Master’s Thesis: System Analysis of a novel Water Electrolysis Propulsion system for a CubeSat mission in Low-Earth Orbit

system for a CubeSat mission in Low-Earth Orbit

03.02.2023, Studentische Hilfskräfte, Praktikantenstellen, Studienarbeiten

Master's Thesis at the Chair for Space Propulsion and Mobility (Department of Aerospace and Geodesy)

One of the most promising technologies in the ongoing search for high- performance green propellants is the Water Electrolysis Propulsion technology (WEP). The fundamental concept of such a system is to fill the spacecraft on ground with pure water instead of highly toxic propellants. Once the spacecraft is in orbit an electrolyser is used to split up the water into gaseous hydrogen and oxygen. The gases can then be used in a chemical or electrical thruster to propel the spacecraft. In order to identify for which mission scenarios the WEP technology would be the most beneficial in comparison to conventional propulsion systems, we want to conduct a series of system analyses. In each individual system analysis, a specific mission scenario shall be investigated. This shall be done by the development of a preliminary design of a WEP propulsion system for the respective mission. Subse-quently, the capabilities and constraints of the resulting satellite shall be compared to a reference satellite that has the same mission requirements but is equipped with a conventional propulsion system. This comparison shall be used to identify the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats of the WEP technology for the given scenario. This thesis shall thereby focus on a CubeSat mission scenario in Low-Earth Orbit. The results of this this thesis will then also be used to decide for which application case the WEP hard-ware of the Chair for Space Propulsion and Mobility will be developed.

Tasks: - Familiarization with the WEP technology - Literature research on the most common mission scenarios and propulsion system applications for CubeSats - Requirement definition for a representative CubeSat mission - Development of the preliminary design of a WEP propulsion system for such a satellite - Comparison of the satellite's capabilities and constraints with a conventional CubeSat propulsion system - Identification of the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats for the application of the WEP technology in a CubeSat mission scenario - Documentation and presentation of the results

Kontakt: [email protected]

https: // www. fsmb.de/fsmb/service/basama-hiwi/entry/21177/

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