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| Title: | Erosion processes of the discharge cathode assembly of ring-cusp gridded ion thrusters |
| Author (s): | Gallimore, Alec D. Rovey, Joshua L. Herman, Daniel A. |
| Department/Lab Affiliations: | Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Space Systems Engineering |
| Keywords: | bombarding ions discharge cathode assembly (DCA) extended life test (ELT) plasma potential structures |
| Issue Date: | 2006 |
| Publisher: | American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics AIAA |
| Citation: | Gallimore, Alec D., Joshua L. Rovey, and Daniel A. Herman, “Erosion Processes of the Discharge Cathode Assembly of Ring-Cusp Gridded Ion Thrusters,” AIAA-2006-3558, 37th AIAA Plasmadynamics and Lasers Conference, San Francisco, California, June 5-8, 2006. |
| Abstract: | An ion thruster discharge cathode assembly (DCA) erosion theory is presented based on near-DCA NSTAR plasma measurements and experimental results for propellant flow rate effects on ion number density. The plasma potential structures are utilized in an ion trajectory algorithm to determine the location and angle at the DCA keeper of bombarding ions. These results suggest that the plasma potential structure causes a chamfering of the DCA keeper orifice. Results from tests with an instrumented DCA show that increasing DC propellant flow rate causes a decrease in “keeper” orifice ion number density, most likely due to charge-exchange and elastic collisions. Combining these two results, the known wear-test and extended life test (ELT) DCA erosion profiles can be qualitatively explained. Specifically, the change in the wear profile from the DCA keeper downstream face to the keeper orifice for the ELT may be a result of the reduction in DCA propellant flow rate when the thruster operating point is changed from the TH 15 to TH 8. |
| Type: | Article - Conference proceedings text |
| In Title: | 37th AIAA Plasmadynamics and Lasers Conference |
| Copyright Notice: | Pre-print: archiving status unclear; Post-print: author cannot archive; This material is presented to ensure timely dissemination of scholarly and technical work. Copyright and all rights therein are retained by authors or by other copyright holders. All persons copying this information are expected to adhere to the terms and constraints invoked by each author's copyright. In most cases, these works may not be reposted without the explicit permission of the copyright holder. FULL COPYRIGHT INFORMATION: |
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| Link to this page: |
| title | Erosion processes of the discharge cathode assembly of ring-cusp gridded ion thrusters |
| contributor.author | Gallimore, Alec D. |
| contributor.author | Rovey, Joshua L. |
| contributor.author | Herman, Daniel A. |
| contributor.deptlab | Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering |
| contributor.deptlab | Space Systems Engineering |
| subject | bombarding ions |
| subject | discharge cathode assembly (DCA) |
| subject | extended life test (ELT) |
| subject | plasma potential structures |
| date.issued | 2006 |
| publisher | American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics AIAA |
| identifier.citation | Gallimore, Alec D., Joshua L. Rovey, and Daniel A. Herman, “Erosion Processes of the Discharge Cathode Assembly of Ring-Cusp Gridded Ion Thrusters,” AIAA-2006-3558, 37th AIAA Plasmadynamics and Lasers Conference, San Francisco, California, June 5-8, 2006. |
| identifier.pub.URI | |
| description.abstract | An ion thruster discharge cathode assembly (DCA) erosion theory is presented based on near-DCA NSTAR plasma measurements and experimental results for propellant flow rate effects on ion number density. The plasma potential structures are utilized in an ion trajectory algorithm to determine the location and angle at the DCA keeper of bombarding ions. These results suggest that the plasma potential structure causes a chamfering of the DCA keeper orifice. Results from tests with an instrumented DCA show that increasing DC propellant flow rate causes a decrease in “keeper” orifice ion number density, most likely due to charge-exchange and elastic collisions. Combining these two results, the known wear-test and extended life test (ELT) DCA erosion profiles can be qualitatively explained. Specifically, the change in the wear profile from the DCA keeper downstream face to the keeper orifice for the ELT may be a result of the reduction in DCA propellant flow rate when the thruster operating point is changed from the TH 15 to TH 8. |
| type | Article - Conference proceedings |
| type.DCMIType | text |
| rights | Pre-print: archiving status unclear; Post-print: author cannot archive; |
| rights | This material is presented to ensure timely dissemination of scholarly and technical work. Copyright and all rights therein are retained by authors or by other copyright holders. All persons copying this information are expected to adhere to the terms and constraints invoked by each author's copyright. In most cases, these works may not be reposted without the explicit permission of the copyright holder. |
| rights.URI | |
| relation.isPartOf | 37th AIAA Plasmadynamics and Lasers Conference |
| date.available | 2008-07-15T20:31:11Z |
| identifier.persist.URI |