Research of the design appearance of a small spacecraft with an electrothermal propulsion system

Abstract

The paper presents the results of solving the multivariate problem of forming the design of a small
spacecraft with various propulsion systems based on freons with electrothermal thrusters. As initial
data, the required reserves of characteristic velocities for maintaining the active lifetime for circular
orbits of 350-390 km for small spacecraft with different midsection areas are determined. Specific and
dimensional-mass characteristics of propulsion systems of small spacecraft are determined using a set of
basic design parameters of a small spacecraft obtained by random search. Ranked rows of alternative
variants of small spacecraft have been formed as the complex total criterion decreases by the multicriteria
method of prioritization for various principles of designing a small spacecraft with a propulsion
system.