High-Accuracy Thrust Measurements of the EMDrive and Elimination of False-Positive Effects
Research output: Contribution to journal › Research article › Contributed › peer-review
Contributors
Abstract
The EMDrive is a proposed propellantless propulsion concept claiming to be many orders of magnitude more efficient than classical radiation pressure forces. It is based on microwaves, which are injected into a closed tapered cavity, producing a unidirectional thrust with values of at least 1 mN/kW. This was met with high scepticism going against basic conservation laws and classical mechanics. However, several tests and theories appeared in the literature supporting this concept. Measuring a thruster with a significant thermal and mechanical load as well as high electric currents, such as those required to operate a microwave amplifier, can create numerous artefacts that produce false-positive thrust values. After many iterations, we developed an inverted counterbalanced double pendulum thrust balance, where the thruster can be mounted on a bearing below its suspension point to eliminate most thermal drift effects. In addition, the EMDrive was self-powered by a battery-pack to remove undesired interactions due to feedthroughs. We found no thrust values within a wide frequency band including several resonance frequencies and different modes. Our data limit any anomalous thrust to below the force equivalent from classical radiation for a given amount of power. This provides strong limits to all proposed theories and rules out previous test results by at least two orders of magnitude.
Details
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 31-44 |
Number of pages | 14 |
Journal | CEAS space journal |
Volume | 14 |
Issue number | 1 |
Publication status | Published - 27 Jul 2021 |
Peer-reviewed | Yes |
External IDs
Scopus | 85111404530 |
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unpaywall | 10.1007/s12567-021-00385-1 |
WOS | 000677954900001 |
Mendeley | d32baa79-35dc-3216-b2e3-d072f3a40a88 |
ORCID | /0000-0002-7406-7588/work/172570987 |
Keywords
Research priority areas of TU Dresden
ASJC Scopus subject areas
Keywords
- EMDrive, Propellantless propulsion, Thrust balance