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During the working process of the ADN-based thruster, continuously, heat generated by the chemical reaction in the combustion chamber will transfer along the upstream capillary, the propellant in the capillary continuously absorbs heat under the effect of heat transfer from the wall and undergoes a phase change when the saturation temperature is reached. In this study, effects of the downstream heating temperature (623 K to 923 K) on mass flow rate and pressure change in the capillary were investigated based on the established test platform. Simultaneously, the VOF (volume of fraction) model, and the Lee phase transition model coupled with the Navier–Stokes method was utilized to simulate the spatial distribution of the gas-liquid propellant in the capillary. The results show that the ADN-based propellant firstly formed bubbles on the inner wall surface near the exit of the capillary, and these vapor bubbles moved and grew upstream along the capillary. Due to the cooling effect of the ADN-based propellant inflow, the temperature distribution of the front chamber and capillary gradually reached equilibrium. Bubbles were constantly generated in the capillary, and as the heat reflux intensified, the total volume of bubbles in the capillary continued increasing. Single-phase flow, annular flow, wave flow, and segment plug flow appeared sequentially along the axial direction of the capillary, and the proportion of gas phase volume fraction at the capillary outlet section gradually increased. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During the working process of the ADN-based thruster, continuously, heat generated by the chemical reaction in the combustion chamber will transfer along the upstream capillary, the propellant in the capillary continuously absorbs heat under the effect of heat transfer from the wall and undergoes a phase change when the saturation temperature is reached. In this study, effects of the downstream heating temperature (623 K to 923 K) on mass flow rate and pressure change in the capillary were investigated based on the established test platform. Simultaneously, the VOF (volume of fraction) model, and the Lee phase transition model coupled with the Navier–Stokes method was utilized to simulate the spatial distribution of the gas-liquid propellant in the capillary. The results show that the ADN-based propellant firstly formed bubbles on the inner wall surface near the exit of the capillary, and these vapor bubbles moved and grew upstream along the capillary. Due to the cooling effect of the ADN-based propellant inflow, the temperature distribution of the front chamber and capillary gradually reached equilibrium. Bubbles were constantly generated in the capillary, and as the heat reflux intensified, the total volume of bubbles in the capillary continued increasing. Single-phase flow, annular flow, wave flow, and segment plug flow appeared sequentially along the axial direction of the capillary, and the proportion of gas phase volume fraction at the capillary outlet section gradually increased.

Plasma-enhanced decomposition is a promising method to achieve reliable ignition and better thruster performance with an ADN-based propellant. High-speed imaging and optical emission spectroscopy are used to characterize the discharge plasma produced from ADN-based propellant vapor and argon carrier gas within parallel planes. Discharge regimes are independently controlled by varying working parameters. The transition from abnormal glow discharge (AGD) to filamentary discharge (FD) is identified from voltage-current characteristics and sudden changes in excitation electron temperature (T e-exc) and electron density (N e) under a pressure of 0.2–10 kPa. Instabilities develop because there are more freedom degrees and higher collision probabilities after ADN-based propellant vapor is added. The product of T e-exc and N e shows a higher energy transfer efficiency from input power to vapor in the FD regime. Water molecules increase the net dissociative attachment rate and effectively quench N e. Although preheated vapor (as the discharge medium) has a much lower N e , more radicals appear such as OH, NH, CH, CN, N 2 , N 2 +, and C 2 , which promote chemical interactions in an electric field and increase the probability of successful ignition. This can be attributed to thermalization due to an increase in the translational kinetic energy and rotational excitation, which has an important impact on chemical reaction kinetics. Therefore, preheating is verified as critical for improving the ignition and performance of a plasma-assisted ADN-based thruster. [Display omitted] • A discharge plasma can assist ADN-based propellant decomposition. • Abrupt change of plasma parameters indicates discharge regime transition. • Introduce vapor promotes the development of discharge instabilities. • Preheated propellant vapor displays a higher decomposition efficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]