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Originally Posted by sjf911
0.05 lbs
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A small amount of thrust over a long period of time is al it takes... I worked on a project back in the '90s to produce thrust by simply thermally expanding hydrogen. The "technology demonstrator" was a prototype to lead to a system that could boost satellites once in LEO.
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The demonstration of a unique liquid hydrogen (LH2) storage and feed system concept for solar thermal upper stage was cooperatively accomplished by a Boeing/NASA Marshall Space Flight Center team. The strategy was to balance thermodynamic venting with the engine thrusting timeline during a representative 30-day mission, thereby, assuring no vent losses. Using a 2 cubic m (71 cubic ft) LH2 tank, proof-of-concept testing consisted of an engineering checkout followed by a 30-day mission simulation. The data were used to anchor a combination of standard analyses and computational fluid dynamics (CFD) modeling. Dependence on orbital testing has been incrementally reduced as CFD codes, combined with standard modeling, continue to be challenged with test data such as this.
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I was responsible for the design and integration of the hardware at MSFC...