General Atomics Electromagnetic Systems (GA-EMS) has completed a series of high-impact nuclear fuel tests at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center (Marshall) in Huntsville, Alabama, advancing the development of Nuclear Thermal Propulsion (NTP) systems for future cislunar and deep space missions, including potential crewed missions to Mars.
The tests, conducted in collaboration with NASA and managed by Battelle Energy Alliance at Idaho National Laboratory, verified that GA-EMS’ specialized reactor fuel could meet the demanding performance standards required for operation in space. According to GA-EMS President Scott Forney, “The recent testing results represent a critical milestone in the successful demonstration of fuel design for NTP reactors. Fuel must survive extremely high temperatures and the hot hydrogen gas environment that an NTP reactor operating in space would typically encounter. We’re very encouraged by the positive test results proving the fuel can survive these operational conditions, moving us closer to realizing the potential of safe, reliable nuclear thermal propulsion for cislunar and deep space missions.”
To evaluate the survivability and performance of the fuel, GA-EMS subjected fuel samples to six thermal cycles at NASA’s Compact Fuel Element Environmental Test (CFEET) facility. The cycles ramped up to a peak temperature of 2600 Kelvin (4220°F), holding for 20 minutes at each peak to assess material resilience in a high-temperature hydrogen environment. GA-EMS reports it is the first company to use the CFEET facility at Marshall to test and demonstrate fuel survivability under hydrogen conditions and ramp rates representative of space reactor environments.
Additional non-hydrogen tests at GA-EMS’ laboratory confirmed fuel integrity at up to 3000 Kelvin. This level of thermal resilience is expected to enable propulsion systems two to three times more efficient than conventional chemical rocket engines. “To the best of our knowledge, we are the first company to use the compact fuel element environmental test (CFEET) facility at NASA MSFC to successfully test and demonstrate the survivability of fuel after thermal cycling in hydrogen representative temperatures and ramp rates,” said Dr. Christina Back, vice president of Nuclear Technologies and Materials at GA-EMS. “We’ve also conducted tests in a non-hydrogen environment at our GA-EMS laboratory, which confirmed the fuel performed exceptionally well at temperatures up to 3000 K, which would enable the NTP system to be two-to-three times more efficient than conventional chemical rocket engines. We are excited to continue our collaboration with NASA as we mature and test the fuel to meet the performance requirements for future cislunar and Mars mission architectures.”
General Atomics Electromagnetic Systems conducted testing for NASA under a contract managed by Battelle Energy Alliance.
About General Atomics Electromagnetic Systems
General Atomics Electromagnetic Systems develops advanced technologies for defense, aerospace, and national security applications. The company’s portfolio spans electromagnetic launch systems, power and energy storage, hypersonic and directed energy systems, satellites, and propulsion technologies for space, including support for hazardous waste remediation and nuclear energy markets.
For more information, visit Space Nuclear | General Atomics.
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