High Performance Green Propulsion (HPGP):

A Flight-Proven Capability and Cost Game-Changer

for Small and Secondary Satellites

Aaron Dinardi

26th AIAA/USU Small

Satellite Conference

14 August 2012

1. HPGP Overview

2. PRISMA Two-Year Update

3. Benefits to Small Satellite Missions

Outline

• IMPROVED PERFORMANCE

- Storable liquid monopropellant

- Higher Specific Impulse and Density Impulse

Why Green Propulsion?

Higher performance than

monopropellant Hydrazine

Reduced tank volume

or Extended mission

+

• INCREASED SAFETY

- Low Sensitivity - Low Toxicity

- Non-Carcinogenic

- Environmentally Benign

=

• LOWER MISSION COSTS - Simplified handling and transportation

- Reduced cost for fueling operations

- Compatible with available COTS hardware Much less toxic than Hydrazine

Reduced fueling cost

HPGP Characteristics (as compared to hydrazine)

Comparison Parameter Hydrazine HPGP (LMP-103S)

Specific Impulse Reference ≥ 6% higher than hydrazine

Density Reference 24% higher than hydrazine

Stability Unstable (reactivity) Stable > 20 yrs (STANAG 4582)

Toxicity Highly Toxic Low Toxicity (due to methanol)

Carcinogenic Yes No

Corrosive Yes No

Flammable Vapors Yes No

Environmental Hazard Yes No

Sensitive to Air & Humidity Yes No

SCAPE Required for Handling Yes No

Storable Yes Yes (> 6.5 yrs, end-to-end test is ongoing)

Freezing Point 1°C -90°C (-7°C saturation)

Boiling Point 114°C 120°C

Qualified Operating Temp Range 10°C to 50°C 10°C to 50°C

(allows use of COTS hydrazine components)

Operating Temp Range

Capability

10°C to 50°C -5°C to 60°C

Typical Blow-Down Ratio 4:1 4:1

Exhaust Gases Ammonia, nitrogen, hydrogen H20 (50%), N2 (23%), H2 (16%), CO (6%),

CO2 (5%)

Radiation Tolerance Reference Insensitive up to 100 kRad (Cobalt 60)

Shipping Class 8 / UN2029

(Forbidden on commercial aircraft)

UN / DOT 1.4S

(Permitted on commercial passenger aircraft)

Air Transport of LMP-103S Transport Classified as UN / US DOT 1.4S

1. 21 Aug 2009: Stockholm Kiruna (via commercial passenger aircraft)

2. 17 May 2010: Örebro Orsk (via cargo aircraft with the PRISMA satellites)

3. 11 Aug 2011: Stockholm Zurich London (via commercial passenger aircraft)

4. 6 Jun 2012: Göteborg Stockholm New York (via commercial passenger aircraft)

Tango

• 3-axis stabilized

• Solar Magnetic control

• No orbit control

• 40 kg launch mass

Mango

• 3-axis stabilized

• Attitude Independent Orbit

Control

• 100 m/s Delta-V

• 145 kg launch mass

• 2.6 m “wing-span”

• 3 propulsion systems

• 4 RF systems

(Artists Impression – Courtesy of DLR)

HPGP has been flight-proven to outperform

hydrazine on the PRISMA mission

HPGP In-Space Comparison with Hydrazine as seen during 2 years on PRISMA

Specific Impulse and Density Impulse Comparison

Steady-State Firing: Isp for last 10 s of 60 s firings

6-12 % Higher Isp than hydrazine

30-39 % Higher Density Impulse than hydrazine

Single Pulse Firing: Ton: 50 ms – 60 s

First half of the mission

10-20 % Higher Isp than hydrazine

36-49 % Higher Density Impulse than hydrazine

Pulse Mode Firing: Ton: 50 ms – 30 s

Duty Factor: 0.1 – 97%

0-12 % Higher Isp than hydrazine

24-39 % Higher Density Impulse than hydrazine

Mission Average improvement with HPGP compared to hydrazine:

- Isp + 8% - Density Impulse + 32%

Benefits to Small Satellite Missions:

1) Increased Performance 2) Simplified Handling & Transportation

4) Fewer Secondary/Rideshare Restrictions 3) Reduced Mission Costs

≥ 30% higher performance allows:

Longer mission lifetime (with same tank), or

Smaller tank (for same ∆V)

o Waterfall mass reductions

o Better utilization of limited volume & mass

Efficient orbit raising and/or de-orbit

Reduced propellant toxicity allows:

Handling in facilities not rated for hydrazine o Launch sites o Universities and SMEs

Air transport (commercial/passenger aircraft) o Shipment to launch site with s/c & GSE

Fueling without SCAPE suits Increased responsiveness

o Shorter launch campaigns

o Shipment of pre-fueled satellites

Significant life-cycle cost reductions, due to:

All of the blue highlighted items on this slide

Non-Hazardous fueling operations allow:

Reduced physical risk to primary satellites

Parallel processing at launch site

o Reduced schedule risk to primary satellites

More launch opportunities

Benefit #1: Increased Performance

Longer Mission Lifetime Astrium Space Transportation analyzed replacing hydrazine

with HPGP on their existing Myriade platform (100 - 200 kg),

and concluded that for the same tank size:

• Up to 28% higher total impulse is achievable, resulting in

• 24% more ∆V (blow-down dependent)

Myriade

LRO mass savings with HPGP

Smaller Tank NASA GSFC analyzed the mass savings which would have

been achieved on the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (1,882 kg)

if it had implemented HPGP instead of hydrazine, and

concluded that:

• A 39% smaller tank (volume) and 26% less propellant (mass) could have been used, resulting in “waterfall” mass savings

of 18.7% of the entire spacecraft’s mass

Orbit Raising and/or De-orbit Small satellites are often injected into sub-optimal orbits (due to

being launched as secondary payloads), resulting in: • Reduced mission lifetime (if injected too low), or • If injected too high, and orbit decay timeframe exceeding the 25

year post-mission requirement

Including a small COTS-based HPGP system can provide an

effective way for small satellites to raise and/or lower their perigee

Benefit #2: Simplified Handling & Transportation

Loading PRISMA with Hydrazine

Loading PRISMA with LMP-103S For the PRIMSA launch campaign:

• The LMP-103S propellant was transported as air cargo,

together with the satellites and associated GSE

o Hydrazine was shipped separately, by rail/boat/truck

Hydrazine HPGP

470 kg toxic waste 3 kg non-toxic waste

29 kg propellant waste 1 kg propellant waste

• HPGP fueling operations required only 3 working days (leak

checks, fueling & pressurization, decontamination)

• All HPGP handling (loading & decontamination) was

declared “non-hazardous operations” by Range Safety

o HPGP loading did not require SCAPE operations

o Only limited decontamination of the HPGP loading cart was

required at the launch site:

• The costs for propellant, transportation and fueling of

hydrazine were 3 times higher than those for HPGP

Benefit #3: Reduced Life-Cycle Costs

A “Non-Space”

Case Study

42% - 88% higher up-front costs than

heritage technology

options are offset by

significant savings in

other areas

Source: Demonstration Assessment of Light-Emitting Diode (LED) Parking Lot Lighting, Prepared for the US Dept. of Energy by the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, May 2011

Conclusions:

1) Significant savings are achievable, even before all cost areas are accounted for.

2) Analyses must be performed on a mission-by-mission basis in order to determine if the

transportation & launch processing cost savings are able to offset the higher material costs.

(*Note: Positive values indicate HPGP cost savings over a hydrazine-based system) Consideration Factors:

HPGP vs. Hydrazine Cost Comparison

Analysis includes: flight hardware, propellant (excluding transport) and satellite fueling (excluding waste disposal)

Greater savings are able to be achieved from smaller tanks, propellant transportation and waste disposal

Mission #1:

1a 1b 1c

Mission #2:

2a 2b 2c

Missions #3&4:

3a 4a

Missions #3&4:

4b 3b

Example HPGP Cost Savings (vs. a comparable hydrazine system)

HPGP eliminates or reduces the concerns

which often preclude the inclusion of a liquid

propulsion system on small satellite missions;

thus enabling small satellites to achieve

increased scientific utility

The combined benefits of higher performance

& simplified transportation/handling provided

by HPGP allow satellite mass reductions and

significantly reduced mission life-cycle costs

(as compared with hydrazine-based systems of

similar performance)

When taken together, the many flight-proven

benefits make HPGP a “game changer” for

both increasing the capabilities and reducing

the costs of small satellite missions

Conclusions Increased

Performance

Simplified Handling

& Transportation

Reduced

Mission Costs Fewer Rideshare

Restrictions

Benefits to Small Satellites:

Ammonium DiNitrimide (ADN)

in liquid monopropellants

Solvent

Water

Fuel

Alcohols,

acetone,

ammonia

The family of ADN propellants was

invented in 1997 by the Swedish Space Corporation (SSC) and the Swedish Defence Research Agency (FOI).

ADN Energetic Material

Highly Soluble

Oxidizer

LMP-103S

monopropellant:

ADN 60-65 % Methanol 15-20 % Ammonia 3-6 %

Water balance (by weight)

HPGP

High Performance

Green Propellant

* Delivered steady-state vacuum specific impulse at MEOP and ε = 150:1

** Predicted steady-state vacuum specific impulse at MEOP and ε = 150:1

1 N 5 N 22 N 50 N 220 N

ECAPS High Performance Green Propulsion

1 N 5 N 22 N 50 N 220 N

ECAPS High Performance Green Propulsion

Thrust 0.5 N 1 N 5 N 22 N 50 N 220 N

Propellant LMP-103S LMP-103S LMP-103S LMP-103S LMP-103S LMP-103

Isp (Ns/kg) 2210*

(~ 225 sec)

2310*

(~ 235 sec)

2450*

(~ 250 sec)

2500*

(~ 255 sec)

2515**

(~ 255 sec)

2800**

(~ 255 - 285 sec)

Density

Impulse (Ns/L)

2730

2860

2900

3030

3120

3580

Status TRL 5 TRL 9

flight proven

TRL 5 TRL 5 TRL 3 TRL 4/5

The PRISMA Mission

Objective and Background: • Demonstration of technologies related to Formation Flying (FF)

and Rendezvous in space

− Main satellite “Mango” and Target satellite “Tango”

• Demonstration of High Performance Green Propulsion (HPGP) system

HPGP Flight Objectives: • Demonstration of non-hazardous fueling operations and

reduced fueling lead time of a high performance monopropellant

• First in-space demonstration of a high performance storable

“green” monopropellant

• Deliver ΔV to the PRISMA mission

• Redundant propulsion system to hydrazine

• Perform Back-to-Back performance comparison with hydrazine

Status: • Launched clamped together on 15 Jun 2010

• Tango separated from Mango on 11 Aug 2010

• Nominal mission completed by mid-Aug 2011

• Mission extended into 2012 (still operational)

HPGP propulsion system:

Two 1N thrusters

• Specific HPGP experiments

• Formation flying maneuvers

• Co-operations with hydrazine

PRISMA (Mango) Propulsion Systems

Hydrazine propulsion system:

Six 1N thrusters

• Autonomous formation flying

• Autonomous rendezvous

• Homing

• Proximity operations

LMP-103S

GHe

TS TS

Propellant Service

Valve Orifice

Filter Latch Valve

Thrusters

Pressurant Service

Valve

Pressure

Transducer

*Hydrazine based Commercial Off The Shelf components

Additional Consideration: “Hidden” Hydrazine Costs

Hydrazine Disposal

Cost Analysis

Note: The cumulative “disposal charge”

translates to ~$29/pound of hydrazine. However, when categories 5 & 6 are

combined, the cost can grow to more

than 3x that…