Session
Technical Session V: Propulsion
Abstract
There are no mature technologies currently available for tunable propulsion and precise attitude control for picosats without sacrificing a substantial mass fraction of the spacecraft. Although MEMS-based liquid and solid chemical as well as electric thrusters have been developed previously, the miniaturization of the valve and power processing components remains a significant challenge. Here we present development and demonstration of the microscale tunable thermal valve for micropropulsion and thermal control aimed at achieving extremely small system size down to less than 1/100 U.
Ultracompact Microthruster for Pico/Nanosat Attitude and Thermal Control based on Film-Evaporation Effect
There are no mature technologies currently available for tunable propulsion and precise attitude control for picosats without sacrificing a substantial mass fraction of the spacecraft. Although MEMS-based liquid and solid chemical as well as electric thrusters have been developed previously, the miniaturization of the valve and power processing components remains a significant challenge. Here we present development and demonstration of the microscale tunable thermal valve for micropropulsion and thermal control aimed at achieving extremely small system size down to less than 1/100 U.
