Erosion Rate Measurements for DART Spacecraft Ion Propulsion System

Featured Application Evaluation of real-time erosion characteristics of the NEXT ion engine under simulated flight conditions for the DART planetary defense mission, using a laser probe. The Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) spacecraft was developed to provide the first measurement for orbital deflection of an asteroid upon intentional impact. The NEXT ion engine is part of the mission, on its maiden voyage. As part of the pre-launch risk reduction, erosion characteristics of the extraction grid system were evaluated using laser measurements of sputtered molybdenum atoms over the envelope of potential throttle conditions for the mission. Erosion rate dependence on propellant flow rate as well as relative density and directionality of molybdenum sputter from grid center to edge were measured. Sputtered atoms were found to have average radial velocity directed toward the engine perimeter and increasing with radial distance. The relative contribution of source and facility background gas and other sources of accelerator grid current was examined as well as the influence of several engine operating parameters. Facility background gas was found to influence engine operation more than a wall-mounted pressure gauge and typical assumptions about ingestion would indicate. Far-field flux was estimated over the full angular range based on the near-field relative density and velocity results and relying on quartz crystal microbalance data at one location to fix absolute numbers everywhere. The results substantially deepen knowledge and understanding of the complex grid erosion process of the engine and its lifetime, as grid failure via erosion is the normal life limiter. Study results are also relevant to thruster-spacecraft integration issues such as molybdenum deposition rate on solar cells and other spacecraft surfaces.