How long does it take for an ion thruster to reach top speed?
With such puny thrust, a NEXT-based ion drive would need to run for 10,000 hours — just over a year — to reach a suitable speed for space travel.
Why do ion thrusters have low thrust?
The reason for this is that while the specific impulse for ion propulsion is high, it gives is low amounts of thrust. A high specific impulse means that the gases shooting out of the back of the rocket are moving at a very high speed but the low thrust means that there is not a lot of gas moving at any one time.
How does a ion thruster work?
An ion thruster ionizes propellant by adding or removing electrons to produce ions. Most thrusters ionize propellant by electron bombardment: a high-energy electron (negative charge) collides with a propellant atom (neutral charge), releasing electrons from the propellant atom and resulting in a positively charged ion.
Is it possible to use an ion thruster for thrust?
Short Answer: No, because the thrust is very small and earth’s atmosphere gets in the way. Ion thrusters are really great. Not only are they quite successful at converting electrical energy to kinetic energy, they are quite effective in getting you the the most thrust for a given mass of fuel.
How long does it take to operate ion propulsion?
This surpasses Deep Space 1’s 678 days of ion propulsion operation by a long shot. The thrusters work by using an electrical charge to accelerate ions from xenon fuel to a speed 7-10 times that of chemical engines. The electrical power level and xenon fuel feed can be adjusted to throttle each engine up or down in thrust.
How efficient are ion thrusters compared to chemical rockets?
Chemical rockets have demonstrated fuel efficiencies up to 35 percent, but ion thrusters have demonstrated fuel efficiencies over 90 percent. Currently, ion thrusters are used to keep communication satellites in the proper position relative to Earth and for the main propulsion on deep space probes.
How do ion engines work in the atmosphere?
Conventional ion engines, as used on spacecraft, do not work in an atmosphere. However, there is a similar device which does use the same principle to generate thrust using surrounding air. The so-called ‘Lifter’ uses an asymmetrical electrode to generate thrust when high voltage is placed across it.