Scientists from Samara University named after Korolev, together with NPO "Samara", by order of RCC "Progress", have developed and tested a refueling system for Russian space satellites with ion engines. The engines are used by small spacecraft to adjust their orbit, the university said.
Advantages of the development:
- will simplify and reduce the cost of the process of refueling fuel tanks (spherical tanks)
- will ensure the purity of the xenon being pumped
- measures the volume of gas inside
- will reduce the time for manufacturing satellites
Existing refueling units require the removal of spherical tanks from the satellite before refueling. Our refueling system is more convenient to use
He explained that refueling fuel tanks is very important for the operation of the satellite. The slightest excess of xenon can shift the center of gravity of the apparatus, and with a shortage, the ion engine will not be able to provide course correction.
How refueling happens:
- the refueling system docks with the spherical tank using a flexible pipeline
- the cavity of the refueling system is purged with inert gas
- the internal path of the installation is filled with xenon
- after checking the purity of the gas, it is sent through a pipeline to the fuel tank
Samara developers explained that the refueling system is suitable for any spacecraft. In the fall, it will be transferred to RCC "Progress". And in the future, it can be used to refuel spacecraft with plasma engines.
Similar installations are used in NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA). But their refueling systems have a complex design, which makes the process of filling fuel tanks more laborious.