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| Only the TILE device appears on the [[ http://accion-systems.com | October 2016 Accion Systems website]], less information than the older fly sheets. The temperature ranges were specified as -10C to 80C operating, -40C to 100C storage, so that sets the boundaries on orbital day/night cycling. They will need some thermal mass and thermal shielding for the cubesat. | Only the TILE device appears on the [[ http://accion-systems.com | October 2016 Accion Systems website]], less information than the older fly sheets. The temperature ranges were specified as -10C to 80C operating, -40C to 100C storage, so that sets the boundaries on orbital day/night cubesat temperature cycling. A cubesat may need thermal mass and thermal shielding for the thruster to survive. |
Accion Electrospray Thrusters
Uses 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate EMI-BF4 room temperature ionic liquid
ionic liquids ... not much on EMI-BF4 - what are the melting and boiling points?
Only the TILE device appears on the October 2016 Accion Systems website, less information than the older fly sheets. The temperature ranges were specified as -10C to 80C operating, -40C to 100C storage, so that sets the boundaries on orbital day/night cubesat temperature cycling. A cubesat may need thermal mass and thermal shielding for the thruster to survive.
I bet the electronics packages could be greatly minimized. Their online video shows a pulsed spark operation, perhaps that could be achieved with a very small piezo voltage source timed to another piezo that sprays the ionic liquid.
In high volumes, a "printed thruster" approach might work well with large scale roll-to-roll processing. These must still be inserted with pick-and-place equipment, and laser bonded to a satellite substrate, probably with half-a-dozen other components (ASIC, HV transistors, caps, piezos). In high volume production, a thruster should be cheaper than an ink jet cartridge.
Iodine thruster for comparison These are Hall effect devices, and require a significant magnetic field and a heated cathode, so they do not scale small. 6U to 24U small satellites.