Ion Thruster

Documentation

Github

Research phase

I first saw the plane made by MIT that was completely propelled by ion thrusters.LINK
The plane was only able to sustain flight for 10 seconds.
The type of ionic truster they used was extremely similar to MARK 1/2 of the ionic truster made by Plasma Channel. Link
Later, plasma channel made a mark 3 using convergence to increase the trust. LINK
His one single section was able to output 3.1 m/s
His module weighed around 500 grams(estimate)

Goals

A truster that can produce >3.1 m/s
A thruster that weighs > 150 grams(with electonnics) and under 8 grams without electronics
A sustained flight of < 10 seconds

Ion truster designs

The thruster utilizes an angle of 140 degrees and a distance of 2.5

The thruster utilizes an angle of 140 degrees and a distance of 3

The thruster utilizes an angle of 140 degrees and a distance of 3.5

The thruster utilizes an angle of 150 degrees and a distance of 2.5

The thruster utilizes an angle of 160 degrees and a distance of 2.5

Data collection

ISEF DATA

Optimization

After I collected the data from each of the different ion trusters, I made equations to see what would be the most optimal for each of the 3 data points I was testing: angle, distance, and optimal power. But after I collected my data i found that there was an increasing trend fr the distance but due to the fact that as the distance increased, so did the power. I decided to collect an additional data point with a higher distance to figure out if the trend continued or leveled off due to power constraints. After the final data point, I found that the most optimal combination would be 160 degrees with a maximum distance. This produced a wind speed of 2.9 m/s

Decreasing weight

The 3D printed models were too heavy they weighed around 48 grams, which was excessive. So, I decided to redesign them by merging wood parts with some 3D printed parts, which decreased the weight significantly. The finnal weight had been decresed down to 6 grams.

Plane design

techxxstingray.pdf

Plane

I needed the plane to be extremely light and efficient, so I first researched F1D planes and used those building techniques to create my first prototype. Then, I designed a plane in Fusion using 2mm x 2mm balsa wood for the frame and lightweight plastic for the airfoil.

Designe Specs

I designed the plane to be a blended wing plane to increase efficiency while reducing weight. The whole model weighed only 15 grams, but I designed it so it needed nose weight that was the same as my goal weight for the ion thruster model (5-7 grams), and the rest of the electronics would sit on the supporting frame, which was exactly at the center of mass.

techxxstingray-PDF-Gridder-25-pages.pdf

POSTERED PDF (PRINT pages )

Electronics

Original circuit

The original circuit, using a flyback transformer attached to a zvz circuit, was far too large and heavy for the plane I designed and built, so I had to optimize the electronics. I tested three different high‑voltage generators, each with its own output voltage and weight.