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Testing Multiwall Carbon Nanotubes on Ion Erosion for Advanced Space Propulsion

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  15 March 2011

Yoke Khin Yap,
Jitendra Menda,
Lakshman Kumar Vanga,
Vijaya Kayastha,
Jiesheng Wang,
Lyon B. King,
Svetlana Dimovski and
Yury Gogotsi
Yoke Khin Yap
Affiliation:
Department of Physics, Michigan Technological University, Houghton, MI 49931, USAEmail: ykyap@mtu.edu
Jitendra Menda
Affiliation:
Department of Physics, Michigan Technological University, Houghton, MI 49931, USA
Lakshman Kumar Vanga
Affiliation:
Department of Physics, Michigan Technological University, Houghton, MI 49931, USA
Vijaya Kayastha
Affiliation:
Department of Physics, Michigan Technological University, Houghton, MI 49931, USA
Jiesheng Wang
Affiliation:
Department of Physics, Michigan Technological University, Houghton, MI 49931, USA
Lyon B. King
Affiliation:
Department of Mechanical Engineering-Engineering Mechanics, Michigan Technological University, Houghton, MI 49931, USAEmail: lbking@mtu.edu
Svetlana Dimovski
Affiliation:
Department of Materials Science and Engineering and A. J. Drexel Nanotechnology Institute, Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
Yury Gogotsi
Affiliation:
Department of Materials Science and Engineering and A. J. Drexel Nanotechnology Institute, Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
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Abstract

Are carbon nanotubes more resistant than diamonds against ion erosion? Here, we report an evaluation of multiwall carbon nanotubes (MWNTs) as the protective coating against plasma erosion in advanced space propulsion systems. We have compared polycrystalline diamond films with MWNTs, amorphous carbon (a-C) and boron nitride (BN) films. Two types of MWNTs were investigated including vertically aligned (VA) MWNTs, and those horizontally laid on the substrate surfaces. Only diamond films and VA-MWNTs survived erosion by 250 eV krypton ions of a flight-quality Hall-effect thruster. VA-MWNTs are found to bundle at their tips after ion erosion.

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