The Power of Tiangong - Hall Electric Propulsion Engine

The Tiangong Power China Space Station is equipped with four special engines with a total thrust of only 0.32 Newtons - Hall electric propulsion engines. With their unique working principle, they provide continuous power for the stable operation and precise control of the space station. They are like space windmills, driving the space station by blowing air. This' wind 'is formed by a super hot gas called plasma. Aerospace engineers cleverly use magnetic fields to restrict the movement of electrons, causing them to rotate in the magnetic field and collide with atoms to form plasma. Finally, the plasma is accelerated and ejected using an electric field. The application advantages of xenon gas in aerospace Hall electric thrusters are: (1) Xenon gas is lightweight and can provide high specific impulse and low thrust to weight ratio, thereby improving the efficiency of thrusters. (2) Hall electric thrusters can use the electrical energy on solar panels to accelerate xenon ions, thereby obtaining sustained thrust. This propulsion method saves fuel and greatly reduces.

The unit is designed for unsupervised public use: controls are recessed or shielded, moving parts are enclosed, and the interface is operable by a child of about six with no instruction. Where a screen is used, the language can be switched without changing the hardware, and the content can be replaced on site.

Hall thruster, also known as "Hall effect thruster", uses the Hall effect of electrons in an orthogonal electromagnetic field to ionize the working medium and generate high-density plasma. It accelerates the ejection of ions through coupling with an electrostatic field to generate thrust. Hall thrusters can use various propellants, with xenon being the most commonly used, while other propellants include radon, argon, bismuth, iodine, magnesium, and zinc. Hall electric propulsion engine is an efficient and long-lasting electric propulsion system suitable for providing sustained and precise thrust to spacecraft. Hall electric thrusters are mainly used in tasks such as in orbit propulsion, attitude control, and orbit correction. In the Chinese space station, Hall electric thrusters are used for attitude control and orbit adjustment of the combination.