Electrolytic Decomposition and Ignition of AF-M315E Monopropellant Navy SBIR FY2015.1 Sol No.: Navy SBIR FY2015.1 Topic No.: N151-062 Topic Title: Electrolytic Decomposition and Ignition of AF-M315E Monopropellant Proposal No.: N151-062-0977 Firm: Ultramet 12173 Montague Street Pacoima, California 91331-2210 Contact: Matthew Wright Phone: (818) 899-0236 Web Site: www.ultramet.com Abstract: Ionic liquid monopropellants such as AF-M315E offer many advantages over monopropellant hydrazine and nitrogen tetroxide/monomethyl hydrazine (NTO/MMH) bipropellant, including increased specific impulse and density specific impulse as well as greater safety in terms of nontoxicity and insensitivity, which make them attractive for ship-based applications and can significantly decrease overall propulsion system volume, mass, and cost. In previous work, Pennsylvania State University demonstrated repeatable ignition and burn of ionic monopropellants with a novel system using flat fin electrodes for electrolytic gasification of species that can then be reacted through thermal or catalytic means. In this project, Ultramet will team with Penn State to design, fabricate, and test an AF-M315E igniter with high surface area open-cell foam electrodes to enable fast reaction times with the large propellant throughput necessary for divert and attitude control system (DACS) thrusters on missile defense kill vehicles. The high surface area electrodes will be a derivative of those developed in prior and ongoing work at Ultramet in which electrode attachment and electrical feedthrough schemes are being refined. Existing facilities and tools at Penn State will be used to evaluate the Ultramet high surface area electrodes. Propellant chemistry during electrolysis while in contact with electrodes of various materials will be characterized. The Phase II project will scale the igniter and combustion chamber to enable sizing of propulsive capability and reactivity, design and build an engine appropriate for a kill vehicle DACS, and bring the technology to TRL 6 through hot-fire testing. Benefits: The proposed open-cell foam-based ignition system will eliminate the catalyst degradation and washout issues plaguing AF-M315E catalysts. Potential applications will be numerous as it will enable use of advanced monopropellants that offer performance beyond that of monopropellant hydrazine and bipropellant NTO/MMH. The use of toxic propellants such as hydrazine can be eliminated in gas generators on military aircraft and fuel pressurization systems for tactical missiles. Because such a fast ramp rate and high ultimate temperature can be achieved, it is applicable to use in divert and attitude control systems for kinetic kill vehicles and other missile defense systems. The ignition system can be used for orbit transfer, maneuvering, station keeping, and attitude control on military, civil, and commercial satellites and spacecraft. Return