
 Some of the trapped electrons in the channel collide with the propellant atoms, creating
ions. When the propellant ions are generated, they experience the electric field produced
between the anode(positive) and the ring of electrons (negative) and accelerate out of the
thruster, creating an ion beam.
 The thrust is generated from the force that the ions impart to the electron cloud. This force
is transferred to the magnetic field, which, in turn, is transmitted to the magnetic circuit of
the thruster.
 The electrons are highly mobile and attracted to the ions in the beam, causing an equal
amount of electrons and ions to leave the thruster at the same time.
PRINCIPLE OF OPERATION:-DIAGRAM
MERITS OF HALL THRUSTER
 Hall thrusters have a specific impulse typically in the range 1,200 to 1,800
seconds – much higher than the 300 to 400 seconds of chemical rockets.
 A modern Hall thruster can deliver up to 3 Newtons (0.7 pounds) of thrust.

 The high specific impulse enables a spacecraft powered by a Hall thruster to


reach a top speed of about 50,000 meters per second (112,000 mph).

DE-MERITS OF HALL THRUSTER


 Hall thruster provides a much lower thrust as compared to chemical ones.

 Very high-temperature to reject thruster waste heat by direct radiation.

 DC biased electrodes is used.

 Active cathode and anode cannot be isolated from plasma.

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