Abstract: KSLV-I(Korea Space Launch Vehicle-I) is designed as
a launch vehicle to enter a 100 kg-class satellite to the LEO(Low Earth
Orbit). Attitude angles of the upper-stage, including roll, pitch and
yaw are controlled by the cold gas thruster system using nitrogen gas.
The cold gas thruster is an actuator in the RCS(Reaction Control
System). To design an attitude controller for the upper-stage, thrust
measurement in vacuum condition is required. In this paper, the new
thrust measurement system and calibration mechanism are developed
and measurement errors and signal processing method are presented.
Abstract: In order to realize long-lived electric propulsion
systems, we have been investigating an electrodeless plasma thruster.
In our concept, a helicon plasma is accelerated by the magnetic nozzle
for the thrusts production. In addition, the electromagnetic thrust can
be enhanced by the additional radio-frequency rotating electric field
(REF) power in the magnetic nozzle. In this study, a direct
measurement of the electromagnetic thrust and a probe measurement
have been conducted using a laboratory model of the thruster under the
condition without the REF power input. Fromthrust measurement, it is
shown that the thruster produces a sub-milli-newton order
electromagnetic thrust force without the additional REF power. The
thrust force and the density jump are observed due to the discharge
mode transition from the inductive coupled plasma to the helicon wave
excited plasma. The thermal thrust is theoretically estimated, and the
total thrust force, which is a sum of the electromagnetic and the
thermal thrust force and specific impulse are calculated to be up to 650
μN (plasma production power of 400 W, Ar gas mass flow rate of 1.0
mg/s) and 210 s (plasma production power of 400 W, Ar gas mass flow
rate of 0.2 mg/s), respectively.