Simulation of Ionic Liquid in Electrospray Thrusters

The physics that govern the operation of electrospray devices belong to the field of electrohydrodynamics (EHD). EHD phenomena are characterized by a coupling of fluid dynamics with electrodynamics. Early work in this field has provided a good analytical basis to describe the behavior common in electrospray devices. More recently, an interest has been developed in numerical simulation of EHD behavior. These efforts have utilized a variety of methods, but none have focused on a large-scale parametric study for use in optimization of electrospray device designs. In the work presented here the potential to use the commercial software STAR-CCM+ (Siemens) as a tool to simulate electrospray devices is investigated. The ultimate goal is to utilize this software in the optimization of electrospray thruster designs. In an effort to provide validation, simulations are performed to compare with both experimental and other numerical work. Currently, this software demonstrates the ability to qualitatively match the expected behavior; however, there is significant quantitative deviation. Efforts are now focused on determining the cause for deviation.