VASIMR Updates

[jakethesnake]

I am a huge fan of VASIMR; I am eagerly awaiting the test results on the second stage ramp-up to 200kW.

I am a little worried at this point, Ad Astra was supposed to start testing the second stage at the end of July and so far not a peep?

I have been keeping a very close eye on VASIMR, which stands for Variable Specific Impulse Magnetoplasma Rocket and is being developed by a company called Ad-Astra, although there are a few topics related to VASIMR here, they are mostly hypothetical and I tend to like to live in the here and now.

Link to Ad Astra:

http://www.adastrarocket.com/home1.html

Ad Astra does post new information periodically, but most of the current information I get is through people having inside contacts or key people being interviewed.

I will try to post anything new that I find and I would definitely appreciate any new insight and or information about VASIMR.

Thanks.

 

[jakethesnake]

I thought I would give this thread a starting point and post the most current test results and milestones by Ad Astra on the VX-200 plasma engine.

PRESS RELEASE 020709, July 2, 2009
VX-200 demonstrates superconducting first
Stage at full power.

http://www.adastrarocket.com/Release%20020709.pdf

My goal is to keep this post current and to monitor the progress of VASIMR as it relates to the viability of this plasma engine.
I invite any and all through the grapevine reports that might lead to a confirmation of any milestones VASIMR has achieved.

A couple of things I came across:

What I have been hearing through the grapevine is that at this point Ad Astra is having problems maintaining a stable thrust though out all ranges of power outputs, but I am unable to substantiate this.

Second stage testing was supposed to start on July 14 of this year. I have read but can’t seem to find the link again that Ad Astra has achieved approximately 142kW of power output, but again I can’t substantiate this.

It’s a little strange that Ad Astra hasn’t posted anything as it relates to the progress of the Second stage testing, it’s been almost two months since the second stage testing was supposed to begin, and NOTHING, not a peep???
:?:

 

[neutrino78x]

I'm a VASIMR fan myself, unfortunately I have not heard anything beyond what you have said here!

 

[Boris_Badenov]

My goal is to keep this post current and to monitor the progress of VASIMR as it relates to the viability of this plasma engine.
I invite any and all through the grapevine reports that might lead to a confirmation of any milestones VASIMR has achieved.

Please do keep us updated, we should be keeping an eye on this as it is so very important to our little community.

 

[neutrino78x]

Didn't they say VASIMR will be tested on the ISS? When is that supposed to happen?

 

[docm]

In 2010-2012 time frame according to most articles. Not likely on the remaining shuttle flights which end next year, so most likely it'll have to be sent up in either the ESA or Japanese cargo modules or maybe a SpaceX flight.

The below link is a VASIMR article in Aerospace America's July-Aug 2009 issue (journal of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics).

Link....(PDF)

According to this article Ad Astra has tested the VF-200 at 149.2 kw of its 200 kw capacity, or 74.6% power.

The first stage’s 30 kW and the second stage’s 170 kW combine to produce the full 200 kW of power. As of this writing, the VX-200 has achieved a record total power of 149.2 kW in tests. In contrast to a chemical multistaged rocket, in the VASIMR both stages fire nearly simultaneously.

 

[jakethesnake]

Thanks allot docm, that’s the article I was speaking about… arrrggg… the little buger was hiding at the Ad Astra website!

Very cool non the less, so the standing power output for VASIMR stands at 149.2kW, courtesy of AD Astra.

With the milestone achieved, the engine’s 170-kW ion cyclotron resonance heating second stage was integrated with the first stage. The second stage completes the heating process and expels the plasma plume out of the rear of the rocket in a sustained, controlled thrust. The first stage’s 30 kW and the second stage’s 170 kW combine to produce the full 200 kW of power. As of this writing, the VX-200 has achieved a record total power of 149.2 kW in tests. In contrast to a chemical multistaged rocket, in the VASIMR both stages fire nearly simultaneously. Chang-Diaz defined the test milestone as a major challenge for his design. It marked an absolute record for power, using the RF solidstate power generator developed by Nautel, which also makes the RF generator for the second stage. We worked for weeks to integrate the first and second stages, he explains. New computer algorithms were developed to control and stabilize the plasma. Another challenge was the startup phase, because of the extreme changes in the electrical environment that accompanies the initial plasma he says. The new control algorithms overcame these difficulties and allowed the power ramp-up to continue. These new control systems will be used extensively in the continued evolution and development of the more powerful second-stage system.

AEROSPACE AMERICA/JULY-AUGUST 2009,
Copyright© 2009 by the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics.


It appears that the new computer algorithms that were developed to control and stabilize the plasma is causing Ad Astra some problems, I hope they iron this out soon.

 

[jakethesnake]

I thought some of you might like this free downloadable issue of Ad Astra magazine, I registered and downloaded it, and it’s about 20 Meg. in size.

I was blown away by the stunning art and photography.

Ad Astra
The magazine of the
National Space Society
Register for free download
of Spring 2009 issue

http://www.nss.org/adastra/

 

[jakethesnake]

Here is the only thing new that I could find as it relates to VASIMR.

Dr. Franklin Chang Diaz is going give a lecture titled “Developing VASIMR" at the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics in Houston Texas on November 20th.

http://www.aiaa-houston.org/cy0910/even ... 0nov09.pdf

I have heard absolutely nothing new about Ad Astra’s progress on the second stage testing of the VX-200 VASIMR, so hopefully Dr. Franklin can shed some light as to what is happening.

I sure hope I don’t have to wait until November 20th to find out the results of the VX-200 second stage testing, but maybe Dr. Franklin is giving this lecture due to some positive results, if 200kW was reached then it might be time to move on to the VF-200... one can only hope!

 

[jakethesnake]

FINALY something from Ad Astra:
An interview posted by Ad Astra, which showed up this morning on the Ad Astra’s website gives a little insight, and only a little insight into where they are with the VASIMR VX-200 testing. They have still not achieved full power on the VX200’s second stage.

Here is an excerpt from the interview posted at Ad Astra’s website dated September 29th:

http://seedmagazine.com/content/article ... t_century/

http://www.adastrarocket.com/News.html

Seed: What’s the timeline for Ad Astra’s plan? How do we get a VASIMR rocket that takes people to Mars in 39 days?
FCD: Once we’ve demonstrated a 200-kilowatt prototype engine operating at full power on the ground, the next step is testing an identical version in space. We’re already testing the prototype unit in our vacuum chamber here in Houston, and we’re designing the actual flight engine, which is called the VF-200. We signed an agreement with NASA last December to actually mount the VF-200 on the International Space Station in 2012 or 2013. Unfortunately, the space station doesn’t have 200 kilowatts to give us. So what we’ll do is use the solar arrays of the station to charge a battery pack that we’ll carry on board, which will allow us to fire the rocket at 200 kilowatts for up to 15 minutes. We’ll do this again and again for months to qualify the engine in space. In 2013 or 2014, we’ll make clusters of 200-kilowatt engines to give us something close to a megawatt of electricity, and deploy them with a very high-powered solar array. This will be a robotic reusable “space tug” that can refuel or reposition satellites, or even send packages to the Moon at a much lower price. By charging for those services, we hope to bootstrap our way into developing a megawatt-class rocket. That rocket would be too powerful to test on the ISS, but it could perhaps be tested on the surface of the Moon where solar power is abundant. Like the ISS tests, we’d fire the megawatt-class VASIMR continuously for a period of one month, then two months, to validate and verify that it could be used on a human mission to Mars.

Something else I notice was the Max power output that was achieved of 149.2 kW was achieved by the VX-200i which is a test configuration that did not include the superconducting magnet.

Also, some insight has been given as to the problems Ad Astra is having with the VX-200’s second stage helicon RF generator.

Here is an excerpt from a paper submitted to the 45th AIAA/ASME/SAE/ASEE Joint Propulsion Conference & Exhibit 2 - 5 August 2009, Denver, Colorado.

http://www.adastrarocket.com/Lenny-JPC- ... 62-577.pdf

B. Booster power

Although time has not yet permitted both full power helicon and booster operation simultaneously with
the VX-200, the second stage RF generator delivered 149.2 kW while operating with the VX-200i. Figure
9 shows the time history of the RF power and argon gas flow rate. The helicon RF generator turned off
for an unknown reason as booster RF generator was commanded on in the the VX-200, and operation with
the superconducting magnet in the VX-200 proceeded before determining the cause of this problem. Recent
experiments at maximum magnetic eld in the VX-200 have had the helicon operating at 32 kW with the
booster operating at up to 25 kW without a reduction in helicon power. As of this writing, work continues
to push the booster RF generator to full power at full magnetic feld.

 

[nimbus]

They made 200kW.
http://www.adastrarocket.com/Release_20 ... 9Final.pdf

 

[jakethesnake]

Yep ya just beat me...

Yeeeeeeeeeee Haaaaaaaaaa… Ad Astra did it they reach the 200kW with the VX-200.

http://www.adastrarocket.com/Release_20 ... 9Final.pdf

PRESS RELEASE 011009, September 30,2009

VASIMR® VX-200 reaches 200 kW power milestone.

[Houston, TX. For immediate release] – Ad Astra Rocket Company’s VASIMR® VX-200 rocket prototype reached its highly- coveted 200 kW maximum power milestone at 11:59 am (CST) in tests conducted at the company’s Houston laboratory. The DC power trace actually exceeded the design requirement by 1 kW and exhibited the clear signature of a wellestablished plateau at peak power.

 

[nimbus]

Just a small tangent - what are the requirements to keep the ISS in orbit, other than cargo supply for the crew and station-keeping thrust?

 

[jakethesnake]

Just a small tangent - what are the requirements to keep the ISS in orbit, other than cargo supply for the crew and station-keeping thrust?

Here is what was said in the interview with Franklin Chang-Diaz I posted above.

http://seedmagazine.com/content/article ... t_century/

Seed: That all sounds nice, but can you justify any of this in terms of dollars and cents?
FCD: It’s quite simple—we’ve done the calculations. One thing we’d like to do is maintain the ISS in orbit. The ISS has to be reboosted every few months; otherwise it gradually falls and burns up in the atmosphere. These reboosts require about 7 metric tons of rocket fuel per year. How much does it cost to get 7 metric tons of rocket fuel into orbit? $140 million. That’s the bill someone has to pay, each year, just for hauling up the fuel. The 200-kilowatt solar-powered VASIMR can do the same thing with about 320 kilograms of argon gas per year, which still costs about $7 million, but it decreases the price by a factor of 20. Of course, we have to make a little money ourselves, so the price decrease won’t be quite that large, but it can still save NASA a lot of money and net us a handy profit. That’s just one case—there are many others.

 

[nimbus]

I think I remember someone here or at Nasaspaceflight saying that the ISS couldn't survive too long even if it were supplied with crew consumables and had unlimited station-keeping. Or maybe I'm thinking of one of the ISS in outer space discussions.

 

[jakethesnake]

I would prefer that this thread stay on topic as it relates to the advances of VASIMR, such as a nuclear reactor breakthrough that could eventually power VASIMR.

I am definitely not good with hypotheticals.

If there is an actual breakthrough in nuclear technology that could power a 200 megawatt VASIMR then I’m good.

I would like this thread to be as professional as possible, and a thread that links anyone who comes upon it as an information treasure trove.

(As to make sense of post comments I removed a not so smart "garble" comment)

Love that edit feature

Also I am good with “through the grapevine info” which could eventually be substantiated.

 

[nimbus]

Endless garble huh...
http://nextbigfuture.com/2009/10/vasimr ... irect.html
Good luck with your thread.

 

[jakethesnake]

Endless garble huh...
http://nextbigfuture.com/2009/10/vasimr ... irect.html
Good luck with your thread.

Nope... that is not endless garble and definitely a good link. I have actually been reading about these reactors and I think they show great promise, although if you read the article it says…

The reactor does not exist yet. Therefore, it is not space rated. They have just announced that they are working on it. They are talking 2012 for the first one to get finished for some ground application.

So in essence it's not a breakthrough just a work in progress.

 

[EarthlingX]

Endless garble huh...
http://nextbigfuture.com/2009/10/vasimr ... irect.html
Good luck with your thread.

Nope... that is not endless garble and definitely a good link. I have actually been reading about these reactors and I think they show great promise, although if you read the article it says…

The reactor does not exist yet. Therefore, it is not space rated. They have just announced that they are working on it. They are talking 2012 for the first one to get finished for some ground application.

So in essence it not a breakthrough just a work in progress.

Oh, yea There is a work, that might show some progress

I'm glad to hear Hyperion decided to go to space
That article is nice find.

Anyway, it is announced to be space rated before Ares I ...

 

[jakethesnake]

Here is another interview with Franklin Chang Diaz giving some more insight into the ongoings and course Ad Astra is taking with VASIMR.

This is what Franklin Chang Diaz said in an interview with Technology Review.

Monday, October 05, 2009 By Brittany Sauser

http://www.technologyreview.com/computing/23576/?a=f

FCD: It's always a struggle to continue to get investment, but the way we do it is by meeting our milestones. The one we met [last week] will give us ammunition to seek more private investment. It would also be nice to have government funding. When we created the company, it was an experiment in NASA privatization, and the premise was that we would privatize the project and let the private sector mature the technology to the point where NASA would pick it up again, and that time has arrived. So we are always looking for a contract from NASA that would alleviate our need for private investment.

 

[docm]

More interesting than funding is this -

>
TR: What is the next step in development of the engine?

FCD: The next step is to actually build the flight unit, which will be ready to launch October 2013. We will install it on the ISS and test it there. After the test is finished, we will use it commercially to reboost the space station [to a higher altitude] to provide the drag compensation. [Currently the ISS requires periodic boosts to get it to the right orbit for space shuttle or Progress dockings.]

TR: Do you have a vehicle for the system after the ISS work?

FCD: We are already in discussions with SpaceX and Orbital Sciences, the two companies that already have access to the space station [through contracts with NASA], so we can develop the interface in either one of those vehicles. We will make a decision, selecting one of those two probably at the end of next year.
>

Which to me means they're watching the upcoming test flights very, very closely.

 

[jakethesnake]

Yep… I thought that was very interesting as well; I also have high hopes for SpaceX and the Falcon 9, and thanks for posting that awesome picture docm... I like it better than mine! Soooo...

 

[EarthlingX]

A picture:

from
VASIMR VX-200 Reaches 200 kW Power Milestone
http://www.onorbit.com/node/1577

 

[annodomini2]

So how much thrust are they getting for their 200Kw?

 

[jakethesnake]

So how much thrust are they getting for their 200Kw?

I have read two different values given as to how much thrust is given off from the VX-200.

5 newtons of thrust, which equals 1.124 Pounds force.

http://spectrum.ieee.org/aerospace/spac ... red-planet

I have also read a value of 4 newtons which, equals 0.899 Pounds force.

Also a statement was made by Ad Astra that:

The VX-200 turns out to exceed the expected power density of VF-200-1 by about 25%, so this is a robust demonstration of the technology.

http://www.adastrarocket.com/Release_20 ... 9Final.pdf

So I’m not exactly sure how this extra 25 % power density plays into the thrust.

There are a lot of great minds here at Space.com, so maybe someone could address this.