Ion-neutral propulsion in atmospheric media.

1967/10/01 by EDWARD A. CHRISTENSON, PAUL S. MOLLER, P. S. Moller · 109 citations
Engineering · Mathematics · #Aerodynamics #Aerosol Filtration and Electrostatic Precipitation #Aerospace engineering #Atomic physics #Corona discharge #Electrically powered spacecraft propulsion #Electrohydrodynamics and Fluid Dynamics #Energy transformation #Engineering #Ion #Ion thruster #Mathematics #Mechanics #Microfluidic and Bio-sensing Technologies #Physics #Point (geometry) #Power (physics) #Propulsion #Propulsive efficiency #Spacecraft propulsion #Thermodynamics #Voltage

paper · doi:10.2514/3.4302

published in AIAA Journal 5(10), 1768-1773 (American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics)

openalex publication_date 1967/10/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/25

Abstract

A basic theoretical and experimental investigation of an aerodynamic corona discharge propulsion system is presented. A one-dimensional, constant-area analytical model with multiple point, space-charge-limited emission of negative ions is considered. Explicit relations expressing performance are derived for this system. Experimental results verify the validity of the theoretical expressions and indicate that the energy conversion efficiency leading to propulsion is approximately 1%. The experiments further indicate that the remaining energy manifests itself in the form of heat. Ion mobility is found to be the most decisive factor in determining system performance. Results suggest that future studies should be directed toward lowering the effective ion mobility to achieve an acceptable level of propulsive power efficiency.

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