The role of secondary species emission in vacuum facility effects for electrospray thrusters

Abstract

Theoretical, analytical, and experimental investigations of electrospray operation in vacuum facilities show that secondary species emission (SSE) plays a significant role in the behavior of electrospray thrusters during ground testing. A review of SSE mechanisms, along with an analysis of onset thresholds for electrospray thruster conditions, indicates that secondary species (e.g., electrons, anions, cations, etc.) must be carefully considered for accurate measurements and determination of performance and life. Presented models and experiments show that SSE-induced thruster-to-facility coupling can lead to considerable measurement uncertainty but can be effectively mitigated with an appropriate beam target design. The Electrospray SSE Control-volume Analysis for Resolving Ground Operation of Thrusters model is applied to experimental data to analyze SSE behavior. A heat and mass flux analysis of the Air Force Electrospray Thruster Series 2 (AFET-2) shows that SSE-induced Ohmic dissipation can cause performance limitations in ionic liquid ion source thrusters. The presented analytical models show that backstreaming current density contributing to less than 0.1% of measured emitter current density can cause substantial variation in propellant properties. Additionally, backstreaming current density contributing to less than 3% of emitted current can cause the 0.86 μg s−1 neutral loss rate estimated during AFET-2 testing. Arguments are presented to support the notion that glow discharges observed in electrospray thrusters during vacuum operation are a consequence of secondary species backstreaming to the emission site, rather than a process intrinsically caused by ion evaporation. Recommendations for general best practices to minimize the effects of SSE on electrospray thruster operation are provided.

Scalable Microfabrication of Multi-Emitter Arrays in Silicon for a Compact Microfluidic Electrospray Propulsion System

“…The emission of secondary electrons from the surfaces of the collector and other electrodes in the vacuum facility is wellknown. 47 Thus, the very small current measured in the extractor is mostly due to facility effects, and it is likely that beam impingement in the extractor is much smaller than the values shown in Figure 11. Note that the extractor current has a minimum at P ≅ 30 Torr, it increases rapidly while remaining negative up to P ≅ 425 Torr, and then increases more slowly at a higher pressure, reaching very small positive values (0.02% of the beam current at the highest pressure in Figure 11).…”

“…Because the electrosprayed droplets and ions are positively charged, the current into the extractor is dominated by secondary electrons emitted from the collector grid, which is biased negatively. The emission of secondary electrons from the surfaces of the collector and other electrodes in the vacuum facility is well-known . Thus, the very small current measured in the extractor is mostly due to facility effects, and it is likely that beam impingement in the extractor is much smaller than the values shown in Figure .…”

A simple retarding-potential time-of-flight mass spectrometer for electrospray propulsion diagnostics

“…The error in flow rate for the correlations ranges from -15% to +26% for the flow rates tested. Several factors can influence the relationship between emitter current and flow rate, including temperature effects [ 16 ] and secondary charge emission effects if the source is not properly shielded [ 22 – 24 ].…”

Multiscale modeling of electrospray ion emission

“…13,[26][27][28] Additionally, these energetic neutrals could generate secondary electrons at detectors, affecting experimental measurements if not properly suppressed. 29,30 For these reasons, it is critical to include fragmentation in electrospray plume modeling.…”