Micro Chemical Propulsion

A unified project comprising basic research and technology development is proposed to address all important issues critical to the design, fabrication, testing, and implementation of an integrated micro thruster and power-generation system. This program will fully utilize the state-of-art and projected technologies in the areas of energy conversion and micro fabrication. A novel design of the ignition and combustion module, augmented by an optimized system architecture, will be implemented to substantially enhance the system performance and operating regime. The system can be used as a stand-alone thruster delivering a wide range of thrust for both continuous and pulse operations, or as a power generator when needed. Environmentally friendly propellants will be used and evaluated in terms of their ignition and combustion properties and handling characteristics. In addition, advanced experimental diagnostic and modeling techniques will be employed to explore the detailed flow evolution and combustion dynamics, as well as the energy-conversion efficiency, in the proposed system. Results will further optimize the overall system performance, operability, and durability.