Thermal Vacuum Facility 5
Thermal Vacuum Facility 5 (VF-5) supports the testing of electric propulsion and power systems. Featuring the highest pumping speed of any electric propulsion test facility in the world — crucial in maintaining a continuous space-like environment — the facility provides a testing environment for NASA Glenn’s advanced solar electric propulsion technology needed for future astronaut expeditions into deep space, including to Mars.
Cryogenic panels at the top and back of the chamber house a helium-cooled panel that reaches near absolute zero temperatures (about -460 degrees Fahrenheit, or -273 degrees Celsius). The extreme cold of the helium-cooled panel freezes any air left in the chamber, quickly freezing thruster exhaust, allowing the chamber to maintain a high vacuum environment. Outer chevrons are cooled with liquid nitrogen to shield the cryogenic panels from the room-temperature surfaces of the tank.
Most electric propulsion devices, such as Hall thrusters, use xenon as a propellant, which is very expensive. By capturing the used xenon as ice during testing, researchers are able to recover the propellant for reuse, saving NASA and test customers considerable costs.