A New Fuel is Capable of Enduring the Extreme Conditions Within a Nuclear Thermal Propulsion Reactor

General Atomics Electromagnetic Systems (GA-EMS) has successfully tested nuclear fuel designed for future spacecraft propulsion and power. The tests confirm the fuel’s ability to endure the extreme conditions of a nuclear rocket reactor.

Until now, spacecraft have primarily relied on chemical rockets for propulsion—a technology that deserves respect. Chemical engines launched the first satellite, landed the first human on the Moon, and propelled the first deep space probes beyond our solar system.

The Limitations of Chemical Rocketry

Chemical rockets have already reached the theoretical limits of their performance—a milestone first achieved in 1942 with the German V-2 rocket’s journey into space. Since then, advancements have focused on making rockets larger and more efficient through improvements unrelated to the engines themselves.

While alternatives like ion drives and solar sails exist, they produce minimal thrust and have limited uses. For truly ambitious missions, space engineers seek engines capable of delivering at least a third more power than the best chemical rockets. Such an engine could enable rapid shuttles between low Earth orbit and the Moon, quick orbital adjustments, and large crewed missions to Mars and other planets within reasonable timeframes.

Nuclear Thermal Propulsion

The most promising—and currently the only—candidate for meeting these needs is the Nuclear Thermal Propulsion (NTP) system, commonly known as a nuclear rocket. First proposed in 1945, this concept replaces chemical combustion with a nuclear reactor to heat a propellant. While hydrogen is the most likely choice for the propellant, almost any substance, including water, could be used since the propellant’s role is solely to act as reaction mass, expelled to generate thrust in accordance with Newton’s First Law.

The concept is straightforward, but the engineering challenges lie in the finer details. For instance, the reactor must withstand extremely high temperatures, intense vibrations, and superheated, highly reactive hydrogen gas. These conditions reach up to 2,326 °C (4,220 °F).

Conventional nuclear fuel struggles to endure such extremes, but what rocket engineers require is a fuel that not only survives these conditions but also resists cracking or splintering in the process.

Successful Testing Confirms Durability of Advanced Nuclear Fuel

Scott Forney, president of GA-EMS, stated that recent tests conducted at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Redstone Arsenal, Alabama, confirmed the new fuel’s ability to withstand operational temperatures without erosion or degradation. The fuel endured full reactor heat and hydrogen gas exposure for 20 minutes—comparable to the duration required during a typical boost maneuver. Additional tests assessed the fuel’s performance under varying protective conditions not explicitly specified.

Dr. Christina Back, vice president of GA-EMS Nuclear Technologies and Materials, highlighted the significance of these results: “To our knowledge, we are the first company to utilize NASA MSFC’s compact fuel element environmental test (CFEET) facility to successfully test and demonstrate fuel survivability after thermal cycling at hydrogen-representative temperatures and ramp rates.” She added, “We also conducted tests in a non-hydrogen environment at our GA-EMS laboratory, where the fuel performed exceptionally well at temperatures up to 3,000 °K (4,940 °F, 2,726 °C). This level of performance could make the NTP system two to three times more efficient than traditional chemical rocket engines. We look forward to continuing our collaboration with NASA as we advance and refine the fuel to meet the requirements for future cislunar and Mars missions.”

Read the original article on: New Atlas

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