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Flight Works, Inc. Prototype Pump Paves the Way to Future In-space Use with Hydrazine, MMH, and NTO

Author Archives: flight-works

  1. Flight Works, Inc. Prototype Pump Paves the Way to Future In-space Use with Hydrazine, MMH, and NTO

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    A series of tests conducted at NASA Kennedy Space Center (KSC) demonstrates the ability of a Flight Works micro pump prototype to increase nitrogen tetroxide (NTO) pressures to those typically used in a spacecraft propulsion system.

    The pump, developed with NASA funding, is operated for several hours with NTO and is also compatible with hydrazine and mono-methyl hydrazine (MMH). The pump represents an evolution from Flight Works’ line of micro-pumps and is a subscale prototype of what could be used in future spaceflight applications.

  2. Flight Works, Inc. Launches New Magnetic Drive Pump Models for High-life Applications

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    After extensive design, development, and testing, Flight Works launches the M-Series, a family of magnetically-coupled micro gear pumps adding a level of quality, reliability, and performance capabilities to the Flight Works product line.

    Originally envisioned as a solution for long-life pumping applications, the magnetic drive series offers several other improvements over the standard sealed gear pump, including:

    • Extended run time capabilities due to the elimination of a dynamic seal AND the reduction of side load on motor bearings
    • Highly reduced risk of leaks, especially under extreme operating conditions
    • Elimination of risks of fluid contamination from dynamic seal abrasion
    • Expanded fluid and environmental compatibility, including extreme temperatures (both hot and cold)
    • Design permits easy replacement of pump section in the field
    • Increased differential pressure capabilities, over the 20 bar (300 psi) threshold of dynamically sealed pumps
    • Increased maximum allowable pressures (600 psi and higher depending on fluids and configurations)

  3. Flight Works, Inc. Awarded Air Force Phase Ii Sbir – “Pump-fed Micropropulsion System for High Performance Nanosats”

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    Under the Phase II effort, Flight Works will refine the propulsion system design and develop a prototype of the system.

    Miniaturization of propulsion systems for nanosats presents unique challenges which, to date, have rendered such small spacecraft unable to have significant orbit change/control and attitude control capabilities. Under a Phase I SBIR, Flight Work Inc. conducted the preliminary design of a pump-fed micropropulsion system and demonstrated the potential of the technology by developing and characterizing a low cost micro pump for HAN-based propellants (TRL of 4). The system has a dry mass less than 1 kg (for 4 kg of propellant), uses less than 25 W of power, and generates more than 3.4 N of thrust at a predicted ISP greater than 240 s. The introduction of the pump in the system allows eliminating relatively heavy valves, regulators and lines while using plastic tanks for propellant storage. Under the Phase II effort, Flight Works proposes to refine the propulsion system design and develop a prototype of the system. Also included in the work plan is the development of a pump for hydrazine monopropellant, a pump which will then be integrated into a complete micropropulsion system and static fire tested in a vacuum chamber. This demonstration will pave the way towards an in-flight application of the technology onboard nanosats and microsats.

    Whether used with hydrazine, HAN-based propellants or in bipropellant mode (MMH/NTO), the technology is particularly relevant for nanosat and microsat missions requiring high propellant mass fractions. It can also be an enabler of future missions where it might be more cost effective to send a fleet of nanosats rather than a single, larger, highly reliable and expensive spacecraft. In all these applications, eliminating several hard-to-miniaturize components (such as high pressure valves, tanks and regulators) reduces system cost and mass, while also allowing for more compact and lighter propellant tanks. As such, the technology is not only applicable to all DoD very small spacecraft programs with significant mission ∆V, but it also enables the more demanding ones of these missions as long as the thrust requirements can be matched with the power available on the spacecraft. In summary, applications include all small spacecraft and small landers (where the pump provides a simple throttling mechanism). The technology could also be applied to large spacecraft attitude control systems by reducing storage tank and feed-line mass.

    Contract Summary

  4. Flight Works, Inc. Awarded Air Force Phase I Sbir – “Pump-fed Micropropulsion System for High Performance Nanosats”

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    Flight Works will design a HAN-based pump-fed micropopulsion system and demonstrate the potential of the technology by developing and characterizing a low cost micro-pump for HAN-based propellants.

    Miniaturization of propulsion systems for small spacecraft presents unique challenges which, to date, have rendered such small spacecraft unable to have significant orbit change/control and attitude control capabilities. Under a Phase I SBIR, Flight Work Inc. will design a HAN-based pump-fed micropropulsion system and demonstrate the potential of the technology by developing and characterizing a low cost micro pump for HAN-based propellants. The goal is to develop a system with dry mass less than 1 kg (for 4 kg of propellant), less than 25 W of power, more than 0.1 N thrust, and ISP greater than 240 s. The introduction of the pump in the system allows eliminating relatively heavy valves, regulators and lines while using plastic tanks/bags for propellant storage. This reduction in system complexity and mass will allow nanosats to conduct missions with ∆V s similar to those of today’s larger spacecraft. The pumps are based on proven recently-developed high performance gear pumps driven by DC motors and developed for small turbojets, UAV’s gasoline engines, methanol fuel cells and other applications. Also, because the power to the pump can be modulated, thrust is easily controlled and adjusted to best match mission needs.

    Contact Summary