A feasibility study on the operation of reactive air breathing ion engine in sub-LEO

2014 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 25630392
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Challenging Exploratory Research
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Research Field: Aerospace engineering
• Research Institution: Kobe University
• Principal Investigator: TAGAWA Masahito 神戸大学, 工学(系)研究科(研究院), 准教授 (10216806)
• Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha): YOKOTA Kumiko 神戸大学, 大学院工学研究科, 助手 (20252794)
• Co-Investigator(Renkei-kenkyūsha): NISHIYAMA Kazutaka 宇宙航空研究開発機構, 宇宙科学研究所, 准教授 (60342622) ; USUI Hideyuki 神戸大学, 大学院システム情報学研究科, 教授 (10243081)
• Project Period (FY): 2013-04-01 – 2015-03-31
• Keywords: 大気吸入型電気推進 / 超低軌道衛星 / 宇宙環境利用 / 低地球軌道 / イオンエンジン

Outline of Final Research Achievements

Air breathing ion engine (ABIE) was experimentally investigated by the laser-detonation atomic beam source which enables to reproduce 8 km/s atomic oxygen (AO) flow in low earth orbit. Electron cyclotron resonance (ECR) microwave plasma was successfully generated by 8 km/s AO and N2 flow. This is the world’s first demonstration of ABIE operation in a simulated space environment by a ground-based facility. The maximum thrust of 0.12 mN was measured. On the other hand, computational simulation of microwave discharge in ABIE suggested the importance of the mesh locations in the discharge chamber which reflects the microwave power while incoming neutrals are transmitted. It was also suggested that the design of the reflectors in the air-inlet of ABIE is essential to increase the molecular density near the microwave antenna where many ions are generated. A physics of the hyperthermal molecular scattering at the solid surface needs to be considered in a future ABIE/RABIE work.

Free Research Field

宇宙環境工学