Miniaturization of propulsion systems has pushed the capabilities of small satellites by allowing them to perform more complex tasks such as orbital maneuvers and formation flying. Georgia Institute of Technology’s Space Systems Design Lab (SSDL) is designing a dual-mode propulsion system referred to as Spectre which will utilize AF-M315E (ASCENT) monopropellant to feed both modes. The propulsion system is capable of performing high thrust maneuvers via a chemical thruster that provides 1 N of thrust force and high efficiency maneuvers with 4 groups of electrospray thrusters. Spectre provides a total ∆𝑉 of 1097 m/s for a 12U CubeSat and has a dry mass estimate of 5.2 kg. This design accounts for approximately 8U (229mm x 238mm x 146 mm) of the CubeSat volume. The internal volume allocates 4.78 L for propellant, a pressurant gas and a propellant management device. Development efforts for this system are performed in collaboration with Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and NASA Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC). This report presents the design efforts of the additively manufactured tank, the mechanical integration of Spectre, and future work.
SPECTRE: DESIGN OF A DUAL-MODE GREEN MONOPROPELLANT PROPULSION SYSTEM
Proceedings of the 44th Annual American Astronautical Society Guidance, Navigation, and Control Conference, 2022 ; Chapter : 47 ; 821-843
2024-01-01
23 pages
Article/Chapter (Book)
Electronic Resource
English
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