Session
Technical Poster Session 2
Location
Utah State University, Logan, UT
Abstract
The active debris removal (ADR) missions have been advanced continuously for debris management in low earth orbit (LEO). One of the emerging ADR methods is space robotics, where robotic manipulators are installed in small satellite setup whose main function is to chase, capture and de-orbit the space debris to a very lower altitude. This poster presents the preliminary iterative design of the RCS thruster which will execute the chase and de-orbit operation by using the value of ΔV requirements for overall operation. The RCS thrusters are a combination of a cold/hot gas thruster with a 3-axis CD nozzle in it and a reaction wheel to provide translation and satellite attitude control. It will perform part of the orbital transfer and in-orbit rendezvous maneuvers for altitude change, docking, and thrust vectoring to reach nearby and control debris and its attitude after the gripping operation. All the components are designed in an iterative process until the required thrust criteria are met. The components are designed by using CAD software and the ANSYS tool is used for checking and measuring the structural integrity of each component. The flow analysis has been simulated by using inbuilt the K-ω turbulence model nozzle of CFX packages of ANSYS, which will provide us required ΔV budget for the debris chase and de-orbiting process. The debris chase and the de-orbiting phase have been simulated by using the STK software which will provide concise datasets and helps us to calculate different operating parameters. The preliminary results show that the designed RCS thruster weights about 3kg including 1.8kg of N2 propellant which provides 80s specific impulse which is feasible for chase and de-orbiting operation with continuous attitude control.
Iterative Design of RCS Thruster for Debris Chaser Small Satellite Based on ΔV Budget
Utah State University, Logan, UT
The active debris removal (ADR) missions have been advanced continuously for debris management in low earth orbit (LEO). One of the emerging ADR methods is space robotics, where robotic manipulators are installed in small satellite setup whose main function is to chase, capture and de-orbit the space debris to a very lower altitude. This poster presents the preliminary iterative design of the RCS thruster which will execute the chase and de-orbit operation by using the value of ΔV requirements for overall operation. The RCS thrusters are a combination of a cold/hot gas thruster with a 3-axis CD nozzle in it and a reaction wheel to provide translation and satellite attitude control. It will perform part of the orbital transfer and in-orbit rendezvous maneuvers for altitude change, docking, and thrust vectoring to reach nearby and control debris and its attitude after the gripping operation. All the components are designed in an iterative process until the required thrust criteria are met. The components are designed by using CAD software and the ANSYS tool is used for checking and measuring the structural integrity of each component. The flow analysis has been simulated by using inbuilt the K-ω turbulence model nozzle of CFX packages of ANSYS, which will provide us required ΔV budget for the debris chase and de-orbiting process. The debris chase and the de-orbiting phase have been simulated by using the STK software which will provide concise datasets and helps us to calculate different operating parameters. The preliminary results show that the designed RCS thruster weights about 3kg including 1.8kg of N2 propellant which provides 80s specific impulse which is feasible for chase and de-orbiting operation with continuous attitude control.
