A 20 kW class Hall Thruster featuring two coaxial channels has been designed at the University of Pisa and manufactured by Aerospazio Tecnologie. The thruster was preliminarily characterized in 2024 in the framework of the ESA TANDEM program. The following paper outlines the findings from the recent characterization test campaign performed on the TANDEM thruster coupled with the new cathode developed within the CHEOPS-VHP-BB program. This test was carried out at AEROSPAZIO Tecnologie in 2025 in the LVTF-3 test facility. The TANDEM thruster was operated with three different propellants (Xenon, Krypton, and Argon) in four operating points (from 4.5 to 20 kW) at discharge voltages of 300 and 400 V. Thermal assessments were performed using an infrared thermal camera. This document presents the experimental results collected throughout the testing
Characterisation of a 20 kW Dual Channel HT with Different Propellants (Xe/Kr/Ar)
Francesco Marconcini;Fabrizio Paganucci;Giulia Becatti;Manuel M. Saravia;Guido Giammarinaro;Carla Guidi;
2025-01-01
Abstract
A 20 kW class Hall Thruster featuring two coaxial channels has been designed at the University of Pisa and manufactured by Aerospazio Tecnologie. The thruster was preliminarily characterized in 2024 in the framework of the ESA TANDEM program. The following paper outlines the findings from the recent characterization test campaign performed on the TANDEM thruster coupled with the new cathode developed within the CHEOPS-VHP-BB program. This test was carried out at AEROSPAZIO Tecnologie in 2025 in the LVTF-3 test facility. The TANDEM thruster was operated with three different propellants (Xenon, Krypton, and Argon) in four operating points (from 4.5 to 20 kW) at discharge voltages of 300 and 400 V. Thermal assessments were performed using an infrared thermal camera. This document presents the experimental results collected throughout the testingI documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
