title: A survey of propulsion options for cargo and piloted missions to Mars.
abstract: In this paper, high-power electric propulsion options are surveyed in the context of cargo and piloted missions to Mars. A low-thrust trajectory optimization program (raptor) is utilized to analyze this mission. Candidate thrusters are chosen based upon demonstrated performance in the laboratory. Hall, self-field magnetoplasmadynamic (MPDT), self-field lithium Lorentz force accelerator (LiLFA), arcjet, and applied-field LiLFA systems are considered for this mission. In this first phase of the study, all thrusters are assumed to operate at a single power level (regardless of the efficiency-power curve), and the thruster specific mass and power plant specific mass are taken to be the same for all systems. Under these assumptions, for a 7.5 MW, 60 mT payload, piloted mission, the self-field LiLFA results in the shortest trip time (340 days) with a reasonable propellant mass fraction of 57% (129 mT). For a 150 kW, 9 mT payload, cargo mission, both the applied-field LiLFA and the Hall thruster seem reasonable choices with propellant mass fractions of 42 to 45%(7 to 8 mT). The Hall thrusters provide better trip times (530-570 days) compared to the applied-field LiLFA (710 days) for the relatively less demanding mission.
authors.affiliation: Electric Propulsion Plasma Dynamics Laboratory, Mechanical Aerospace Engineering Department, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA.
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Sankaran
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Cassady
authors.forename: A D
authors.initials: AD
authors.lastname: Kodys
authors.forename: E Y
authors.initials: EY
authors.lastname: Choueiri