Tarek Nada
National Authority for Remote Sensing and Space Sciences
Egypt
Title: Performance evaluation of Liquefied-Gas thruster
Biography
Biography: Tarek Nada
Abstract
The performance of liquefied-gas thruster is evaluated for different design alternatives. Three heating concepts are assessed, namely; accumulator heating pipe, accumulator with inner copper discs and low-power resistojet. The performances of the three configurations are compared in terms of thrust, specific impulse, thrust-to-power ratio and impulse bit. This evaluation is essential in selecting the proper propulsion system for certain space mission. One-dimensional gas dynamics model is developed to predict the performance of the thruster for each concept employing butane as the propellant. Comparisons are made and conclusions for advantages and disadvantages of each design alternative are discussed. Moreover, a parametric study is conducted for each case to investigate the effects of nozzle geometry, initial tank pressure and input power on the performance of the thruster.