Studying the Electrostatic Effects on the Dynamics of Charged Lunar Dust via Discrete Element Method

Author

Hao Wang, University of Central Florida

Abstract

Dust problems raise significant concerns in planetary surface exploration. The unusual behavior of the dust particles that surround the vehicle after engine cutoff has the potential to have more of an influence on surface systems than the high velocity lunar rocket plume ejecta in the landing process. A prevailing hypothesis attributes the levitation and transport of dust particles on the surface of airless bodies to the electrostatic effects and electric field. However, there is no accurate model considering the inter-particle electrostatic interactions, especially when the particles are charged by plume. This dissertation aims to understand the behavior of charged lunar regolith with a discrete element method (DEM) approach focusing on the inter-particle interactions and contact charge transfer. To accomplish this, the grain dynamics is coupled with mechanical and electrical particle interactions, and both short-range and long-range interactions between particles are incorporated. A tribo-charging model based on instantaneous collisions is adopted and validated by simulation and experimental data. Sensitivity analysis is conducted to quantify the effects of initial charge, tribo-charging, and E-field on transport of lunar dust. DEM simulations are then performed for a near realistic lunar environment that show the differences of position and velocity distributions between charged particles and uncharged particles. The results indicate that the charged dust particles have higher dispersion and wider distribution of velocity due to the electrostatic effects. This provides a possible explanation for the phenomena of the approximately 30 s dust lofting following Apollo Lunar Module landing. It is shown that tribo-charging has a more considerable effect on the dynamics of charged particles with a large amount of charge, while the change of E-field does not significantly affect the results. Furthermore, superquadrics and multi-sphere approximations are introduced as two approaches to aspherical geometry to accomplish high-fidelity simulation of lunar dust in the future.

Notes

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Graduation Date

2022

Semester

Spring

Advisor

Elgohary, Tarek

Degree

Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)

College

College of Engineering and Computer Science

Department

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering

Degree Program

Aerospace Engineering

Format

application/pdf

Identifier

CFE0009464; DP0027187

URL

https://purls.library.ucf.edu/go/DP0027187

Language

English

Release Date

11-15-2022

Length of Campus-only Access

None

Access Status

Doctoral Dissertation (Open Access)

STARS Citation

Wang, Hao, "Studying the Electrostatic Effects on the Dynamics of Charged Lunar Dust via Discrete Element Method" (2022). Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-. 1493.
https://stars.library.ucf.edu/etd2020/1493