Scientists from Omsk State Technical University have developed engines for small spacecraft that work with a mixture of water and alcohol. The development will allow the creation of maneuvering orbital constellations of satellites. The development of “socialbites.ca” was told in the press service of OmSTU.
Small spacecraft (SSC) weigh between one and 500 kilograms and are mainly used for remote sensing of the Earth and monitoring of space. Such devices operate in low Earth orbits, where the influence of Earth’s gravity is strong. For their work, small engines are needed to perform various maneuvers. In addition, sufficient fuel reserves and low power consumption are important.
Freons, isobutane and other gases harmful to humans are now used as fuel for propulsion systems on small spacecraft. Scientists from Omsk State Technical University have proposed an engine design that can work on an alcohol-water mixture that is completely safe for humans.
“The alcohol-water mixture comes from the fuel tank to the automation elements and enters the micro engine. It consists of a large number of gas channels and a heater. Anton Lukyanchik, senior lecturer at the Department of Aeronautical and Rocket Engineering at Omsk State Technical University, when voltage is applied to socialbites.ca, the micromotor heats up, the fuel evaporates, the steam produced overheats and creates a thrust.
The enhancement will improve the performance of small satellites and create maneuvering orbital constellations of satellites.
Lukyanchik noted that the design of the engine could be easily changed depending on the missions of the satellite. For example, automation, solenoid valves, a micromotor can be left unchanged, and the fuel system (tank and pipelines) can be equipped for specific purposes. This provides the possibility of orbital maneuvering. In addition, the scientists managed to increase reliability and reduce the mass and time of creating propulsion systems, continued Lukyanchik.
The scientist drew attention to the fact that the components necessary to create the prototypes of the propulsion system were received by the university at the end of 2022 as part of the Priority 2030 program, the national project of Science and Universities. Now specialists are engaged in their assembly. And by the end of this year, they plan to run tests in a vacuum chamber.
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