Moorestown Team 2 Propulsion PowerPoint

1. Propulsions of the Future
Rocket Boys: Griffin Conroy, Steven Catando,
Nicholas Georgiades

2. A Long Ride:
“Fail smart fast small cheap early and often”
( Dr. Camarda)
● We overcame many problems to get to get to our
solution,
-Had to rethink our whole project at one point.
-Hit dead ends to our data.

3. Research Question:
● Can we combine different types of propulsion to
have an efficient engine being key to the evolution
of space travel to Mars?

4. Why this Matters
● Creates opportunities for future space travel.
● Humans can benefit from additional technological.
advances due to improved technology.
● Benefits mankind, and our probability of survival in
the distant future.

5. Propulsion Efficiency:
The start of our project was to know the different
types of propulsions to create our own that will be
the most efficient.
-4 categories fuel efficiency, cost, thrust, fuel type
- 6 propulsions were put into a spreadsheet and
compared them in categories.

6. Merlin Engines 1D
-Developed by SpaceX, is a conventional engine.
-Currently used on Falcon Heavy 9
-Uses a (1st Stage) 9 engine configuration
-Uses RP-1, Rocket grade kerosene and Liquid
Oxygen

7. VASIMR
-Propulsion runs on plasma.
-Under development
-Has a magnetic based propulsion.

8. Laser Photon Propulsion:
● A theoretical propulsion system
● Laser as the engine that pushes a spacecraft
● Using photons reflected off a sail
● Distance affects the efficiency

9. Spreadsheet Results:

10. Fuel Type:Merlin Engines 1D
VASIMR
Engines
VX-200
Laser
Photon
Propulsion
Merlin
Engines
1D
Hall Thrusters
PPS-1350-E
SLS-RS-25 Rocketdyne F-1
Engine
Uses
radio
waves to
ionize and
heat the
propellent
Methanol Rocket-
grade
kerosene
(RP-1)
and liquid
oxygen)
Xenon Liquid
Hydrogen
Liquid
Oxygen
Liquid Oxygen/
Kerosene (RP-1)

11. Fuel Efficiency: SLS-RS-25
VASIMR Engines
VX-200
Laser Photon
Propulsion
Merlin Engines
1D
Hall Thrusters
PPS-1350-E
SLS-RS-25 Rocketdyne F-1
Engine
Having different
speed settings
makes it more
efficient being
able to save fuel
for situations
during a mission.
72%
Closer to laser =
more efficient,
optical cavities
improve
efficiency,,Instant
aneous Energy
Efficiency comes
when - (power
that goes into
direct kinetic
energy/ laser
power on
reflector) 50%
70%-100% fuel
efficiency
Using plasma as
a propellant along
with it being an
electric propulsion
system makes it
efficient. 45-60%
Screen reader
support
enabled.
109% (Power
Level) When
using a vacuum
thrust of 512,300,
and has a
pressure chamber
of 2,994 psi
60% at maximum
thrust which
would be about
1.5 million pounds

12. Thrust: Rocketdyne F 1 Engine
VASIMR
Engines VX-
200
Laser Photon
Propulsion
Merlin Engines
1D
Hall Thrusters
PPS-1350-E
SLS-RS-25 Rocketdyne F-
1 Engine
4.4N at 40%
efficiency =
0.989159 pounds
6.6 at 50 %
effciency
=1.48374 pounds
845 kilonewtons
(190,000 pounds)
of thrust at liftoff
Thrust 50% of
specfic Impulse
*The total impulse
is the product of
the thrust divided
by the running
time most models
operate between
15 and 30 km/s
(1,500–3,000 s
specific impulse)
which would give
it a thrust of about
10,000 pounds
512,000 pounds
of thrust
1.5 Million pounds
of thrust

13. Cost:$400 million
● Combined cost of VASIMR and Laser Photon
Propulsion
VASIMR
Engines VX-
200
Laser Photon
Propulsion
Merlin Engines
1D
Hall Thrusters
PPS-1350-E
SLS-RS-25 Rocketdyne F-
1 Engine
$210 Million a
year
Sail + payload
cost = 190
Million
$30 Million $5.7 Million $1.5 BIllion $69 Million

14. Introduction to our hybrid:
L.A.R.P. (Laser Arc Reactor Propulsion)
-This propulsion system will combine laser photon
propulsion and the VASIMR engine.
-Laser photon propulsion being energy efficient.
-The VASIMR engine having a unique propulsion.

15. Criteria:
-Hypothetical/Conventional.
-Combines multiple types of propulsion.
-Semi plausible.(Has to be realistic)

16. “Arc Reactor”:
A project being created by ITER a group formed by
China, the European Union, India, Japan, Korea,
Russia and the United States creating the largest
fusion reactor called Tokamak.
-This will be the first reactor that has a positive
power output.
Having an output of 500MW

17. Tokamak:

19. Thank you for your time.
Any Questions?

20. Works Cited:
Lubin, Philip. “Directed Energy for Relativistic Interstellar Missions.” Starlight, California
Space Grant, 2018, http://www.deepspace.ucsb.edu/projects/starlight
Lubin, Philip. “Extrasolar Travelers.” Experimental Astrophysics, UCSB Experimental
Cosmology Group, 2018, http://www.deepspace.ucsb.edu/projects/ets
Lubin, Philip. “UC Santa Barbara Laser Propulsion” UC Santa Barbara Deep Space, A
Roadmap to Interstellar Flight, 2018,
http://www.deepspace.ucsb.edu/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/Laser-Propulsion-
Classical-1D-Standalone.html
Lubin, Philip. “Wafer Scale Spacecraft” Experimental Astrophysics, UCSB Experimental
Cosmology Group, 2018,
http://www.deepspace.ucsb.edu/projects/wafer-scale-spacecraft-development