9-13 July 2012
Africa/Johannesburg timezone
<a href="http://events.saip.org.za/internalPage.py?pageId=11&confId=14"><font color=#ff0000>SAIP2012 PROCEEDINGS AVAILABLE</font></a>

Fluid Simulation for Corona ionization Thruster

11 Jul 2012, 11:35
20m
Oral Presentation Track F - Applied Physics Applied Physics Forum

Speaker

Dr phil ferrer (wits)

Abstract content <br> &nbsp; (Max 300 words)

The corona ionization thruster produces thrust by ejecting gas through a hollow, highly electrically charged needle, where ionization of neutral gas molecules and consequent acceleration takes place. The exact mechanism for thrust production is still vague. Using the drift-diffusion approximation, we develop a spherically symmetric fluid simulation to model aspects of the plasma jet system. In contrast to a previous model , we demonstrate that downstream ionization can be significant, and that electron pressure effects are vital for maintaining quasi-neutrality and reproducing the correct dc discharge behavior. Simulations are performed for various voltage and pressures ranges at the needle tip of around 2−4 Torr.

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Primary author

Dr phil ferrer (wits)

Co-author

Dr Trevor Lafleur (Australian National University)

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