Aiaa 2003–3773 Plume Effects on the Satellite Base Region for Various Operating Conditions

The interaction of thruster plumes with satellite components is investigated with emphasis on the undesirable effects such as disturbance force/torque, thermal loading, and species deposition in the Korea MultiPurpose Satellite-II (KOMPSAT-II) base region. Actual configuration of satellite is simplified by considering four major components of hydrazine thrusters, S-band antenna, and surrounding ring. For numerical simulation, a fully unstructured three-dimensional DSMC code is developed and validated. DSMC computation enables us to visualize the detailed flow structure as well as surface properties, which otherwise would not be possible in the simplified engineering analysis. As a result, the present thruster arrangement used in KOMPSAT-II is found to provide the negligible disturbance force/torque and thermal loading compared with their nominal thrust/torque and solar heating. The species deposition is also insignificant due to the high surface temperature of satellite body while a large amount of H 2 molecules is colliding with the S-band antenna cone. This study clearly shows the usefulness of numerical simulation for plume effect analysis in the development phase of satellite. Nomenclatures P 0 chamber pressure q sol solar constant T 0 chamber temperature x, y, z coordinates ∆t time step σ T thermal accommodation coefficient Subscript BOL Beginning of Life