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Experimental research on impulse coupling effect of a multi-pulse laser on an aluminum target
Abstract
Impact and torsion pendulums are applied in impulse coupling experiments of high-energy laser irradiation of space debris. It is difficult to achieve a multi-pulse experiment and thus hard to analyze the multi-pulse impulse coupling effect. Here, we designed a new recoil impulse experimental measurement system of non-contact, multidegrees of freedom, and multi-pulse irradiation. The system used a low-pressure and low-temperature vacuum chamber to simulate the space environment, the pinning effect of magnetic levitation to achieve aluminum target suspension, and high-speed cameras to record the displacement over time to calculate the impulse of the target. Then the impulse coupling experiment of multi-pulse laser irradiation on the aluminum target was performed. The result shows that the multi-pulse impulse coupling effect is not the linear accumulation of coupling results by every single-pulse and multi-pulse coefficient that decreases with the increase of the number of pulses, and eventually stabilizes as the decrease gets smaller.
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During the last 40 years, the mass of the artificial objects in orbit increased quite steadily at the rate of about 145 metric tons annually, leading to a total tally of approximately 7000 metric tons. Now, most of the cross-sectional area and mass (97% in LEO) is concentrated in about 4600 intact objects, i.e. abandoned spacecraft and rocket bodies, plus a further 1000 operational spacecraft Simulations and parametric analyses have shown that the most efficient and effective way to prevent the outbreak of a long-term exponential growth of the catalogued debris population would be to remove enough cross-sectional area and mass from densely populated orbits. In practice, according to the most recent NASA results, the active yearly removal of approximately 0.1% of the abandoned intact objects would be sufficient to stabilize the catalogued debris in low Earth orbit, together with the worldwide adoption of mitigation measures. The candidate targets for removal would have typical masses between 500 and 1000 kg, in the case of spacecraft, and of more than 1000 kg, in the case of rocket upper stages. Current data suggest that optimal active debris removal missions should be carried out in a few critical altitude-inclination bands. This paper deals with the feasibility study of a mission in which the debris is removed by using a hybrid propulsion module as propulsion unit Specifically, the engine is transferred from a servicing platform to the debris target by a robotic arm so to perform a controlled disposal. Hybrid rocket technology for de-orbiting applications is considered a valuable option due to high specific impulse, intrinsic safety, thrust throttle ability, low environmental impact and reduced operating costs. Typically, in hybrid rockets a gaseous or liquid oxidizer is injected into the combustion chamber along the axial direction to burn a solid fuel. However, the use of tangential injection on a solid grain Pancake Geometry allows for more compact design of the propulsion unit Only explorative tests were performed in the past on this rocket configuration, which appears to be suitable as de-orbiting system of new satellites as well as for direct application on large debris in the framework of a mission for debris removal. The paper describes some critical aspects of the mission with particular concern to the target selection, the hybrid propulsion module, the operations as well as the systems needed to rendezvous and dock with the target, and the disposal strategy.
The active removal of five to ten large objects per year from the low Earth orbit (LEO) region is the only way to prevent the debris collisions from cascading. Among the three orbital regions near the Earth where most catastrophic collisions are predicted to occur, the one corresponding to a sun-synchronous condition is considered the most relevant. Forty-one large rocket bodies orbiting in this belt have been identified as the priority targets for removal. As part of a more comprehensive system engineering solution, a space mission dedicated to the de-orbiting of five rocket bodies per year from this orbital regime has been designed. The selected concept of operations envisages the launch of a satellite carrying a number of de-orbiting devices, such as solid propellant kits. The satellite performs a rendezvous with an identified object and mates with it by means of a robotic arm. A de-orbiting device is attached to the object by means of a second robotic arm, the object is released and the device is activated. The spacecraft travels then to the next target. The present paper shows that an active debris removal mission capable of de-orbiting 35 large objects in 7 years is technically feasible, and the resulting propellant mass budget is compatible with many existing platforms.
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