Description du projet
Un nouveau micro-véhicule de lancement pour petits satellites
Le marché des petits satellites (smallsats) connaît une croissance rapide, tout comme le secteur des services de lanceurs spatiaux, qui devrait atteindre 2,52 milliards de dollars en 2022. L’un des principaux inconvénients des petits satellites est lié au fait qu’ils soient forcés de partager de gros lanceurs avec d’autres charges utiles, ce qui entraîne des problèmes relatifs à l’espace disponible et à la programmation des lancements. PRIME est un projet de phase 2 visant à mettre au point un micro-véhicule orbital européen reposant sur la technologie des propergols cryogéniques à double base, qui réduit à la fois la masse inerte des véhicules de ce type ainsi que leur impact environnemental. Outre le fait d’offrir davantage de flexibilité en termes de programmation des lancements, ce projet introduira un microlanceur européen sur le marché mondial, bénéficiant d’un avantage concurrentiel et d’un coût considérablement réduit.
Objectif
Small satellites (smallsats) are playing an increasingly significant role in space. Smallsats currently fly to space via ridesharing – taking spare capacity on a large launcher. Rideshare has numerous issues, including lack of availability, severe launch delays, and unsuitable orbits. Orbex is developing an EU-based orbital micro-launch vehicle with a uniquely innovative advantage that eliminates the issues of rideshare and mitigates the cost of a dedicated launch for smallsat operators. The vehicle exploits the properties of dual-cryogenic propellants to create an innovative, lightweight, low-cost tanking
arrangement that reduces the inert mass of the launch vehicle by as much at 30% over traditional designs, and enable the world’s first environmentally-friendly rocket fuel strategy, with a 90% reduction in environmental impact. The small satellite launch market is well established and growing rapidly. The market for smallsat launch services is projected to grow US$2.52B p.a by 2022, a CAGR 23.2%. The benefits of developing this tanking system for a European micro-launch vehicle include:-
• Lowering cost of space access, including logistics/integration
• Reduced delay in time-to-market
• Enabling faster revenue generation for smallsat business models
Orbex staff have designed & realized a prototype tank, and subsequently drafted patents for the technology. The tank was instrumented, hydrostatically pressure-tested and then used to prove the concept in cryogenic conditions. The objective of this SME Instrument Phase 2 project is to build on a prior SME Instrument Phase 1 feasibility study of the materials, suppliers and production processes required to implement this novel fuel tank concept using European materials and techniques at full scale. This Phase 2 project allow a European company to compete for this large, global market with significant, sustainable cost and operational advantages over global competitors.
Champ scientifique
Mots‑clés
Programme(s)
Régime de financement
SME-2 - SME instrument phase 2Coordinateur
N7 9DP London
Royaume-Uni
L’entreprise s’est définie comme une PME (petite et moyenne entreprise) au moment de la signature de la convention de subvention.