Small Spacecraft Community of Practice
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Hydrogen Peroxide Vapor for Small Satellite Propulsion
Speaker: Brandie L Rhodes, Ph.D., The Aerospace Corporation
Wednesday, April 15, 2020
10:00AM-11:00AM Pacific Daylight Time
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Please contact Julianna.L.Fishman@nasa.gov if you experience issues with the audiovisual connection to this webinar.
Abstract:
Propulsion systems enable satellites to maneuver while in orbit and are important for a host of capabilities—from station- keeping to formation flying to specialized missions. Scaling down propulsion devices from large satellites to small satellites has proven to be challenging due to volume and power constraints as well as unique smallsat requirements, such as “do no harm” when flying as a secondary payload. Therefore, to incorporate a propulsion system on a smallsat necessitates tradeoffs between subsystem performance, footprint, and power As the industry grows, more missions require propulsion, and new systems must be envisioned, developed, tested, and flight-proven. One such system is HyPer which is an Aerospace Corporation-developed, green hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) propulsion system for small satellites with a unique design. In the thruster, reactive H2O2 vapor is vacuum-evaporated from the surface of the stored liquid. The vapor then flows to a catalyst bed that rapidly decomposes the hydrogen peroxide. The resulting exhaust gases produce thrust, propelling the spacecraft forward. In this presentation, the entire design lifecycle from theory to flight-scale prototype will be discussed, with specific focus on the development and prototyping cycles. The prime objectives of this work were to (1) prove the concept, (2) understand propellant and catalyst behavior, and (3) investigate the performance and its application as a small satellite propulsion system.
Speaker’s Biosketch:
Dr. Brandie Rhodes is an Engineering Specialist in the iLab Office at The Aerospace Corporation. She is responsible for planning and executing special projects aimed at game-changing innovations and supporting the transition of Aerospace technical products into operational use. She also is the principal investigator for HyPer, a novel small satellite propulsion system conceived and prototyped at Aerospace. Prior to her current role, Dr. Rhodes worked in the Propulsion Department where she supported satellite and launch vehicle development, launch, and sustainment. This included propulsion system concept design, fluid flow and performance analysis, failure investigation, flight and ground operations, and data review.
Dr. Rhodes received her B.S. in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Kansas, her M.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Stanford University, and her Ph.D. in Astronautical Engineering from the University of Southern California.
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