Public reporting burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 1 hour per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing this collection of information. Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden to Department of Defense, Washington Headquarters Services, Directorate for Information Operations and Reports (0704-0188), 1215 Jefferson Davis Highway, Suite 1204, Arlington, VA 22202-4302. Respondents should be aware that notwithstanding any other provision of law, no person shall be subject to any penalty for failing to comply with a collection of information if it does not display a currently valid OMB control number. PLEASE DO NOT RETURN YOUR FORM TO THE ABOVE ADDRESS. This thruster was developed to investigate, with a variety of diagnostics, a thruster similar to that specified by IHPRPT goals. The configuration of this thruster is adjustable so that diagnostic access to the interior of the thruster can be provided as necessary, and to allow for the exploration of various thruster geometries. At nominal conditions, the thruster was designed to operate at 5 kW with a predicted specific impulse of 2200 s. The actual operating parameters at 5 kW were 2326 s specific impulse, with 246 mN of thrust at an efficiency of 57%. These conditions are comparable to those of thrusters under commercial development, making the information learned from the study of this thruster applicable to the understanding of its commercial counterparts.
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INTRODUCTIONHall thrusters are few in number at this time; and those that do exist are intended primarily Current generation Hall thruster research has for flight qualification use and are not well concentrated primarily on the 1.5 kW class of suited for basic research purposes. thrusters since they have been of primary interest for commercial and military satellite With these facts in mind, the University of use. However, as indicated by industry trends Michigan and the USAF decided to jointly and IHPRPT goals, the Hall thruster market is develop a 5 kW class Hall thruster for basic expanding beyond the 1.5 kW class thruster to research purposes. The goal was to develop a both sub-kW thrusters for small satellites and thruster that would be well suited for diagnostic high power thrusters for orbit transfer missions.access, particularly internal diagnostic access, so Of particular interest for orbit transfer are as to gain a better understanding of the basic thrusters of the 5 kW class. Several commercial physics of its operation. Additionally, the thrusters, including the SPT-140' and T-160 Approved for public release; distribution unlimited.
