Development and Flight Qualification of a 26-Kilowatt Arcjet Propulsion Subsystem

Abstract

The Electric Propulsion Space Experiment (ESEX) flew in 1999 on the Air Force Space Test Program Advanced Research and Global Observation Satellite. ESEX was initiated to address potential in-space operational issues associated with the use of high-power electric propulsion. Potential issues included plume deposition, electromagnetic interference, and thermal radiation. Because of physical constraints of even the largest test facilities, that is, vacuum chamber size, these phenomena are best measured in space. The propulsion component for the ESEX demonstration, a 26-kW ammonia arcjet propulsion subsystem, including thruster, power processing, and propellant feed, was developed and flight qualified on the Air Force Research Laboratory'Arcjet Advanced Technology Transition Demonstration program. Each of the propulsion system elements, the principal design challenges, and the program of risk reduction and qualification testing that provided preflight verification of the arcjet propulsion subsystem are described.