Thrust distribution characteristics and structural strength analysis of the MHD propeller with a helical channel

Xiaoqiang Chen^1,2 - Hualin Ye³ - Lingzhi Zhao^1,2 - Aiwu Peng^1,2 - Weng Wang¹

¹ Institute of Electrical Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China 100190
² University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China 100049
³ Tianjin Wannuohui Technology Co., Ltd, China 300480

Abstract
Based on the fluid momentum equation, the wall area integral method for MHD thruster thrust prediction is derived, and the correctness of the thrust prediction method is verified by experiment comparison. According to the wall area integral method, the thrust distribution of MHD thruster in a helical channel is analyzed, and the results show that the helical blade provides 102.07\% of the total thrust and the rectifier provides 1.5\% of the total thrust; the remaining components provide a negative thrust. To check the structural strength of the flow passage components, such as the helical blade, the pressure distribution of the MHD propeller in the steady-state operation under the design condition is taken as the load, based on ANSYS Workbench. A structural strength analyzing method of the MHD thruster channel has been developed and its static structural analysis is carried out. The obtained results show that the structural strength meets the requirements for existing materials and blade thickness. Tables 3, Figs 8, Refs 7.