Solar Thermal Propulsion for Small Spacecraft

Nakamura, Takashi; Sullivan, Daniel J.; McClanahan, James A.; Shoji, J. M.; Propulsion, Rocketdyne; Quinn, Skylar; Afb, Kirtland

doi:10.2514/6.2004-4138

“…Nonetheless, even in small-scale systems intended for microsatellites, sunlight concentration ratios in excess of 10,000:1 have been achieved 15,16 from very lightweight collection systems weighing under 200 g/m 2 ; 15 absorber temperatures approaching 3000 K have been achieved 17 . Hitting the instantaneous performance requirements of an STP system is relatively straight forward, and augmenting that performance via reliable, high-performance thermal storage and thermal-electric conversion is where significant advances should be made.…”

Section: Space Applicationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Molten Boron Phase-Change Thermal Energy Storage: Containment and Applicability to Microsatellites

Gilpin

¹

,

Scharfe

²

,

Afb

³

et al. 2011

42nd AIAA Thermophysics Conference

8

0

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Public reporting burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 1 hour per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing this collection of information. Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden to Department of Defense, Washington Headquarters Services, Directorate for Information Operations and Reports (0704-0188), 1215 Jefferson Davis Highway, Suite 1204, Arlington, VA 22202-4302. Respondents should be aware that notwithstanding any other provision of law, no person shall be subject to any penalty for failing to comply with a collection of information if it does not display a currently valid OMB control number.

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“…Small diameter optical fibres , (less than 200 µm core diameter), with only a few dB/km losses are also now available, and able to receive and transmit some ten watts of radiative energy with minimal heating and consequently no damage to their properties [2].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Experimental study of direct transfer of concentrated solar radiation through optical fibres to high temperature thermal applications

Rahou

¹

,

Andrews

²

,

Rosengarten

³

2014

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Employing optical fibres for transferring concentrated radiation from solar concentrators has potential advantages in terms of transmission energy efficiency, technical feasibility and cost-effectiveness compared to a conventional heat transfer system employing heat exchangers and a heat transfer fluid. The basic investigated system comprised a broadband source, collimator lens, objective lens and optical fibre as the carrier of energy to the receiver. The relationship between transmission and length of fibre is studied via simulation using the ray tracing model, LightTools®. Two different sources were defined in the system setup including a white light source and the solar simulator with similar spectral distribution as solar spectrum. The effects on transmission of varying the hydroxyl content, and the core size of the fibres are also investigated experimentally. The experimental results are then compared with simulations. The initial results indicate that the selected low OH unjacketed bulk fibre with NA=0.22 is capable of transmitting approximately 92% of the concentrated solar energy over lengths up to 10 m with less loss compared to conventional methods for direct transferring of concentrated solar radiation.

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“…Data from resistojet propulsion systems were used as a starting point for the propellant heating portion of the design [3,4]. The specific impulse of ammonia gas as a function of temperature entering the nozzle of these systems, as well as for several proposed solar thermal propulsion systems, has been investigated by a number of sources [3,5,6,7]. If ammonia is heated to between 1500 and 1800 K, the specific impulse of a thruster can be raised from approximately 60 seconds to 300-350 seconds, as shown in Figure 2.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Preheating Cold Gas Thruster Flow Through a Thermal Energy Storage Conversion System

Reid

¹

,

Scharfe

²

,

Saleem

³

et al. 2013

Journal of Propulsion and Power

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Public reporting burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 1 hour per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing this collection of information. Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden to Department of Defense, Washington Headquarters Services, Directorate for Information Operations and Reports (0704-0188), 1215 Jefferson Davis Highway, Suite 1204, Arlington, VA 22202-4302. Respondents should be aware that notwithstanding any other provision of law, no person shall be subject to any penalty for failing to comply with a collection of information if it does not display a currently valid OMB control number.

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Solar Thermal Propulsion for Small Spacecraft

Cited by 16 publications

References 3 publications

Molten Boron Phase-Change Thermal Energy Storage: Containment and Applicability to Microsatellites

Molten Boron Phase-Change Thermal Energy Storage: Containment and Applicability to Microsatellites

Experimental study of direct transfer of concentrated solar radiation through optical fibres to high temperature thermal applications

Preheating Cold Gas Thruster Flow Through a Thermal Energy Storage Conversion System

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