Expanite, a Danish company with a production facility in Ohio, U.S.A, that specializes in surface hardening of stainless steel and titanium, and Enpulsion, an Austrian-based manufacturer of electric propulsion systems for nano- and microsatellites with an office in Massachusetts, U.S.A., have collaborated successfully in solving wear and galling challenges in the production line at Enpulsion.
Prior to the partnership, Enpulsion experienced challenges by the galling of threads on the housing, which was causing serious issues in the production line. The goal was to find a treatment that would prevent galling, and retain corrosion properties of the austenitic stainless steel part, while also maintaining the manufacturing tolerances, and guarantee good weldability of the final part.
After receiving help from Expanite, Enpulsions field-emission electric propulsion (FEEP) technology is an advanced electrostatic propulsion concept of an ion engine that uses liquid metal, indium, as a propellant. A FEEP drive system consists of an emitter and an accelerator electrode. A potential difference in the order of kV is applied between the two, creating a strong electric field at the top of the metal surface, which extracts ions from the apex of the cone and accelerates them to high speeds.
The IFM Nano Thruster is used as a compact pre-qualified building block in order to provide customized propulsion solutions for nano- and microsatellites. By clustering the proprietary indium ion emitters, a scaled-up thruster the IFM Micro Thruster is created to target the even larger market of small- and medium-size space crafts.
Image courtesy of Enpulsion