Equilibrium state of axially symmetric electric solar wind sail at arbitrary sail angles  

作　　者：Chonggang DU Zheng H.ZHU Changqing WANG Aijun LI Tuanjie LI 

机构地区：[1]School of Mechano-Electronic Engineering,Xidian University,Xi’an 710071,China [2]Department of Mechanical Engineering,York University,Ontario M3J 1P3,Canada [3]School of Automation,Northwestern Polytechnical University,Xi’an 710129,China

出　　处：《Chinese Journal of Aeronautics》2024年第11期232-241,共10页中国航空学报（英文版）

基　　金：supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(No.12302052);the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities,China(No.XJSJ23128);the Discovery Grant of Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada(No.RGPIN2018-05991)。

摘　　要：This paper studies the equilibrium state and trajectory dynamics of an axially symmetric Electric solar wind sail(E-sail)at arbitrary sail angles.The E-sail is assumed operating in a heliocentric-ecliptic orbit at approximately one astronomic unit(au)from the Sun,and experiencing various dynamic disturbances like solar wind pressure,tether tension oscillations,and centrifugal forces.The study derives analytical expressions for the E-sail's equilibrium state and its maximal coning angle under small coning angle assumption.Subsequently,an improved propulsion model is developed for the E-sail in this equilibrium state.To assess the precision of these formulations,a high-fidelity E-sail dynamic model is constructed using the nodal position finite element method,where the tethers are modeled as two-noded tensile elements and the central spacecraft and remote units are simplified as lumped masses.Through thorough parametric analyses,this paper conclusively demonstrates that the operation of the E-sail at the equilibrium state can be achieved in accordance with the derived analytical prediction of the equilibrium state.Furthermore,the improved propulsion model is employed in trajectory analyses for a mission to reach the solar system's boundary.The study provides valuable insights and findings and foundation for the practical application and further advancement of the E-sail technology.

关 键 词：Electric solar wind sail Extremely flexible system Multi-body dynamics Harmonic motion Maximum coning angle Equilibrium configuration Improved propulsion model High-fidelity modeling 

分 类 号：V442[航空宇航科学与技术—飞行器设计]