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	<title>SpaceBuild &#187; Electric</title>
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		<title>Electric Propulsion</title>
		<link>http://www.spacebuild.net/s1/propulsion/electric-propulsion/20/</link>
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		<pubDate>Tue, 14 Jul 2009 20:42:29 +0000</pubDate>
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				<category><![CDATA[Electric]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[electric]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Propulsion]]></category>

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		<description><![CDATA[Electric (Ion) Propulsion Electric propulsion works by using electrical energy to accelerate a propellant to much higher velocities than is possible using chemical reactions. The most common propellant used in ion engines is xenon. Early experimental ion engines used mercury and caesium, but they proved hard to work with. At room temperature, mercury is liquid and caesium is solid; they both must be heated first to turn them into a gas. There is a risk that as the mercury or caesium exhaust cools, many of the atoms would condense on the exterior surface of the spacecraft, thus contaminating instruments and solar cells. Research is now concentrated on xenon, which is as a cleaner and simpler fuel for use in ion engines. While current ion propulsion systems use solar panels to create the required electricity, there are plans for nuclear-powered ion systems. These would be of great use in exploring the outer solar system, where solar power is no longer efficient. Thrusters As stated above, ion propulsion involves ionising a gas to propel a craft. Instead of a spacecraft being propelled with standard chemicals, the gas xenon is given an electrical charge, or ionised. It is then electrically accelerated to a [...]]]></description>
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