CHIPS (0.5U)
CU Aerospace
The CubeSat High Impulse Propulsion System (CHIPS) is a compact propulsion unit designed for CubeSats, offering significant total impulse for mission maneuvers.
Typed specifications24 values
Discloses 9 of 10 fields engineers filter by in this category (category median 3).
- Propulsion family
- cold-gas cold gas mode · datasheet p.1 electric warm gas resistojet (superheater) mode
- Mass
- 1.03 kg system wet mass · datasheet p.1
- Thrust
- 15 mN cold gas mode · datasheet p.1 15 mN warm gas mode
- Envelope (L×W×H)
- 10 cm x 9 cm x 6 cm (package size); thruster system volume 540 cm3 (6 x 9 x 10) datasheet p.1
- Specific impulse
- 45 s cold gas mode · datasheet p.1 67 s warm gas mode
- Total impulse
- 180 N·s as stated in description text · datasheet p.1 118 N·s cold gas mode, full propellant load (table) | 176 N·s warm gas mode, full propellant load (table)
- Propellant
- R134a self-pressurizing R134a baseline propellant · datasheet p.1
- Design lifetime
- 3 years min · life span 3+ years from propellant load · datasheet p.2
- TRL
- 6 datasheet p.1
- Thruster technology
- cold gas cold gas mode · datasheet p.1 warm gas or resistojet high efficiency resistojet (superheater), warm gas mode
- Volume
- 0.54 U datasheet p.1
- Number of starts or pulses
- 120 000 000 min · valves tested to >120,000,000 cold gas firings · datasheet p.2
- Min impulse bit
- 0.1 mN·s max · datasheet p.1
- Propellant mass (full load)
- 277 g datasheet p.1
- Power at thrust
- 20 W power draw when thrusting · datasheet p.1
- Max continuous burn
- 600 s maximum continuous thrust time · datasheet p.1
- Satellite class
- CubeSat CubeSat High Impulse Propulsion System, tailored for small sa… · datasheet p.1
- Thrust vector control
- multi-thruster differential up to 8 ACS thrusters, roll/pitch/yaw control, 6DOF · datasheet p.2
Each value is typed with its unit and measurement condition and cites the datasheet page it was taken from. Nothing is guessed: a field that is absent here has not been published by the manufacturer. machine-extracted ✓ checked by NewSpace Market ✓ manufacturer confirmed by the manufacturer.
As published by the supplier6 lines, in the manufacturer's own wording
- Total Impulse
- 176 N-s
- Thrust
- 15.00 mN
- Specific Impulse
- 67 sec
- Wet Mass
- 1,079 g
- Volume Impulse
- 326 N-s/liter
- Technical Readiness Level (TRL)
- 6
About
The CHIPS (0.5U) is a CubeSat High Impulse Propulsion System, providing a total impulse of 176 N-s. It delivers a thrust of 15.00 mN and has a specific impulse of 67 seconds. With a wet mass of 1,079 grams and a volume impulse of 326 N-s/liter, this system is designed for CubeSat applications. The Technical Readiness Level (TRL) for CHIPS is 6, indicating a high level of development and testing. This propulsion system is part of CU Aerospace’s offerings to advance projects with various-sized systems, allowing for comparison with mission specifications.
Documentation
Need the full ICD, test reports or a specific revision? Ask the supplier directly.