Plume Divergence and Discharge Oscillations of an Accessible Low-Power Hall Effect Thruster
Hall effect thrusters (HETs) are an increasingly utilized proportion of electric propulsion devices due to their high thrust-to-power ratio. To enable an accessible research thruster, our team used inexpensive materials and simplified structures to fabricate the 44-mm-diameter Western Hall Thruster...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2021-02-01
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| Series: | Applied Sciences |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/11/4/1973 |
| _version_ | 1797395512932958208 |
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| author | Matthew Baird Thomas Kerber Ron McGee-Sinclair Kristina Lemmer |
| author_facet | Matthew Baird Thomas Kerber Ron McGee-Sinclair Kristina Lemmer |
| author_sort | Matthew Baird |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Hall effect thrusters (HETs) are an increasingly utilized proportion of electric propulsion devices due to their high thrust-to-power ratio. To enable an accessible research thruster, our team used inexpensive materials and simplified structures to fabricate the 44-mm-diameter Western Hall Thruster (WHT44). Anode flow, discharge voltage, magnet current, and cathode flow fraction (CFF) were independently swept while keeping all other parameters constant. Simultaneously, a Faraday probe was used to test plume properties at a variety of polar coordinate distances, and an oscilloscope was used to capture discharge oscillation behavior. Plasma plume divergence angle at a fixed probe distance of 4.5 thruster diameters increased with increasing anode flow, varying from 36.7° to 37.4°. Moreover, divergence angle decreased with increasing discharge voltage, magnet current, and CFF, by 0.3°, 0.2°, and 8°, respectively, over the span of the swept parameters. Generally, the thruster exhibited a strong oscillation near 90 kHz, which is higher than a similarly sized HET (20–60 kHz). The WHT44 noise frequency spectra became more broadband and the amplitude increased at a CFF of less than 1.5% and greater than 26%. Only the low flow and low voltage operating conditions showed a quiescent sinusoidal discharge current; otherwise, the discharge current probability distribution was Gaussian. This work demonstrates that the WHT44 thruster, designed for simplicity of fabrication, is a viable tool for research and academic purposes. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T00:36:35Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-814d5d6e83544f769273bfe9c71a13af |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2076-3417 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T00:36:35Z |
| publishDate | 2021-02-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Applied Sciences |
| spelling | doaj.art-814d5d6e83544f769273bfe9c71a13af2023-12-11T18:08:44ZengMDPI AGApplied Sciences2076-34172021-02-01114197310.3390/app11041973Plume Divergence and Discharge Oscillations of an Accessible Low-Power Hall Effect ThrusterMatthew Baird0Thomas Kerber1Ron McGee-Sinclair2Kristina Lemmer3Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Department, Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, MI 49008, USAMechanical and Aerospace Engineering Department, Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, MI 49008, USAMechanical and Aerospace Engineering Department, Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, MI 49008, USAMechanical and Aerospace Engineering Department, Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, MI 49008, USAHall effect thrusters (HETs) are an increasingly utilized proportion of electric propulsion devices due to their high thrust-to-power ratio. To enable an accessible research thruster, our team used inexpensive materials and simplified structures to fabricate the 44-mm-diameter Western Hall Thruster (WHT44). Anode flow, discharge voltage, magnet current, and cathode flow fraction (CFF) were independently swept while keeping all other parameters constant. Simultaneously, a Faraday probe was used to test plume properties at a variety of polar coordinate distances, and an oscilloscope was used to capture discharge oscillation behavior. Plasma plume divergence angle at a fixed probe distance of 4.5 thruster diameters increased with increasing anode flow, varying from 36.7° to 37.4°. Moreover, divergence angle decreased with increasing discharge voltage, magnet current, and CFF, by 0.3°, 0.2°, and 8°, respectively, over the span of the swept parameters. Generally, the thruster exhibited a strong oscillation near 90 kHz, which is higher than a similarly sized HET (20–60 kHz). The WHT44 noise frequency spectra became more broadband and the amplitude increased at a CFF of less than 1.5% and greater than 26%. Only the low flow and low voltage operating conditions showed a quiescent sinusoidal discharge current; otherwise, the discharge current probability distribution was Gaussian. This work demonstrates that the WHT44 thruster, designed for simplicity of fabrication, is a viable tool for research and academic purposes.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/11/4/1973hall effect thrusterdischarge oscillationfaraday probecathode flow fraction |
| spellingShingle | Matthew Baird Thomas Kerber Ron McGee-Sinclair Kristina Lemmer Plume Divergence and Discharge Oscillations of an Accessible Low-Power Hall Effect Thruster Applied Sciences hall effect thruster discharge oscillation faraday probe cathode flow fraction |
| title | Plume Divergence and Discharge Oscillations of an Accessible Low-Power Hall Effect Thruster |
| title_full | Plume Divergence and Discharge Oscillations of an Accessible Low-Power Hall Effect Thruster |
| title_fullStr | Plume Divergence and Discharge Oscillations of an Accessible Low-Power Hall Effect Thruster |
| title_full_unstemmed | Plume Divergence and Discharge Oscillations of an Accessible Low-Power Hall Effect Thruster |
| title_short | Plume Divergence and Discharge Oscillations of an Accessible Low-Power Hall Effect Thruster |
| title_sort | plume divergence and discharge oscillations of an accessible low power hall effect thruster |
| topic | hall effect thruster discharge oscillation faraday probe cathode flow fraction |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/11/4/1973 |
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