Embedded electrospray microthrusters: low-voltage cubesat propulsion for adaptive mission profiles

The problem

As miniature ‘cubesat’ satellites have become more prominently used in scientific and commercial missions, so too has the need for deorbiting and reorienting propulsion systems for such cubesats increased. Electrospray thrusters (“ES Systems”) have emerged as a promising solution to this problem due to their compact nature and high specific impulse, though such systems often require expensive, complex fabrication processes and lack structural robustness.

The solution

Researchers at the University of Tennessee have developed an ES thruster system which embeds open-ended microcapillaries inside a dielectric material, thereby protecting the emitters from degradation and providing an ultrasharp geometry which allows electrospray emission to occur at significantly lower operating voltages than conventional ES systems. The thrusters are fabricated using a fast, precise, and repeatable laser-micromachining process.

Benefits

• Extends cubesat mission life and feasible mission objectives.
• Use of electrically neutral ionic liquid means no charge mitigation measures necessary.
• Bypasses need for complex lithography manufacturing techniques; laser micromachining enables 100x thrust density over state-of-the-art.
• No external emitter projections which are subject to damage.
• Design mitigates problems of backspray and overspray.

Patent status

US 12,523,200